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IGN Review of Guilty Gear XX Accent Core
Nothing gets us more pumped up than extremely stylized heavy metal, an arena with blood-red clouds, and two incredible swords clashing in the electrified heat of one-on-one combat. Too bad that all the things that make Guilty Gear amazing are completely defeated by absolutely horrendous controls which, last time we checked, are crucial to a high-intensity fighting game.
But before we really get started, we're going to come out and make things as clear as possible: if you own a Classic Controller, you might as well stop reading this article and hop over to the
PS2 review instead, because if you're fortunate enough to have the controller handy, you'll be having virtually the exact same experience that PS2 owners are having with the game, and it's a great experience. If you're confined to the Wii Remote and Nunchuck setup, this is a very different and much worse game. So let's really get this show on the road.
ARC System Works returns once again to release another iteration of Guilty Gear, entitled Guilty Gear XX Accent Core. We're tremendous fans of this series and are happy to report that Accent Core definitely doesn't tamper with the winning formula that made previous installments so fantastic, at least in terms of the actual fighting mechanics. No dramatic (albeit terrible) changes have been made like the flawed, multi-character combat that Isuka attempted, and this title feels very much like a remastered version of the original Guilty Gear XX. In certain ways, that makes this a great game, but in other ways, such a realization is very disappointing; we've been looking forward to the next big Guilty Gear game for quite some time now, and from the looks of things, this isn't it.
Accent Core is almost identical to the previous XX titles, which means you're looking at an insanely fast, complex, 2D fighter centered in a surprisingly story-driven world. Unfortunately though, the main difference between this title and the original Guilty Gear XX is the complete lack of a story mode, which has been removed in favor of a purely combat-focused experience. Just think of Accent Core as a remastered, slightly-improved version of the original, and you'll know what kind of title you're looking at.
If you don't already own any of the previous entries, and you enjoy 2D fighters, this is one of the finest series being made today. The mechanics are simply top-notch and everything about the game is stylish and well thought out. The only thing you'll be missing out on is the (awesome) story, but you can catch up online or eventually try out one of the older titles. Regardless, one of the best things about Accent Core, just like its predecessors, is the cast of characters. Never has there been a more unique, eccentric, and lovable group of fighters than the individuals of Guilty Gear. Unless you have a deep, writhing hatred for anime-style characters (and some people do), you'll likely find yourself completely obsessed with at least one or two members of the group. Not only are their character designs exquisite, but each fighter plays very differently and has an absolutely distinct, almost iconic, style. Whether it's the ferocious and powerful techniques of Sol or the quick-draw swordsmanship of Johnny, there's something for everybody.
The combat system mechanics contain a few additions that set them apart from the original XX and the subsequent iterations. Not only do the characters have a few extra attacks, but all the fighters now have Force Break techniques, which demand even more micromanagement on your part. Force Breaks are like Special Moves, except they consume energy from your Tension Gauge, just like Overdrives do - just not as much. This means that every character now has "regular techniques," Special Moves, Force Breaks, Overdrives and Instant Kills (save a few exceptions here and there). As a result, there are a lot of things to memorize and there's a lot of diversity in the combat. If you know a character very well, you can create some extremely interesting and ridiculous combos, assuming that you fool around in Training for a while and figure things out. Unlike some 3D fighters that list a fighter's combos on their move list, Guilty Gear only indicates actual Special Moves. Linking them together in an almost infinite number of ways is up to you.
But now that we've reiterated how the mechanics work, which are identical to the PS2 version, we can finally address the most problematic element of Accent Core for the Wii: the controls. Right off the bat, we should mention that there's no pointer support - it's all button-presses and motion controls. As for the controller setup itself, you have a couple options, and fortunately they're very easy to switch around. The default option, and the greatest damage-dealer to the game, is using a Wii Remote and Nunchuck (the Nunchuck is required in this case). If you have a Classic Controller, you can plug that in instead, or you can just snag an old GameCube Controller and use that. The best thing about these varying options is that they just sort of work, on the fly: in the middle of a match, we cycled through all three without having to change any settings, so that's good. As long as things are synced up properly, you'll be ready to play with whatever scheme appeals to you.
