12DOVE Verdict
Pros
- +
Two full games for the price of one
- +
Looks killer on the small screen
- +
Ridable robot dinosaurs kick ass
Cons
- -
No Game Sharing modes
- -
sadly
- -
PSP's d-pad makes control iffy
- -
Only two players in Judgment? Feh
Why you can trust 12DOVE Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.
The latest chapter in the ever-expanding Guilty Gear fighting series, Guilty Gear Judgment is a stark reminder that the PSP needs more 2D games. Not because old-school fanboys need the love, necessarily, but because Judgment's fluid pixels look better than most of the handheld's 3D efforts.
It's no surprise how good the game looks, given that beautiful graphics are a longtime hallmark of the series. So is balls-out-crazy fighting action, and Judgment delivers that as well as Guilty Gear ever has. Driven by a wailing metal soundtrack, it's actually two games squeezed onto one UMD: Guilty Gear Judgment and Guilty Gear X2 #Reload.
Of those, X2 #Reload is the one that'll probably draw more fans of the series, as it's the same deep, one-on-one 2D action that built the franchise. Packing in 23 characters (all of which are unlocked right off the bat, including their SP and EX variations), ridiculously huge super attacks and few surprises, it's maddeningly addictive whether you're a button-masher or a more technical player who actually knows the difference between a Gatling Combo and a Roman Cancel. In short, it deliverseverything you'd want from a Guilty Gear.
Well, everything except mission and story modes, which have apparently been cut in favor of Judgment (which we'll get to in a second).
More info
| Genre | Fighting |
| Description | Hot-looking, awesome-playing slashfest that packs in a full-on brawler with its one-on-one fighting. |
| Franchise name | Guilty Gear |
| UK franchise name | Guilty Gear |
| Platform | PSP |
| US censor rating | Teen |
| Release date | 5 September 2006 (US), 5 September 2006 (UK) |
"Souls-like meets Fable" is all this indie RPG needed to say to meet its Kickstarter goal, but it added in a Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood nod just for good measure
Gorgeous JRPG homage Clair Obscur sells out its collector's edition months before launch, dev says it didn't think "the demand for our physical editions would be so high"
Turn-based RPG Clair Obscur dev says all-star voice actor lineup includes people like Andy Serkis and Baldur’s Gate 3 alumni by accident: "He was like, 'Isn't that Clive from Final Fantasy?'"
