What parents need to know
UNDER NIGHT IN-BIRTH II Sys:Celes is a 2D fighting game.
It is the sequel to….
- Under Night In-Birth (2012)
- Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late (2013)
- Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[st] (2017)
- Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[cl-r] (2020)
So it’s the continuation of a series of fighting games that began in 2012.
This episode has 24 characters, including 21 veteran characters salvaged from previous games.
In 12 years, nothing and everything has changed at the same time. Everything is more beautiful, better calibrated, more polished, sometimes with added game mechanics, but the base remains the same.
It’s a very fast-paced fighting game where you have to attack knowing your character’s combos by heart and defending yourself at full speed.
The game was provided by the publisher for review purposes. This does not influence our opinion.
Details
Level of experience required
| Age | 3+ | 7+ | 12+ | 16+ | 18+ |
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Evaluation
It is a fighting game. Punches, kicks, bladed weapons, guns, laser projectiles, magic. Threats, provocations, cries of pain.
No blood, but a lot of evocation of it.
Some female characters have broad breasts with cleavages.
You need to be able to read to understand the multiple menus and instructions.
It’s not a game with a positive message. It’s a competitive game where humans against humans or humans against the console, computer.
Very difficult to approach, combos (combinations of blows preventing the opponent from retaliating) are very complicated to learn.
There are a lot of characters, hundreds of combinations and moves to learn.
You have to react very quickly with the right buttons.
Definitely a game for the most persevering and experienced. No concessions are made for beginner players.
You have to buy the game, and then buy additional character packs in deluxe editions or separately when they are released.
It’s the business model of every fighting game now, but it makes the investment very expensive.
Local game modes
Arcade
Score Attack
Time Attack
Versus
Training
Tutorial
Mission
Customize
Gallery
Online Game Modes
Ranked Match: for ranked matches.
Casual Match: for unranked games
Player Match: for player lobbies
Expansions/Add-ons (DLC)
For those who purchase the game before March 31, 2024. They have the right to the 3 additional characters (UZUKI, OGRE and IZUMI)
that will come in the next few months. And to an unlockable character in the game.
For people who purchase the Deluxe Edition, they are entitled to 25 advertiser packs for the game. That is to say, the voices of each of the characters in the game to speak the names of the game’s menus when navigating through them.
It’s really not a much-needed extra bonus. The original voice is perfect.
After March 31, 2024, the Season Pass will no longer be included and will be sold separately from the game.
Our opinion
Wow, how fun the game is! It’s my first Under Night In-Birth, and I’m having a lot of fun with it.
By far the series has always given me to be an amateur game because of its austere and square interfaces, I didn’t understand the interest that the fighting community had in the title. But yes, it’s a really good game, and the interfaces are very clear and you can easily find the menus you want.
If in this episode, the marketing brags about having added the way to make combos simply, it’s true, but it’s not enough. The only way to do this is to use the A hit button several times in melee. So it’s an auto-combo as it’s called in other games, and if you can’t place your character in the right place and at the right time as it is essential. And that’s an insurmountable task for people who have never played a fighting game.
Unlike Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat and Tekken who strive to do everything they can to seduce the general public with new game modes, new control modes, Under Night In-Birth II: Sys Celes remains very faithful to its core target: fighting game enthusiasts.
They have a lot of fun with the game. Especially since it’s the first episode that has a good network code for online games, the famous “Rollback Netcode”. Even with this network code overhaul, I’ve encountered a few games where it was unplayable, probably because of the distance of the participants. The vast majority of online games run smoothly.
There is a very detailed and very long tutorial to go through to learn everything. Just like when you’re learning a new language, give yourself several days to integrate each of the concepts one by one. The ideal is to learn new mechanics and then test them in combat in order to practice and integrate them.
The art direction is very neat, the characters are fabulous and all make you want to be played. The menus are always austere but effective.
The fights are very fast-paced, and the possibilities for moves and combinations of moves are almost endless. You will need a lot of reflexes and dexterity. You can try so many things with your favorite character, they’re all very different. There’s plenty to have fun and learn for years to come with this title.
So the game is aimed at expert competitive players who will have a lot of content to have fun both online and offline.
Apart from that, if you love the universe, and you are very persistent, there is a way to get over the very steep learning curve of this title. The ideal is to play it and learn with someone of the same level.
That’s the whole point of a fighting game. Play and have fun with 2 people.
It’s a shame for Xbox gamers who still miss out on a fighting game, while Xbox is making a lot of efforts to catch up with them in this regard.