So let's talk about your best options first. The Classic Controller has about the same functionality as a PS2 Controller; it just feels a bit different in your hands (of course). Using this option, you have complete and perfect control over your character, but you may want to have a glove or long shirt handy, because the D-Pad will destroy your thumb (as does the PS2 pad) if you don't cushion it. Guilty Gear demands a lot of movement input, and you'll be working that D-Pad like your life depended on it. Besides this minor inconvenience, the Classic Controller is how Guilty Gear is traditionally played on consoles, and it's great.
The GameCube Controller's D-Pad is actually defaulted to "off," so take note of that if you start panicking when your fighter doesn't move. Once you've adjusted that minor setting (the joystick just doesn't cut it), the controller works just fine, and although the button layout is a little strange for the game, it's a much better option than the default.
But using the Wii Remote and Nunchuck is terrible. Accent Core is a member of a long line of extremely fast 2D fighters, and you don't use motion controls for those types of games. It just doesn't work. The only way to get around it is to use the buttons instead, which means that you use the joystick to move (which is tragically inaccurate, especially when dashing) and the Wii Remote's D-Pad for inputting attacks. Left, down, up and right are punch, kick, slash and heavy slash, respectively. No. This will not work either. It's uncomfortable and clumsy, and it ruins the game.
On the other hand, using the motion controls is almost worse, because it not only throws the accuracy of your interface completely out the window, but it starts damaging the actual fighting mechanics, too. For example, swinging the Wii Remote lightly will execute a slash attack, while swinging it fiercely will do a heavy slash (how are we to execute advanced combos like that?). And to do Special Moves, you hold down either C or Z and swing the Wii Remote or the Nunchuck. That's it. The techniques that should take time and skill can be accomplished by waving your hands.
What's worse: pulling off an Overdrive, some of the most powerful attacks in the game, can be done by holding down C and Z and then swinging. This terrible dynamic requires absolutely no skill or timing, and ruins the Overdrive techniques. As you can plainly see, using the default setup really hurts this title, and that's a shame.
But our other significant disappointment, in regards to the game's structure, is one of the two new characters in the game, since she's not actually a new character. Even though most advertisements and game manuals indicate that two never-before-seen characters have been included in this version, one of them already showed up in Isuka - and that's A.B.A. The only new character, as far as we know, is Order Sol, and he's not really a "new" person, of course, just a modified version of the Sol we know and love. However, Order Sol is utterly fantastic and makes a great addition to the cast, so we can't complain about that (A.B.A.'s awesome to use too, but we already knew that).
©2007-10-19, IGN Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved
But before we really get started, we're going to come out and make things as clear as possible: if you own a Classic Controller, you might as well stop reading this article and hop over to the
PS2 review instead, because if you're fortunate enough to have the controller handy, you'll be having virtually the exact same experience that PS2 owners are having with the game, and it's a great experience. If you're confined to the Wii Remote and Nunchuck setup, this is a very different and much worse game. So let's really get this show on the road.
ARC System Works returns once again to release another iteration of Guilty Gear, entitled Guilty Gear XX Accent Core. We're tremendous fans of this series and are happy to report that Accent Core definitely doesn't tamper with the winning formula that made previous installments so fantastic, at least in terms of the actual fighting mechanics. No dramatic (albeit terrible) changes have been made like the flawed, multi-character combat that Isuka attempted, and this title feels very much like a remastered version of the original Guilty Gear XX. In certain ways, that makes this a great game, but in other ways, such a realization is very disappointing; we've been looking forward to the next big Guilty Gear game for quite some time now, and from the looks of things, this isn't it.
Accent Core is almost identical to the previous XX titles, which means you're looking at an insanely fast, complex, 2D fighter centered in a surprisingly story-driven world. Unfortunately though, the main difference between this title and the original Guilty Gear XX is the complete lack of a story mode, which has been removed in favor of a purely combat-focused experience. Just think of Accent Core as a remastered, slightly-improved version of the original, and you'll know what kind of title you're looking at.
If you don't already own any of the previous entries, and you enjoy 2D fighters, this is one of the finest series being made today. The mechanics are simply top-notch and everything about the game is stylish and well thought out. The only thing you'll be missing out on is the (awesome) story, but you can catch up online or eventually try out one of the older titles. Regardless, one of the best things about Accent Core, just like its predecessors, is the cast of characters. Never has there been a more unique, eccentric, and lovable group of fighters than the individuals of Guilty Gear. Unless you have a deep, writhing hatred for anime-style characters (and some people do), you'll likely find yourself completely obsessed with at least one or two members of the group. Not only are their character designs exquisite, but each fighter plays very differently and has an absolutely distinct, almost iconic, style. Whether it's the ferocious and powerful techniques of Sol or the quick-draw swordsmanship of Johnny, there's something for everybody.
