Guilty Gear X2 #Reload

"Better than Street Fighter and KOF"

If you are looking for an incredible 2D fighting experience for the Xbox, this is your game. Not only does it have a great sense of style and a well rounded fighting system, a new copy costs only 20 DOLLARS. Just because it is a budget title, doesn't mean your getting budget quality.

Graphics: 10/10
Since it is a 2D fighter, it uses sprites for the animation. But they don't really feel like they're sprites. They are beautifully animated with seamless transition between sprites, and the little effects make them look cooler.(example: blurring when going fast) The game has a great sense of style. The characters either look silly and lighthearted, but some look just hardcore. And it should be noted that the traditional "ROUND 1! READY? FIGHT!" has been replaced with "HEAVEN OR HELL! DUAL ONE! LET"S ROCK!". I just thought that was the coolest thing ever.

Audio: 10/10
The game itself is very rock 'n roll inspired (one of the characters is based on Axl Rose of Guns 'N Roses). Combat is aided by a cool rock 'n roll background music. These tunes don't really get old, and are very catchy, and fit the games mood and atmosphere. The voice work is great, I think. You see, besides the announcer, all of the voices are in Japanese. This was likely so that the makers would risk bad voice dubbing (Otakus should know what I'm talking about) All in all, it adds to the overall sense of style.

Story: 10/10
The story is surprisingly deep in this game. If you are willing to indulge, the story shows characters origins, relationships to other characters, attitudes, etc. The games story mode has 3 different endings and paths for each character. Since the game boasts about 22 characters, it will keep you busy.

Gameplay: 10/10
This is where the game truly excels. The fighting system is simple to learn, but also very deep. The characters may only have a handfull of special moves, the game encourages you to link together your own moves. A skilled player could rack up a 15+ combo, and only use regular attacks. The fighting system, in which being similar to KOF, uses rotations of the thumbstick, followed by a button press. This makes it a good pickup and play game for a party. But one of the coolest things is the one hit kills. You heard me. ONE HIT KILLS. But, not without a price. You see, in order to pull off more powerful moves, you need to build up a "Tension gauge". This incredible balancing act keeps you from destroying the noob early on, or getting killed yourself. Oh, did I mention this game has online mode? Yes, via Xbox Live, you can fight one-on-one with people around the world. It even keeps track of Your world wide rank. If you can tear yourself away from online long enough, there are plenty of single player modes to enjoy.

Value: 10/10
Online, story mode, mission mode, survival mode, arcade mode. You get alot of bang for your buck. The replay value is through the roof. And did I mention it's a mere 20 clams?

Recommendation: Buy it
Go ahead. Buy it. Get two and give the other to a freind. Spread the shear joy you get with this game. This is most likely the best 2D fighter you can buy this year. Maybe even better than Street Fighter and KOF (thats right fanboys. BETTER). There is no reason why a 2D fighting fan with an Xbox shouldn't get this game. It's so freakin' incredible

Graphics: 10
Audio: 10
Gameplay: 10
Value: 10
Recommendation: Buy it
Overall: 10

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 11/07/04