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91Act has added Hazama and Icey as new playable characters in BlazBlue Entropy Effect. The former is a BlazBlue series recurring character available via paid DLC, while the latter is a crossover guest accessible immediately to all players via the game's latest update patch.

The new patch comes with optional side quests that will unlock Icey as a playable Prototype character upon completion. 91Act has also added narrations for the new stages that take inspiration from the original game.

While the first post-launch DLC that added Rachel Alucard was available for free to players who purchased BlazBlue Entropy Effect early around its full release, all players must purchase the Hazama DLC pack separately. But even though the DLC pack is normally available at $4.99, players can purchase it with up to 32% discount within the first few days after release.

The first-anniversary update patch for BlazBlue Entropy Effect also includes a new original boss called Reki. In addition, 91Act brought in more features like LAN multiplayer, an even harder difficulty level called Transcendence Mode, and additional save slots for character Evotypes that are generated after finishing a playthrough.

91Act has ed a new launch trailer showcasing all the new content for BlazBlue Entropy Effect on the game's official YouTube channel:

BlazBlue Entropy Effect is available worldwide on PC via Steam.

The post Hazama and Icey BlazBlue Entropy Effect Roster appeared first on Siliconera.

Rachel Alucard has appeared as the first post-launch playable character in BlazBlue Entropy Effect. 91Act has released the DLC set featuring the character from Arc System Works' fighting game series in the roguelite action game on Steam.

The new DLC set does not only add Rachel Alucard, as 91Act also includes a set of alternate color palettes for all playable characters and a bonus skin for the player's avatar. People who have purchased the game by February 14, 2024, can get the DLC set for free. Those who did not can purchase the set with a 25% discounted price of $3.74 until July 31, 2024, before it goes back to its regular price of $4.99.

BlazBlue Entropy Effect will have a total of 11 characters once players have added the Rachel DLC. The game's first full version launched on January 31, 2024, with 10 playable characters: Ragna the Bloodedge, Jin Kisaragi, Noel Vermillion, Hibiki Kohaku, Mai Natsume, Es, Taokaka, Kokonoe, Hakumen, and Lambda-11.

A gameplay preview trailer that shows how Rachel moves in BlazBlue Entropy Effect is also available to watch on the game's official YouTube channel:

The release of this character DLC completes the first post-launch schedule that 91Act planned to do sooner after the game's full release. In February 2024, the studio was on the verge of collapse as it had to lay off every staff member due to cash flow issues. However, the studio's CEO Michael Jiang Lei managed to keep it afloat by mortgaging his property and re-hiring the staff .

In late June 2024, 91Act released a major update that added a two-player co-op mode. The Japanese press release added that the game has over 600,000 units sold worldwide as of July 2024.

BlazBlue Entropy Effect is readily available worldwide on PC via Steam.

The post Rachel Alucard Appears in BlazBlue Entropy Effect appeared first on Siliconera.

BlazBlue is an interesting franchise, and I say that with some level of generosity. I've been playing the games since Calamity Trigger released, but have always found the story hard to follow. So the idea of a 2D roguelike that could potentially catch me up on the events of the game was extremely enticing. I like BlazBlue and I like roguelikes, so I figured it could be a winning combination. While BlazBlue Entropy Effect attempts to bring the 2D-fighter into another genre and manages to do so with competence, it leaves something to be desired.

BlazBlue Entropy Effect has very little to do with BlazBlue. Players assume the role of a small robot that can more or less assume the shape of a BlazBlue character when entering a "digital" world that comprises a variety of different neon-colored stages. Outside of the inclusion of one specific character outside the roster of characters you can unlock, there isn't much connective tissue there. Instead, the narrative of the game is relatively sparse and concerns the work of the robots as they continue to reconstruct memories in the face of entropy. (Entropy was also once used as a game mechanic that would slowly degrade your HP, but it has since been removed from the game.) That is where any connection to BlazBlue basically begins and ends with. Yet, despite this, Blazblue Entropy Effect translates the skills of these individual characters to perfection.

A total of ten different characters can be unlocked, which includes more than a handful of notable figures from the series. These people are unlocked through the acquisition of Analyzers, which are obtained through obtaining AP or by completing missions. AP is collected by working your way through stages and are not lost upon death. Which means you can quickly farm AP to obtain Analyzers to unlock more characters once you grow bored of a particular playstyle. BlazBlue Entropy Effect doesn't deal in different weapons, but instead is focused on obtaining more moves and ives for the character you are choosing to potentially complete a run with.

