As a reminder, barely the first Season Pass announced, the community had searched the game files hoping to find future additions. Initially Jack-O, Happy Chaos, Goldlewis Dickinson, Jam Kuradoberi and Asuka (That Man) had been found, and were to be the new fighters. Finally only three of them will have arrived in the game, while Baiken and Testament sent the last two back to the waiting room.
The return of a sub-boss
Testament’s origins date back to the very first Guilty Gear, where the player faced it just before Justice. Testament were a human at the start, the son of Ky Kiske’s mentor who were transformed into Gear by Justice (the main antagonist of the saga, now dead in the lore). It should be noted that it has acquired a non-binary dimension over the years, being today doubled by a female voice in the Japanese version and male in the American version. While a new story has yet to be added in Season Pass 1 (scheduled for release at the end of April), it’s a safe bet that they will have a role to play in it, given the timing of the release when That Man is very expected among fans who hope to finally be able to play it. Another more down to earth possibility also exists, it could very well be that the development of Asuka does not satisfy enough the editor who preferred to fall back on a fighter easier to develop, because already having his own techniques. However, this theory remains unlikely, because if Asuka is really planned, it is almost certain that Arc System Works has developed it upstream in order to prepare for its arrival.
Gameplay
Testament fits the trapper archetype perfectly. His scythe gives them excellent reach for all those normal hits, and his various summons allow him to control space by trapping his opponents. Their ability to summon creatures in all possible directions (high [nouveauté]/low [nouveauté]/in front/behind the opponent) is very useful for them to open guard, and especially the beasts do not disappear before the end of their attack even if Testament are hit. They had curses, which made their crow attack the opponent with a precise pattern, making certain pressings safe. The volatile does not attack autonomously during the trailer, but we can see it resting the curses at 30 seconds on Sol then Ky, showing that they will be present. Testament could also poison opponents with certain hits, continuously causing them to lose health until they took a hit. However, it is impossible to know whether it will be kept or not. Although they were very good at controlling space, their defensive options were often very limited, with only one good anti-air impossible to launch in reaction, and no reversal requiring consuming part of the bar. In previous games, his teleportation (used in the trailer against Axl) had tracking, which allowed them to appear either in front of the opponent or behind, no matter how far away the opponent was.
New stage, crossplay and new announcement
Testament will not be the only addition of the next DLC, because a new stage will also be integrated: the White House. The figurine mode (allowing you to create a diorama with characters and stages from the game, obtainable in the fishing mode) will also be back. The icing on the cake, crossplay has also been confirmed! These three new features will be available from March 28 for pass holders, and March 31 for those wishing to purchase it as an individual pack. At the end of the trailer another announcement was made discreetly: a second season is well planned, but no information has been given concerning the roadmap, nor the date of the next revelations. In the meantime, Let’s Rock!
When Guilty Gear Strive was released, developers Arc System Works said they had no problem modding the game. The modders responded, and after creating a lot of custom outfits, new characters are making their debut.