Official PlayStation Magazine - 04.2020

083

REVIEW

In one the boss sits in the
middle of the screen and we
have to deal with spawning
mobs of enemies, building our
Skybound Art to break through
the Big Bad’s shield and leave
them vulnerable to damage,
the music crescendoing as we
do so. Another has us chasing
them down as they fire laser
beams at us, jumping through
them to do damage. Rarely have
bosses in a fighting game felt
so epic – both mechanically
and narratively satisfying.

BLOWING UP
And notice that “us”? That’s
because RPG mode can be
played entirely in co-op, either
locally or online (or controlled
by AI). It’s great to have
such a novel story mode in
a fighting game. Plus, as you
unlock each character, you get
a sense of how they handle
in versus mode. It’s a brilliant
introduction and a skyful
of delights in its own right.
Sometimes basic mob-based

VERDICT

Above Skills
bring a fresh
take on fighting

• special moves
  are a tap away.

Right Every
move has
wonderful
flares of
animation, and
feels weighty.

Above Cutscenes and glossary entrieshelpyoudelveintoGranblue’sworld.

THE OPM BREAKDOWN

Tie-in games can be a shot in

the dark, but it’s only blue skies

here. The mix of approachable-

yet-deep mechanics and a strong

co-op story make this a fight

worth having. Oscar Taylor-Kent

fights can get a little repetitive,

but those thunderclouds are

small (though it would be great

to see the mode expanded

in future updates). A hard

mode and Tower Of Babylon

challenge mode provide some

extra tests of skill in RPG mode

for those who want to master it.

Versus is always technically

playful, while being one of the

most accessible fighting games

for new players we’ve ever

tried. (We’ll have a complete

review of the online aspect

next issue, once more people

are playing). Throw in the

chunky co-op RPG story mode

and the dev’s commitment

to supporting the game for

a while to come, and the sky

really is the limit.

3%Customising

thecuteemotes

youcansendin

co-opplay.

15%Blasting

throughRPG

modewitha

friend,and

gettingtheitch

tojumpbackin.

6%Flicking

throughtheart

in thejournal’s

glossary.

4%Spending

in-gameearned

ticketstoearn

newweapons.

WHAT YOU DO IN... GRANBLUE FANTASY: VERSUS

65%

Fighting. Spears

and swords may

break your bones,

but whips and

knives excite us.

7% Grinding

your teeth trying

to pull off the

tricky combos in

mission mode.

STAT PACK

Characters to

come in the first

DLC season pass,

starting with

Chaos Bringer

and Narmaya.

Hours – the time

it took us to

complete the

chunky RPG

mode (we got

properly hooked).

Skills that

fighters have

available in

battle, triggered

with the press

of a button.

11 446

Skyfarers to

fight as, plus one

more who you

can unlock in

RPG mode. But

that’s not all...

FRIENDS & ENEMIES

HOW TO... LEVELUP WITH WEAPONS

1 Collect draw tickets by clearing missions, then exchange them for

random weapons (in addition, some weapons can also be used as

skins outside RPG mode). 2 As you might expect, the rarer the

weapon you get, the better. Their ranks range from bronze (Rare),

through silver (Super Rare) to gold (Super Super Rare). 3 Add the

weapons you’ve won to your weapon grid and level them up to

increase your ATK and HP. It really is that simple.

1 2 3

IS IT BETTER THAN?

YES

CyberConnect2’s

efforts might be the

best Naruto game, but

it’s not a patch on

ArcSys’ fighters.

NO

Its fluid story mode

and online support

are best-in-class.

Could Versus’ updates

eventually match up?

YES

FighterZ story mode is

much duller, and overall

the game isn’t quite

as approachable for

new players.

Small but mighty, she’s

the captain of the

Holy Knights.

This scythe-wielding

Draph is in the Primal

Beast-hunting Society.

The catboy fighter, plus

his bros Elsam and

Tomoi, likes to just hang.