Guilty Gear xx Accent Core
Release: 2007
Platform: Wii & PS2
Genre: Fighting
ESRB Rating: T
Players: 1-2
Background info:
Guilty Gear xx Accent Core is an addition to the Guilty Gear fighting series and marks the series first appearance on the Wii. I found this title while I was lounging around at a Gamestop on a lazy sunday. I had heard of Guilty Gear before and decided to go ahead and buy it. It was only $17 so in my opinion was worth it, and I was right. I'm pretty glad I found this game and finally got to try out the Guilty Gear franchise first hand.
Gameplay/Controls:
I played the game using a Gamecube controller because, in my opinion, all fighting games should be played that way. The Gamecube controller is great for fighter. Regardless the game also has options for
Classic Controller and
Wiimote + Nunchuk.
With the Gamecube controller, the controls are pretty smooth, although a little unresponsive. Combos are tricky to learn but the commands can be conveniently set to your pushing pleasure, and can be set to the easiest positions. In this set up, special moves can be used with a rotation of the joystick and a button press.
On the other hand, the Wiimote + Nunchuk set up is atrocious, which is the only (and highly important) reason for me docking points in this category. They are for the most part unresponsive and make big combos overly difficult.
Getting into things a little deeper, each character has an interesting set of techniques. The first of these techniques is called a
Dust move. These moves cannot be blocked by a crouching shield and send the foe flying into the air, where you can follow up with damaging combos.
Characters also have
Overdrive moves, which are sort of ultimate techniques that can only be unleashed by using complex button combos while your tension bar is full. Also there are
Instant Kill moves, that do exactly that, get an automatic Kill on the opponent. These can be used by "charging" by pressing all attack buttons simultaneously then getting within close proximity to the opponent and using the specific button combo. Most of which are a spectacle to behold. But be wary; if you miss with the Instant Kill, you cannot use it again during that round and will be left vulnerable.
The tension bar plays a big role an can be filled by attacking or moving forward (and depleted while moving backward). Tension can be sapped in order to use perfect shields,
force breaks,
Overdrives,
Dusts, and
Instant Kills.
The game is very fast paced and requires quick timing and reflexes to escape enemy combos and to ensnare them in your own. It can be very strategic and a lot of fun.
Cast:
When looking at any fighting game, I like to take a good look at the cast, which is the most important part if I do say so myself. Although it is a small 14 characters, I have never encountered a more awesome cast. Its impossible not to fall in love with at least one of these characters. They are all extremely unique and likable as well as tortured and badass.
Also the team is well balanced, no one in particular is stronger than anyone else, which is good I presume. Even the slow but strong A.B.A can calcify her precious key into a hell born double-edge and gain super speed.
The Guilty Gear cast gets my full score.
Music & Graphics:
I love the music and graphics in this game. As you can likely already tell, GGXXAC resembles its Arcade roots and hasn't changed. In fact this game really is just ported to the Wii from the arcade (I'm not sure if I'm happy about that...). It has that nostalgia that comes with the 2-D beauty of classic arcade fighters.
The soundtrack consists of metal guitar and awesome beats that really get your blood pumping. I am a huge fan of the soundtrack.
Extras:
Extras in this game are slim pickin'. A simple gallery is all you get, filled with pictures and videos. But really you don't need much.
The Breakdown:
The Good:
+ Amazing and Unforgettable Cast
+ Nostalgic 2-D Anime Style Art
+ Awesome Soundtrack
The Bad:
- Controls are unresponsive
- Lack of unique modes
- Little Extras
My Verdict
I liked this game. It has its ups and downs, and I may not be very good at it, but its a whole lot of fun. And now I want to go pick up a copy of
Guilty Gear xx Accent Core Plus. But I recommend this game. Its fun and now very cheap. Worth keeping among Wii Titles.
7.7/10
Linear Mode
