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The
first release of Guilty Gear back in 1998 illustrated two
major points; 2D Beat-‘Em-Ups were not dead and Capcom and SNK
were not the only developers capable of producing great 2D
One-On-One Beat-‘Em-Ups. Guilty Gear’s superb artwork and
fast, responsive gameplay ensured it’s survival in a market
dominated by Street
Fighter remakes and paved the way for many sequels. Recently
Guilty Gear X2 Reload was released for the Xbox and the
PlayStation2, boasting added functionality in the Xbox version with
online-play support and earned itself a reputation as underrated gem
amongst gaming critics. Due to the warm reception received by Guilty
Gear X2 Reload and the promising showing of Guilty Gear: Dust
Strikers at E3
2005, there are high hopes for the freshly
released PlayStation2 title, Guilty Gear Isuka; the series’
most recent incarnation. This version, published by the
up-and-coming 505 GameStreet, promises Super Smash Brothers Melee-esque
four-player action and extensive character customisation; but
strangely online play has been removed. 2005 gifted the PlayStation2
with the brilliant Tekken 5
and Soul Calibur III, can
this 2D Beat-‘Em-Up realistically continue to compete against the
high-standard set by these 3D fighters? Or is it time to add another
dimension?
The
first great point about Guilty Gear Isuka is it’s budget
price-tag, at almost half the price of most PlayStation2 titles, you
will probably be hoping value is the order of the day. However,
these lower priced titles are regularly scruffy, unfinished rubbish
with only gems like the crazy Gungrave Overdose, the blinding
Bujingai
Swordmaster and the
GameCube port recently having arrived in the UK; Harvest Moon: A
Wonderful Life, offering worthwhile gaming experiences, but most
do not have the rich heritage of Guilty Gear. Guilty Gear
Isuka’s Arcade Mode breaks the mould of standard
Beat-‘Em-Ups. Instead of presenting you with a set number of
opponents to beat, Guilty Gear Isuka places you in several
battles with up to three enemies and you earn Survival Levels by
causing damage to your adversaries and predictably, surviving. If
you die, you giving the option of continuing, so Arcade Mode is
still more like the classic Arcade Mode than Survival. At Level 99,
the game’s challenging End Boss arrives and once you have beaten
him, the game ends. Guilty Gear Isuka thankfully keeps the
series’ gameplay lightning-fast and addictive so it’s likely you
will want to repeat this procedure with many more of this titles
numerous varied characters.
Although
with three fighters on screen the game remains fun, it can become a
little too frantic, this effect is increased dramatically when there
are four fighters onscreen to the point where keeping track of your
fighter borders on impossible and the match winner is determined
almost at random. Although these fights are rare, they really are
not that much fun and you will quickly start to tire of playing
them. Guilty Gear Isuka also uses a system similar to Viewtiful
Joe and Capcom Fighting Jam to give the illusion of some
3D elements, whilst implementing a dual-layered fighting-arena;
allowing players to move between the back and front of the Levels
providing a variety of different moves and the ability to dodge
attacks. Fights are regularly interrupted by other challengers,
similar to when another human player joins. Although this is an
interesting feature, it only helps to confuse you further as it
spontaneously starts a new fight with new characters halfway through
the fight that you are in and makes play feel a little disjointed.
The
game features the ability to change the colours of every character.
You directly control the red, blue and green values of every part of
the model, allowing you an infinite level of customisation. This
feature is very simple, but ultimately a very good way of giving
players the ability to imprint their style on the in-game
characters. The only character you can actually customise in a game
changing way is Robo KY 2. This character can buy almost every move
and you can customise Robo KY 2’s attributes in RKII Factory Mode.
In order to earn the points necessary for this you must fight
through the games other major mode, GG Boost. GG Boost Mode is a
Side-Scrolling 2D Beat-‘Em-Up similar to the much loved classic, Streets
of Rage, obviously inspired by the Tekken series’
Tekken Force Mode. Although all characters can play through this
mode, only Robo KY 2 earns Experience and as such will probably be
the character you will use most for this. Although GG Boost Mode is
a welcome addition to the game, and a easily playable mode, it is
not particularly extensive or varied. Enemy models are frequently
recycled through out and as such, GG Boost Mode feels a little
unfinished and uninspired. It is still quite fun, but the kind of
repeated play necessary for the Levelling-Up of Robo KY 2 does make
the process slightly arduous after a while.
Guilty
Gear Isuka’s amazing 2D sprites and backgrounds are really
what steal the show. Anime fans will find the highly detailed
artwork very interesting as there is a great deal of variety in the
games many characters; from guitar playing witches to samurai
warriors, daemons to robots, there is something for everyone. The
backgrounds are also highly detailed and all-in-all Guilty Gear
Isuka’s 2D graphics are near perfect. The only problem is the
infrequent close-up sprites which look very inappropriate, but aside
from that, the graphics are probably amongst the best ever seen in a
2D game. The game also handles the totally insane four-player
matches without any problem at all. This is very helpful as it is
hard enough to figure out what is happening during normal play, let
alone if there were Frame-Rate issues! Although the sound effects
are merely serviceable fight noises, Guilty Gear Isuka’s
music is above par. Featuring insane guitar solos and riffs, the
music adds to the frantic, fast paced nature of the game in a
significant way instead of the standard silence remover.
Guilty
Gear Isuka had a lot to live up to after Guilty Gear X2
Reload and, admittedly, has not really done anything to advance
the series. Although the customisation options and GG Boost are nice
features, they are not particularly original as the likes of DragonBall
Z: Budokai Tenkaichi amongst others have already used
customisation extensively and GG Boost is really just an updated
version of a classic genre. Despite SONY’s Network Play System
being decidedly mediocre, the omission of online-play is a shame as
it would have given not only a great deal of longevity to the title,
but increased the attraction of the customisable character, Robo KY
2. This being said, Guilty Gear Isuka is still a great 2D
Beat-‘Em-Up, but unless the next instalment draws on all of the
advancements made in the series and 3D brawlers such as Dead Or
Alive cease to maintain their high-standard, 2D Beat-‘Em-Ups
games may be finally be laid to rest with UK audiences.
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