(Image credit: Sega)
As Sonic is in the middle of celebrating his 30th anniversary, it s hard to not look back at the legacy of what started out as a bold attempt to rival Mario in the heyday of the console wars. Three decades on, 920 million games sold, over six billion grossed from franchise revenue alone, and the Blue Hedgehog has solidified himself as one of the biggest faces in video games.
The original Sonic trilogy was an ingenious feat of game design - pushing the Sega Genesis to new heights, something the character continued to do with proceeding consoles. The Sonic Adventure duo on the Dreamcast showcased the speed possibilities in a 3D environment, however, it wasn t until the implementation of the Boost mechanic that audiences truly felt what it means to be the fastest creature alive.
Availability: Out now on PS4 and PS5, 11th June 2021 on PC
And what brilliance! Guilty Gear Strive has trimmed the fat from the series to reveal a bristling core, a responsive, stylish and vibrant fighting game that s an immediate blast to play, but enticingly creative. Some of the complexity of previous versions has been shunted away, yes, but Strive remains deep.
Arc System Works has done a fantastic job of walking this tightrope. How do you keep veteran Guilty Gear fans on-side while also appealing to newcomers? The designers at the Japanese studio came up with a number of answers. Strive feels slightly slower and, as a result, more manageable, although much of the pace of proceedings comes from the sheer heft of the game. Strive packs a punch. It feels present, there on the screen, impactful with every slash. In this game a counter hit - that most common of fighting game mechanics - rocks the screen, slowing down time ever so slightly, the announcer declaring counter! . Even t