The combat system mechanics contain a few additions that set them apart from the original XX and the subsequent iterations. Not only do the characters have a few extra attacks, but all the fighters now have Force Break techniques, which demand even more micromanagement on your part. Force Breaks are like Special Moves, except they consume energy from your Tension Gauge, just like Overdrives do - just not as much. This means that every character now has "regular techniques," Special Moves, Force Breaks, Overdrives and Instant Kills (save a few exceptions here and there). As a result, there are a lot of things to memorize and there's a lot of diversity in the combat. If you know a character very well, you can create some extremely interesting and ridiculous combos, assuming that you fool around in Training for a while and figure things out. Unlike some 3D fighters that list a fighter's combos on their move list, Guilty Gear only indicates actual Special Moves. Linking them together in an almost infinite number of ways is up to you.
But now that we've reiterated how the mechanics work, which are identical to the PS2 version, we can finally address the most problematic element of Accent Core for the Wii: the controls. Right off the bat, we should mention that there's no pointer support - it's all button-presses and motion controls. As for the controller setup itself, you have a couple options, and fortunately they're very easy to switch around. The default option, and the greatest damage-dealer to the game, is using a Wii Remote and Nunchuck (the Nunchuck is required in this case). If you have a Classic Controller, you can plug that in instead, or you can just snag an old GameCube Controller and use that. The best thing about these varying options is that they just sort of work, on the fly: in the middle of a match, we cycled through all three without having to change any settings, so that's good. As long as things are synced up properly, you'll be ready to play with whatever scheme appeals to you.
So let's talk about your best options first. The Classic Controller has about the same functionality as a PS2 Controller; it just feels a bit different in your hands (of course). Using this option, you have complete and perfect control over your character, but you may want to have a glove or long shirt handy, because the D-Pad will destroy your thumb (as does the PS2 pad) if you don't cushion it. Guilty Gear demands a lot of movement input, and you'll be working that D-Pad like your life depended on it. Besides this minor inconvenience, the Classic Controller is how Guilty Gear is traditionally played on consoles, and it's great.
The GameCube Controller's D-Pad is actually defaulted to "off," so take note of that if you start panicking when your fighter doesn't move. Once you've adjusted that minor setting (the joystick just doesn't cut it), the controller works just fine, and although the button layout is a little strange for the game, it's a much better option than the default.
But using the Wii Remote and Nunchuck is terrible. Accent Core is a member of a long line of extremely fast 2D fighters, and you don't use motion controls for those types of games. It just doesn't work. The only way to get around it is to use the buttons instead, which means that you use the joystick to move (which is tragically inaccurate, especially when dashing) and the Wii Remote's D-Pad for inputting attacks. Left, down, up and right are punch, kick, slash and heavy slash, respectively. No. This will not work either. It's uncomfortable and clumsy, and it ruins the game.
On the other hand, using the motion controls is almost worse, because it not only throws the accuracy of your interface completely out the window, but it starts damaging the actual fighting mechanics, too. For example, swinging the Wii Remote lightly will execute a slash attack, while swinging it fiercely will do a heavy slash (how are we to execute advanced combos like that?). And to do Special Moves, you hold down either C or Z and swing the Wii Remote or the Nunchuck. That's it. The techniques that should take time and skill can be accomplished by waving your hands.
What's worse: pulling off an Overdrive, some of the most powerful attacks in the game, can be done by holding down C and Z and then swinging. This terrible dynamic requires absolutely no skill or timing, and ruins the Overdrive techniques. As you can plainly see, using the default setup really hurts this title, and that's a shame.
But our other significant disappointment, in regards to the game's structure, is one of the two new characters in the game, since she's not actually a new character. Even though most advertisements and game manuals indicate that two never-before-seen characters have been included in this version, one of them already showed up in Isuka - and that's A.B.A. The only new character, as far as we know, is Order Sol, and he's not really a "new" person, of course, just a modified version of the Sol we know and love. However, Order Sol is utterly fantastic and makes a great addition to the cast, so we can't complain about that (A.B.A.'s awesome to use too, but we already knew that).
©2007-10-19, IGN Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved