Gemopedia
Esports🇯🇵Japan21st century

Guilty Gear Strive

Officially GUILTY GEAR -STRIVE-

Arc System Works' 2021 fighting game — 7TH main entry in landmark GUILTY GEAR series. Cel-shaded 3D fighter that looks like 2D anime. Signature RCF ROMAN CANCEL system + WALL BREAK stages + streamlined mechanics vs. earlier entries. TIER-1 EVO fighter; peak Steam charts 2021-24; over 3 million copies sold. Legendary anime-style OST by DAISUKE ISHIWATARI. Notable EVO Championship 2022, 2023, 2024 headliner.

⏱~5 min🌤indoor

Quick facts

Category

Esports

Type

Individual

Players

2–2

Duration

~5 min

Where played

indoor

Country of origin

🇯🇵 Japan

Estimated origin

Released June 11, 2021 by Arc System Works. 7th main entry in Guilty Gear series (started 1998 by Daisuke Ishiwatari). Multiple Season Pass DLC characters (Testament, Bridget, Sin, Bedman?, Asuka, Elphelt, A.B.A., Slayer, etc.). EVO 2022, 2023, 2024 main-lineup fighter.

Olympic

No

Popularity

major

How it works

Objective

Defeat opponent by reducing HP to 0 in 2 rounds (best-of-3) or 3 rounds (best-of-5).

Rules

Basic rules

  • 6-BUTTON layout: Punch (P), Kick (K), Slash (S), Heavy Slash (HS), Dust (D), R (Roman Cancel)

    Signature 6-button system.

  • ROMAN CANCEL (RC): consume 50% tension to cancel move recovery + slow time (Red RC on hit, Yellow RC on block, Purple RC on whiff, Blue RC on movement)

    Signature 4-colour Roman Cancel.

  • TENSION METER — builds with aggression (forward motion, hits); used for supers + RCs + burst

    Signature aggression-rewarding meter.

  • PSYCH BURST — panic escape / offense burst per round (limited use)

    Signature burst mechanic.

  • WALL BREAK / SIDE-SWAP — cornering + wall damage triggers spectacular stage transition + character swap

    Signature wall-break stage change.

  • COUNTER HIT system — attacks that beat opposing attack trigger bonus damage + hit properties

    Standard counter hit.

  • OVERDRIVE (super moves) — cinematic finishers using 50-100% tension

    Signature super moves.

  • 20+ playable characters (base + season passes) — highly asymmetric anime designs (Sol Badguy, Ky Kiske, May, Chipp, Faust, Anji, I-No, Millia, etc.)

    Signature diverse roster.

Scoring

First to win required rounds (2 of 3 or 3 of 5).

Win condition · Reduce opponent HP to 0 in required number of rounds.

Equipment

  • PC (Windows via Steam) OR PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One/Series

    Multi-platform.

  • Fight stick / arcade stick / hitbox / controller / keyboard

    Wide input options.

Terminology

Tension
Main super meter (0-100%).
Roman Cancel (RC)
50% tension move-cancel.
Burst
Panic escape / offensive burst per round.
Wall Break
Stage transition triggered by cornered damage.
Overdrive
Super move (usually 50% tension).
Instant Kill (I.K.)
One-shot kill move — hard to land but instant win.

Major competitions

  • EVO Championship Series (GGST main event 2022+)

    annual · USA (main) + regional qualifiers · since 1996

  • ArcREV / ARCREVO World Tour (official world tour)

    annual · Global · since 2017

Where it is played

Governing bodies

  • Arc System Works (developer/publisher)

    Founded 1988 · Yokohama, Japan

  • EVO (championship organiser)

    Founded 1996 · USA

Famous names & records

Famous athletes

  • Ogawa Daisuke 'Ogawa' (JP, top Zato)
  • Naoto Sako 'Naoto' (JP, top Sol)
  • Leffen (SE, esports veteran)
  • Zando (US, top Nago)
  • Umisho (US, top May)
  • Foo Fighter (US, top A.B.A.)
  • Domi (JP, top I-No)

Sources & provenance

Last verified 2026-08-28.verified