Arc System Works is on a streak. WIth Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising out in the wild, Guilty Gear Strive getting a new season and a frantic mode, Dragonball FighterZ having its’ own tour still going the distance, and DNF Duel getting new characters, it’s only fitting to see them stack at a near Capcom 90s level for fighters with one more. UNDERNIGHT IN-BIRTH II is available today. The follow-up to the The Game Awards 2020 Best Fighting Game nomination is no slouch to the runs. The makers of Melty Blood brought this one out the gate in its’ fourth installment of high school students vs. Darkness.
UNDERNIGHT IN-BIRTH II’s aesthetic is PS2 / Sammy Sega era (Capcom Vs SNK 2, Rumble Fish, Fist of The North Star) reminiscent with hand-drawn roster sprites influenced by French Bread’s publishing overseers of Arc System Works, who seemed to move on to cell-shaded 3D character models. The charm can be seen with 3D stages to fit the part, and a packed story. The actual system itself is a myriad of various ideas that only an Arc System Works fighting game can pack.
The Tools of Battle
The mechanics of Undernight IN-BIRTH II are quite gripping. The GRD system is an intriguing tug of war to gain buffs, for instance. The tutorial is robust enough to walk players through various scenarios and later on, different player archetypes such as charge characters, shotos, and grapplers. Visually, next to the sprites, the fight UI is helpful on default to figure out damage differences between GRD states. For instance, I’ve been dabbling between Swordswoman Yuzuriha and Master Fist Enkidou seem to grab my attention. The latter has that kung-fu archetype in the bag. The former has long-range katana attacks. Thanks to all this, and the frantic pace of a 2D fighter, Undernight IN-BIRTH II’s challenge is a welcomed one.
The game itself is a part of a genre that focuses on a visual novel-based setting, so a heavy sense of interaction through text based cutscenes and anime cliches will fill the gaps. Characters get their dialogue in even when they’re guarding. Also, not to mention the unlockable art and character sheets galleries. All in all so far, a pretty cool package is in for UNDERNIGHT IN-BIRTH II.
UNDERNIGHT IN-BIRTH II [Sys:Celes] is available on PlayStation 4, 5, and Steam, starting today!
