Another great PC fighting game.
It has been a while since I played a fast-paced fighting game like Under Night In-Birth Exe: Late. The stylish combat with mechanics that really take getting used to mixed with the break-neck speed of the combos and action was always very difficult for me to grasp. I have always been more of a methodical fighting game player. After putting some time into this PC release of this PS3 game, I can say that putting enough time into anything can always be rewarding, especially if the game is good. Just like Under Night is.
The game is a four button style much like Guilty Gear or BlazBlue. Three buttons are for attacks (light, medium, and heavy) while the fourth button is designated for generating Grid Meter. This is the big special mechanic that comes into play during fights. Players will gain GRD while being aggressive and playing offensively while losing GRD meter when back-dashing and trying to zone. Every few seconds, the momentum will switch to the other player utilizing their GRD meter to their advantage. This comes in the form of more powerful hits, adding to the player’s super meter, and more. Utilizing this meter is the key to being successful in Under Night.
MSRP: $29.99
Price I’d Pay: $29.99
Multiplayer: Local and Online Versus
With 16 playable characters, each with their own style and speeds, it really has a lot for everyone. I always lean towards the faster characters, so Linne was my go to character. I took her through the gauntlet while trying out each mode. There is a story mode, a time attack mode, a survival mode, and a score attack mode. After trying those modes out, I moved on to the online play. There are both player and ranked matches available, with player matches allowing multiplayer lobbies with multiple players in a room.
The net code was smooth in practically every match I played. This was and is the main draw to Under Night, and luckily, it works very well. The only issue I could see would be that there are not many players doing friendly player matches, but I was never waiting long for a ranked match. This means that newcomers may be getting matched up with some higher-level players online, which may result in a bad beat down.
The biggest issue I had with Under Night was the lack of any kind of tutorial. I was left to my own devices when learning pretty much everything. Now, I’m no stranger to fighting games, and having me learn a character on my own through practice mode is nothing new, but merely trying to figure out the mechanics of the game itself was challenging. I finally resorted to looking up a FAQ outside of the game just to figure out what each button actually does, along with how the Grid Meter system worked.
For thirty bucks, players will get a stylish, fast, and pretty fun fighting game on their PCs. The net code works really well, and there are tons of unlockables and characters to experiment with, each with their own unique style. It feels simplistic in nature and it actually really is, then you look into the Grid system and see all the potential Under Night actually has and you have yourself a pretty great fighting game. Keep in mind, you may need to go to an outside source to figure everything out, but for the most part, this is a great fighting game that I think fighting game fans will really enjoy for a cheap price.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.
