Guilty Gear Strive is coming to Xbox next week
On Friday, Microsoft announced that popular fighting game Guilty Gear Strive — which stars transgender, yo-yo wielding nun Bridget — will be available for Xbox Series X/S and Xbox One console owners to purchase, as well as PC players who are subscribed to Game Pass on that platform. The game has previously only been available for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 consoles, and PC via Steam.
“Guilty Gear Strive is the latest entry in the critically acclaimed Guilty Gear fighting game franchise,” Microsoft’s post reads. “Created by Daisuke Ishiwatari and developed by Arc System Works, Guilty Gear Strive upholds the series’ reputation for groundbreaking hybrid 2D/3D cell-shaded graphics and intense, rewarding gameplay. There is a fully voiced story mode diving deep into the Guilty Gear universe, new characters joining fan favorites, and robust rollback net code.”
New players who are looking to jump into the game when it arrives on Xbox next week may feel overwhelmed by all of the lore content they’ve missed in previous entries, but Arc System Works has provided a solution for that. Those looking to get caught up on Guilty Gear’s larger storyline can check out the game’s web-comics.
One such part of the lore that has captured many LGBTQ+ fans’ attention has been Bridget’s transition journey, which took her from seemingly an effeminate man who became a mercenary to prove his masculinity, to ultimately determining that she actually identifies as a woman and living her life accordingly. Beyond her own self-acceptance, this storyline in Guilty Gear Strive reinforces that Bridget has supportive friends and colleagues around her.
Fittingly, the current reigning GGS EVO champion is also a trans woman — UMISHO. Despite being a relatively new competitor, she managed to build up momentum all last year, ultimately leading to their victory at EVO 2022.