Arc System Works has announced Guilty Gear Strive’s slate of new content, including the addition of Venom on March 24, Unika, frame data, and Ranked Mode.
One of the biggest stages, the Arc World Tour Finals 2024, hosted the top eight Guilty Gear Strive players this past weekend. Before the final competition began, Arc System Works revealed its Season 4 roadmap of content updates for the game. The biggest drop was the character Venom, who launches today, as showcased in a debut trailer. In May, Unika, a character from the upcoming anime, will also join the roster. Additionally, the studio teased that Lucy from Cyberpunk: Edgerunners will be added to the game in the summer, alongside other game updates related to frame rate data and the anticipated Ranked Mode.
Venom has just launched in Guilty Gear Strive, and fans were right about his moveset. His infamous Ball Set special move returns, alongside revamped moves that give his playstyle a slightly different feel. As a surprise, Venom is accompanied by a stripped-down Robo-Ky, a robotic copy of Ky Kiske whose personality is more self-centered and egotistical than the character it is based on. Robo-Ky teams up with Venom to perform some of his moves, making this duo a unique but welcome addition to the game.
With the Guilty Gear Strive: Dual Rulers anime premiering in April, the anime character Unika will be added to the game in May. Arc System Works has built excitement by announcing that the character will be playable at EVO Japan 2025, scheduled to take place from May 9 to 11, 2025, at Tokyo Big Sight. Although no Unika gameplay footage was shown at the Arc World Tour Finals 2024, players can attend the May event for the first hands-on experience.
Guilty Gear Strive players have long requested in-game frame data, and Arc System Works has responded by announcing its addition to the game’s Training Mode in May. Players will be able to check total frames, active frames, frame advantage, and follow-up window frame data directly in Training Mode, making practice sessions more efficient. Currently, players rely on external sources like Dustloop for frame data. The developers also noted that further updates to Training Mode are planned to make learning and playing the game more intuitive for both newcomers and veterans.
Amid ongoing issues with Guilty Gear Strive’s online matchmaking, the Ranked Mode update aims to revitalize the online scene. At present, Online Match includes three modes: Rank Tower, Open Park, and Follow. Rank Tower automatically matches players with opponents of supposedly equal skill, but the 10 levels offered are not enough to balance the experience. Open Park serves as a free-for-all where more experienced players often dominate less-skilled ones. Follow mode allows players to tag and battle chosen opponents, such as friends and rivals, as long as they are within the same skill level.
The new Ranked Mode will match players with similarly ranked opponents without the need to navigate the Online Lobby. Each character will have a separate rank, similar to Street Fighter 6, beginning at the “Iron” rank. Ranked points will be gained or lost based on the number of wins and losses, respectively. There are seven ranks in total, with the final “Vanquisher” rank allowing players to compete for points within that tier. Rank Tower will be renamed when Ranked Match is introduced, allowing for casual competition against similarly skilled players.
Guilty Gear Strive fans have plenty to look forward to through summer 2025, with Season 4 promising numerous updates. More content is still to come. Guilty Gear Strive is currently available on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC (Steam), Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and arcades.
