Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising is a Rising Upgrade
I have reviewed several Souls-like and RPGs but I have never reviewed a fighting game, so I was super stoked when we were to be given a review code for their latest fighting game, on behalf of Cygames. I have played a lot of fighting games, but nevertheless, this is still an exciting entry to the franchise for me.
This is Muranagi of EXOSIA Project bringing you my review of Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising!
[Introduction of the game]
Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising, developed by Arc System Works, is a 2D fighting game released for consoles and PC and serves as the sequel to Granblue Fantasy Versus. It is based on the browser/mobile game IP of Cygames Inc., Granblue Fantasy.
[Graphical Delivery]
Most of the assets used in this game are the same as those of its predecessor, but it still holds up pretty well. The blend of the colors is nice and balanced while having touch-ups and upgrades to it. A great example of this would be the emphasis on visual effects which adds up to the oomf of each attack. Being an Arc System Works title also means it has the same magic of 2.5D as other titles like Guilty Gear Strive and Dragonball FighterZ which only works in the favor of the game. Other improvements from the previous game include corner indication which is a visual guide for players to know if they’ll be on the corner already or not.
[Music]
I’m a huge sucker for anything that is instrumental or symphonic and the in-game music truly brings the game to life, most especially when you’re already playing it. There’s quite an exploration kind of sense to it and yet a tinge of wanting to go on an adventurous battle with your buddies. The music in this game fits the game and there is never a bland moment because of it.
In addition to that, each individual character theme tells us a story of
every character in the game, whether they’re shy, chill, or demeaning. One
example is Avatar Belial’s theme— you can really feel the tension and how
menacing Avatar is! These are the amazing ways the game uses its music!
[Gameplay]
As mentioned earlier, this is a 2D fighting game where the platform is
just flat, as opposed to 3D fighting games which utilize an entire 3D space. As
someone who got used to playing 3D fighting games, it was a bit difficult for
me to adjust to playing Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising at first, but I also
quickly got the hang of it since combos here are much simpler, in contrast to
other games. I was used to remembering long inputs, but this game barely has
any of those— perhaps only for high-level, optimized combos, surely— but
starting off, having non-lengthy combos is fine!
At first glance, it is a very straightforward fighting game but there is
more to it. The game may be simple, but it takes time to adjust, especially if
you come from a different fighting game like I did. There were some different,
welcomed changes from the first game that made this game easier for newcomers
like me such as the addition of Ultimate Skills which are enhanced versions
of your standard skills. They deal additional damage and may be used as a combo
extender or closer depending on your application.
There’s also the Brave Point mechanic which acts as both an
offensive and defensive option for players, starting with 3 each round. These
may be used to activate Raging Strikes causing a guard crush in addition
to removing 1 Brave Point to your opponent and you may follow up with a Raging
Chain to combo off of it by exhausting 25% of your Skybound Art Guage.
Finally, there’s also the Brave Counter which you can perform as a
defensive option during blocking or guard crush, exhausting 1 Brave Point.
All of these are pressed with just 2 buttons, M and H!
Lastly, and quite controversial, is the change of technical inputs of skills not having any more differences from simple input commands. For me, it’s a good change that slowly bridges the gap between pros and newcomers!
[Content Value]
The game has a few game modes in Offline Mode such as Versus Mode, Arcade Mode, Story Mode, Training Mode, Replays, Journal, and the newest Figure Studio which you can collect different figures of playable and non-playable character models to have more detailed look at the model or make dioramas of! Unfortunately, that’s pretty much it. Much of the game’s content is locked in Online Mode such as the Gacha otherwise known as Draw Tickets, Community Feature, Rupie Shop where you can buy different character colors, skins, and weapon skins, Character Levels (otherwise known as Character Passes), and of course the ever-so-advertised Gran Bruise mode.
With that, I’m quite dissatisfied with the lack of offline content, maybe add an Endless Tower Mode, similar to that of a Survival Mode, as an addition so there may be a variety of modes in the game. For now, I’m hoping that there will be more content in the game as it gets released moving forward for offline mode.
With its price of $49.99 for the Standard Edition and $74.99 for the Deluxe Edition, I’d say that it’s a very reasonable price as you get what you pay for. The game even includes the previous game’s DLC as part of the base roster and then some for this iteration of the franchise. My only gripe is that there should be more offline modes. But hey! Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising has a Lite version with rotating characters and access to Gran Bruise mode, so even if you don't buy the game, you can still play the game!
[Conclusion]
Overall, the game is really interesting and I’m sure you’ll easily get hooked on it. I’m not into 2D fighting games but I surely enjoyed my time with Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising, and although the offline mode’s lacking, you can still have fun with your friends playing the game.
