Guilty Gear Strive, the upcoming 2D anime fighting game has allowed fans to test out some of the characters as well as different modes that they can expect when the game officially releases this upcoming 6th April.
With the Open Beta test period stretched after connection errors limited fans' playtime, the discovery process continues, and the speculation regarding who are the best and worst characters is slowly becoming a topic of conversation.
Having played and analyzed the beta ourselves, we have decided to create an early tier list based on footage and matches available during the beta.
Before we get started, there are a few things we need to clarify. First and foremost, this is a very speculative tier list, as the game isn't even out yet with very limited hands-on time. A lot can change between now and the full release.
Second of all, remember that tier lists are not absolute and they are used to further engage in conversation with the fighting game community, so take it all with a grain of salt.
Now, unto a quick explanation of the tiers used:
- S-Tier: The best characters in the game. Simply put, they have all the tools to help you succeed.
- A-Tier: Solid and reliable fighter. Can suffer in match-ups against the other top tiers.
- B-Tier: Have some tools in their arsenal but ultimately they lack a few key elements to make them completely top tier.
- C-Tier: Niche fighters who can work as counter picks. At the moment we don't think any GG Strive character belongs in this tier.
- D-Tier: Lackluster characters that are perhaps in need of buffs. Again, not enough info to place any characters in this tier.
- F-Tier: Trash, the worst in the game. With more time, maybe we'll place a few in this tier.
Without further ado, let's get started.
Guilty Gear Strive beta tier list
(Image: Tier Maker)
S-Tier
- Ramlethal Valentine
- May
- Sol Badguy
- Potemkin
It's often common that during beta and early days of a new fighting game, the easy-to-use characters dominate tier lists. However, we believe every single fighter in this tier has the potential to maintain themselves as S-Tier.
Ramlethal has a lot of safe moves and a strong midrange game, Sol Badguy's easy to execute and powerful combos, Potemkin's P range, and May's annoying Dolphin pressure, just to name a few tools, make these GG characters the most powerful during the beta.
A-Tier
- Axl Low
- Ky Kiske
- Millia Rage
- Leo Whitefang
- Giovanna
- Nagoriyuki
Initially, the most hyped character due to his time stop install super, Axl players seem to need more time to unluck his full potential, currently being played as a classic zoner archetype. Characters like Millia and Ky have flashy combos, projectiles, and mobility, however, they lack consistent damage.
Giovanna and Nagoriyuki, two of the newcomers, feel surprisingly good to play, and it'll remain to be seen how good they can be optimized.
B-Tier
- Zato-1
- Chipp Zanuff
- Faust
While by no means bad, this trio will require more practice than the rest of the cast so far. Chipp has the lowest health in the game and his glass cannon nature makes him a feast or famine fighter.
On the other hand, both Faust and Zato players have claimed that the characters feel like a gutted version of previous iterations.