2 days Ago
'Guilty Gear Strive' was recently released on the Switch. I recently caught up with Arc System Works producer Ken Miyauchi and discussed the recent Switch release of Guilty Gear Strive , as well as the future of the fighting game series. As a new member of the team at Arc System Works, I was curious about Miyauchi’s background.
“Originally, I worked for a company in Japan that dealt with social infrastructure and had no connection to the gaming industry. While I was a university student living on the East Coast of the United States, I was deeply moved by Arc System Works’ fighting games. In 2018, Arc System Works was looking for talent to help with global expansion, so I applied for a game producer position.
“After joining the company, I was initially assigned to the development department. In my first year, I worked as a game designer, debugging various titles and designing battle mechanics for a game called Wizard’s Symphony . In my second year, I became an associate producer under Takeshi Yamanaka , who was the producer of Guilty Gear at the time, and I worked in the Overseas Business Division, strategizing global expansion plans for Arc System Works titles.
“In 2020, I was stationed at Arc System Works America, where I managed local operations while also planning promotional activities for our titles in North America. Since 2022, I have taken over as the producer of Guilty Gear Strive , succeeding Yamanaka.” Compared to previous games in the Guilty Gear series, I wondered what Miyachi thought made Guilty Gear Strive stand out.
“One of the most immediately noticeable aspects is its unique visual style. While 3D graphics designed to look like cel-shaded anime have become more common in the gaming industry, I believe Guilty Gear Strive still goes a step further. The game’s animations are not driven by physics-based simulations, which allows for a level of expressive animation that sets it apart from other titles.
FEATURED | Frase By Forbes TM Unscramble The Anagram To Reveal The Phrase Pinpoint By Linkedin Guess The Category Queens By Linkedin Crown Each Region Crossclimb By Linkedin Unlock A Trivia Ladder “Additionally, the game features high-speed action with intense battles involving swords, guns, and magic. Despite the fast-paced gameplay, the animations are designed to maintain clarity, making it easy to follow the action while still delivering a sense of power and excitement. The inclusion of vocal themes for each character and the passionate fanbase also contribute to the game’s unique appeal.
” With the recent release of Guilty Gear Strive on the Switch, I asked what were Miyauchi’s hopes for it. “Nintendo Switch caters to a different audience compared to platforms like PlayStation, Xbox, and Steam, where Guilty Gear Strive was originally released. Many Switch players tend to engage with games in a more casual way.
While Guilty Gear Strive has significantly increased the franchise’s recognition, we believe there are still untapped audiences, particularly those who primarily play on Switch or mobile devices. Getting 'Guilty Gear Strive' to work on the Switch was handled by an Australian studio. “The Nintendo Switch Edition serves as a stepping stone to reach this new demographic and expand the potential player base for future Guilty Gear titles.
We hope this release will bring the Guilty Gear experience to an even wider audience. “Since Guilty Gear Strive was not originally developed with the Nintendo Switch in mind, significant optimization was necessary in terms of graphics, memory usage, and overall game size. As a company, we initially assessed that a direct port without visual downgrades would not be feasible.
“Additionally, since the development team was already busy with seasonal updates, we could not handle the Switch port internally. Finding an external development studio capable of delivering a high-quality port was our biggest challenge. Eventually, we found a capable studio in Australia that had confidence in their ability to handle the project.
“However, since they did not speak Japanese, I took on the role of director for the port, ensuring that the main development team could continue working on seasonal updates without being affected by the porting process. It was a challenging yet rewarding experience. Finishing up, I wanted to know what the future held for the Guilty Gear series.
“In June 2025, Guilty Gear Strive will celebrate its fourth anniversary, and Season 4 will bring an exciting finale with the series’ first-ever guest character, Lucy from Cyberpunk: Edgerunners . By that time, her development will be nearing completion, and aiming for her release in the Summer. “While we can’t share details about what comes next just yet, the fact that we’ve been able to reach Season 4 is thanks to the incredible support from our fans.
We hope that with your continued support, we can bring even more exciting developments in the future. “Thank you for being part of the Guilty Gear community, and we hope you continue to enjoy Guilty Gear Strive .” Guilty Gear Strive is now available to play on Nintendo Switch .
If you are curious to find out more about the history behind Arc System Works and the Guilty Gear series, then feel free to check out one of my older interviews here . Follow me on X , Facebook and YouTube . I also manage Mecha Damashii and am currently featured in the Giant Robots exhibition currently touring Japan.
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