I attended Magfest this past weekend and it gave me the opportunity to play many games. Among the games I played at Magfest there was one in particular that I've heard plenty about over the years, but I never got around to playing it. The game was called Guilty Gear XX Accent Core.



Granted, this is the newest version which was released in September of 2007, but there have been countless other versions spanning multiple consoles and handheld gaming devices. I'm well aware that this series has a very devoted fanbase, however, it never intrested me enough to look into the series. I always assumed that it was a Street Fighter clone with your typical anime flair which has become very tired to me.



The first night and the majority of the first day I was there, a huge group of gamers were surrounding this hurting 27" tube television waiting for their chance to join the fray. I saw the game in action for a moment as I was passing by, but it puqued my interest enough that I would eventually go back to it later to give it a try.

Sure enough, later that day I went back and there was a guy playing it by himself. I grabbed a chair and sat down next to him. I started up a conversation asking him what he thought of the game. Our conversation was much like this.

Me: Sup, man? Is this game any good? It looks awesome.
Random Dude: Yea, man. This game is amazing. You want to play?
Me: No thanks, dude. You seem like you know what you're doing. I'll just watch so I can keep my dignity.
Random Dude: *chuckles* Nah, I'll go easy on you. Go on, grab a controller!

I eventually took him up on his offer and he was kind enough to give me the run down on which characters were good to use for beginners. Long story short, I picked my character and he whopped me a good three times before others began making their way back to play. I saw a couple of guys with their very own ginormous arcade sticks and at that point I knew it was time for me to leave.



For the short time I played this game I was nothing but impressed. The animations are simply jaw-dropping. Everything is easy on the eyes and nice to look at. The game runs very smooth and very fast, dispite all of the crazy stuff going on during a fight. I thought it was fairly easy to pick up and play, but just like with all fighters the more you play the better you get. The last thing I need right now is another game to play, but I will surely be picking this game up at a later time. I strongly recommend this game to anyone who hasn't yet given it a try, as I am sure they will have a great time with it.