The first character I obtained was Ragna the Blood Edge, recurring character and the protagonist of Calamity Trigger. His moveset was immediately familiar to me, as I have some experience Arc System Works 2D-Fighters. Ragna uses his signature kicks and punches, followed up with slow, heavy swings from his sword. But what made him so exhilarating to play was the need to balance your special attacks (which often consume your HP) and HP siphon from your skills. This gave me something else to factor in when fighting bosses, though the HP siphon and drain did help keep me alive through the most difficult situations depending on how skilled I was with the character. Basically, each character starts with a default move and skill, and as you progress through stages you can unlock more and eventually enhance these abilities, making them even more powerful and giving them more effects. This is what makes BlazBlue Entropy Effect stand-out compared to other games that occupy the roguelike genre.

Everything in the game is extremely dependent on the moveset, movement, and playstyle of each character. This is what you will need to take into consideration, as Noel, Jin, or Taokaka do not play like Ragna, either due the speed of their attacks or even the range. In some ways this could be frustrating if players don't gel with the playstyle of their favorite character, but it opens up room to experiment with different characters' feel and weight. Jin was my main in the fighting games, but I really didn't enjoy his playstyle and ended up playing as Ragna and Hakumen for most of my time with BlazBlue Entropy Effect, which gave me a new appreciation for those characters. Because the characters are what more or less define the game.

Outside of selecting and upgrading moves, players can pick from several different types of elemental enhancements on their weapons. These can include fire, poison, umbra (dark), light, and ice. Each of these enhancements can come in several different rarities, with the highest rarity providing the most beneficial effects. (That is usually just more damage.) Personally, I found that this is when BlazBlue Entropy Effect started getting a bit stale. It's a mechanic that is pretty stock and standard as far as enhancements go, and it doesn't have the same kind of depth as other 2D roguelike platformers like Dead Cells.

That staleness permeates the stages as well. While the game has gorgeous visuals, the levels tend to all look the same. Everything involves mostly unremarkable 2D neon washed landscapes. It's pseudo futuristic and grows old. Especially as stages themselves are relatively short and concerned with clearing waves of enemies that are on platforms above or below you. Sometimes traps are involved, but the addition of them feels negligible at best. I never found their addition to be particularly interesting, as they mostly appear as laser walls that you can dash through or jets of fire that spew flame intermittently. These traps can also appear while fighting bosses, which can make movement more difficult, but with the right builds you can wipe the floor with most of them.

There are also very few types of stages available, which are split into stages where you can get HP back, increase your max HP, purchase various upgrades, or obtain enhancements at random. This is basically the rotation of different rooms you get, but because there isn't any kind of significant story interaction there by comparison to a game like Hades, runs feel mindless and like you're more or less just grinding to see how to best optimize the moves and enhancements you've been given this time around.

But one of the best bits of BlazBlue Entropy Effect is the interface and general visual design. The game looks great. As mentioned before, moves are fluid and well animated, and the interface itself adheres to the overall theme of the game. It's slick, cybernetic, and minimalistic, but also vibrant and fresh. Everything about the way this game looks is fantastic, and it's definitely one of the best looking roguelikes I've played in awhile.

Overall, BlazBlue Entropy Effect is an enjoyable roguelike that players will no doubt be able to play for more than a handful of hours. It sets itself apart from other games within the same genre due to it's strong focus on characters and character builds, but the same-ness of stages leaves something to be desired. However, due to the limited stages and lack of engaging story it may not be too enticing for those looking for a roguelike with a little more substance.

BlazBlue Entropy Effect is available on PCs.

The post Review: BlazBlue Entropy Effect Is a Stylish Roguelike appeared first on Siliconera.

Publisher 91Act has announced that BlazBlue Entropy Effect will be released on PCs on January 31, 2024. The Chinese studio has also published a Japanese press release detailing content that will appear in the full release, such as the addition of Taokaka as the tenth playable character. [Thanks, 4Gamer!]

The BlazBlue spin-off game has been available on Steam via Early Access since mid-August 2023. While English and Japanese interfaces are available, the Early Access build only features Chinese voiceovers. The full release in late January 2024 will add English and Japanese voice options.

The latest Early Access version features nine playable characters so far. They are Ragna the Bloodedge, Jin Kisaragi, Noel Vermillion, Mai Natsume, Hibiki Kohaku, Kokonoe, Es, Hakumen, and Lambda-11. With the newly confirmed addition of Taokaka, the game will have a total of ten playable characters at launch.

