Under Night In-Birth (PS3 release, July 24th)

[Hans Stockmann]

So this game's getting a consumer release at last. Who's looking to play it?
http://inbirth.info
Pre-orders available at Play-asia and Amiami. Will also have a digital release on day 1 of launch for about 5400 yen.

What the poop is this? It has a dumb name.
It's French Bread (the makers of Melty Blood's) most recent game, as well as their first original IP.

What does it play like?
Like Melty Blood and KOF had a baby then gave everyone Chang's normals.
Features like Melty Blood
 - Button layout! (Light, Medium, Heavy, Utility Button [ABCD])
 - Magic series and backwards chains! Ended a string with a sweep? Cancel that into a whiffed stand jab to make it safe!
 - Airdashes! They don't cost meter anymore!
 - The look of the meter gauge! Light special, Heavy special, EX special (100 meter), Super Supers (200 meter)!
 - Unobtrusive stages! (no more burning forest with a giant cat in the background and awful music)
 - Heat activations as a universal reversal!
 - No techrolls!

Features like KOF
 - Everyone can run! (except for Akatsuki)
 - Hops!
 - Airdashing works a lot like hyper hops as there's no double jump! (except for Akatsuki)
 - Good hop normals! Nasty pressure!
 - No techrolls!
 - Strong ground focus despite the fast movement!
 - Weird janky moves that are much better than you'd ever think they should be! (e.g. Merkava has EX hands as a reversal move that's only like -1 or 2 on block)

Features like MARVEL
 - Pushblock! It gives meter.
 - Weird meter management mindgames!
 - ENORMOUS hitboxes bring fighting games into the world of Widescreen monitors!
 - X-factor cancels with even bigger hitstop! Note: they do not give X-factor. They do give some meter though!
 - Airteching! (but after you airtech you fall to the ground and can't be hit, like a KOF or modern SF reset)
 - CAMEO CHARACTERS! Want to dust off your Sion and talk about the good ol' days of Melty Blood? You can! Want to play as the parry-toting shoto from Jewpuncher? You can!

Isn't this game a broken infinite-fest with 40 second combos off of throws that only do like 10%?
Not anymore! The first release of the game was pretty hilariously busted (main character could basically do a double HD combo, someone could timer scam off of throws, dumb stuff like that), but with version 2.0 (subtitled EXE-LATE because this game has good writing) they fixed pretty much everything wrong with the game. Damage is fairly normalised (about 30% off optimal combos, a bit more with lots of meter + GRD and a good counterhit) and the gaps between tiers (excluding Chaos and Akatsuki who just plain suck) are pretty small.

Netcode?
Arc System Works are publishing the console port, so it'll probably be fairly competently constructed, though delay-based.

Eww, anime.
They devs said they were going more for a "poorly written edgy light novel for 14 year olds" vibe, actually.