A new trailer featuring the full release date announcement for BlazBlue Entropy Effect has also appeared on the game's YouTube channel, which you can watch below:

BlazBlue Entropy Effect is now available as an Early Access build on PC via Steam. It has a discounted price of $17.59 as part of the Steam Winter Sale until December 26, 2023. 91Act will release the game's full version on January 31, 2024.

The game's official website also has greyed-out buttons hinting at additional releases on Nintendo Switch and Sony PlayStation platforms.

The post BlazBlue Entropy Effect Full Version Release Date Announced appeared first on Siliconera.

As promised, BlazBlue Entropy Effect did appear in 2023, as the Early Access version is now available for PCs via Steam. The goal is to get from players on existing content, while gradually preparing more for the full release. The 91Act announcement noted it is about 60-70% done at the moment, with September 2023 and November 2023 updates planned. The final version is expected to appear in Q1 2024.

The announcement went over some of the things already present in the game. There are seven classic BlazBlue characters to use. Five stages are present, but only one is described as having Metroidvania elements. 10 bossescan be encountered. While the full game will have multiple endings, this version does not. People will also only be able to play it alone until the full version’s debut.

91Act did also discuss the price of BlazBlue Entropy Effect. The game will remain $19.99 while in Early Access. (At the moment, there is a temporary sale bringing that price down to $17.99 until August 22, 2023.) However, the developer did note “pricing adjustments may be made” at launch.

BlazBlue Entropy Effect is now available via Steam Early Access on PCs. People can also play it on the Steam Deck. The full version of the game is expected to appear in Q1 2024.

The post BlazBlue Entropy Effect Enters Early Access appeared first on Siliconera.

91Act released a new gameplay trailer for BlazBlue Entropy Effect on Twitter, as well as stating that the developer is aiming for a 2023 release date. A Steam page for the game appeared back in January 2023, confirming a PC release on Steam, but other details for the action-roguelike have been sparse.

The new trailer shows more of the little robots that the player appears to control, and who can control BlazBlue characters in turn when they enter gameplay stages. As the characters show off their abilities, an unnamed voice questions the choices of the player character or perhaps the player themselves.

We also got a look at some of the selectable upgrades for Es Mitsurugi. They include Cyan Blade Assault, a move that spends energy to shoot projectiles, Crest Expansion, which enlarges summoned crests and causes them to move forward, and a Split Crown attack that boosts aerial combat by extending her stomping attack to 4 stages and summoning a crest.

You can view the tweet and accompanying trailer below:

[embed]https://twitter.com/BBEE_Global/status/1669173473867083776?s=20[/embed]

The game is licensed by Arc System Works, who originally created the BlazBlue series. ArcSys recently announced new several new characters for its other games, including Siegfried in Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising and Asuka R. Kreutz for Guilty Gear Strive.

BlazBlue Entropy Effect is expected for release some time this year on PC via Steam.

The post BlazBlue Entropy Effect Gets Gameplay Trailer, 2023 Release Target appeared first on Siliconera.

A BlazBlue spin-off game looks to be appearing worldwide, as the PC version of BlazBlue Entropy Effect Steam product page is live. There’s no release date for it yet. All it notes is that it is “coming soon.” However, it also confirms the 91Act title will be a roguelike.

The official screenshots and trailer from the BlazBlue Entropy Effect Steam page show a few of the playable characters. When the trailer begins, the robot that seems to be controlled by a player ends up getting to go into a stage as Mai Natsume. After that Es, who originally debuted in XBlaze, shows up. Noel Vermillion also appears to be there. Hakumen and Nu also show up.

Here are the first five screenshots for this BlazBlue spin-off game.
[gallery columns="5" size="full" ids="948910,948911,948912,948913,948914" link="file"]

It seems that this will be a game in which players control robots in the “real world.” They can then enter stages, during which they will use the iconic BlazBlue characters to face challenges and fight bosses. The product page noted that it will be available in English, Japanese, and Simplified Chinese. However, the Steam trailer and screenshots only feature Chinese. This will also be a single-player game with some sort of online multiplayer element.

BlazBlue Entropy Effect is in development and “coming soon” to the PC via Steam.

The post BlazBlue Entropy Effect Roguelike Game Gets a Steam Page for PC Version appeared first on Siliconera.