Update: This patch has now gone live with Season 3 and Johnny being available for purchase on all platforms.
At EVO 2023, Guilty Gear Strive from Arc System Works had its first Season Pass 3 character revealed alongside a new trailer. The Guilty Gear Strive Johnny character DLC release date is set for August 24 (tomorrow) alongside the start of season 3. Guilty Gear Strive Season 3 will bring in four characters from this month into 2024, new stages, colors, and more. Season 3 will also see new mechanics and moves added to the base game for all characters. Today the Guilty Gear Strive Season 3 patch notes and balance adjustments have been revealed with the update going live. If you’ve not played the base game yet, we featured Guilty Gear Strive as one of the best games of 2021 and one of the best soundtracks of 2021. Read my PS5 review from launch here and Xbox Series X review here covering the current state of the game. Watch the Guilty Gear Strive Johnny DLC trailer below:
Guilty Gear Strive Season 3 patch notes for version 1.29 update
General / Game Modes
・Added Johnny as a playable character.
* Johnny will be available after purchasing the “GGST Season Pass 3” or the “Johnny” DLC item to be released on August 24.
・Added the Johnny theme, “Just Lean.”
* Johnny must be selectable in order to use the BGM.
・Added avatar items for Johnny.
* The new avatar items can be obtained via “fishing.”
・Added the following BGM to the Gallery Mode:
“Liquor Bar & Drunkard” (Johnny’s theme from Guilty Gear XX)
“Original Bet” (Johnny’s theme from GG Xrd)
* The new BGM items can be obtained via “fishing.”
・The main menu has received significant visual changes. Certain menu items and their respective names, as well as the menu location of certain modes, have also been changed as a result.
System settings, battle settings, etc. can be selected and changed through Game Settings, which can be accessed via the Options button, Menu button, or the Enter key (for keyboard input).
・Added Quick Access feature. This feature allows specific items from the main menu to be assigned and opened with a single button press, avoiding unnecessary inputs and resulting in easier menu navigation.
Online Matches
- Changed some visual features of the lobby selection screen.
- Added a visual indicator of current online player count for each floor when selecting floors in the Ranked Tower.
- Added “Africa” as a selectable network region.
- Changed the structure of the lobby screen.
- Items can now be selected from the shortcut menu when the button is being held down by aligning the cursor and then releasing the button.
- Added the ability to Follow, Block, or Report other players both directly or by selecting the option through the Contact menu displayed on the Member List.
Online Lobbies
- Avatars in online lobbies will now be moved from the Duel Station they were using to the Bartender’s area when suspending matchmaking in Standby in Training Mode.
- Fixed an issue where vacant Duel Stations could not be accessed due to the information of the most recent player remaining on the server.
Character Select
- Changed the display format.
- Revised selection criteria to achieve a better overall equilibrium for Battle Type and Easy to Use classifications. Battle Type and Easy to Use descriptions for some characters have been changed as a result.
- These revisions are not intended to represent any changes associated with the most recent balance update.
- The operation of changing settings for BGM, Stage, and Battle Settings has been revised from a method where changes are made collectively and then confirmed to a method where changes are selected and then confirmed individually.
- The selected BGM or Stage using the AUTO function is now displayed after the character is determined.
Mission Mode
- In accordance with the new character and battle changes, new missions have been added, and some existing missions have been updated or deleted. Updated missions have had their Cleared status reset.
R-Code
- When checking your R-Code, the OPTIONS/MENU button now opens the Edit Profile screen. Please note that you can no longer edit your profile from the standard R-Code menu.
GG World
- Added new items to Glossary and Correlation.
- Updated text for Asuka R. Kreuz.
- Added images for some characters.
Other
- If a special color that is not intended for use by a player is selected through unauthorized means, the default color will instead be used.
- Changed the display format of the Match Result screen.
- Fixed some spelling and grammatical errors in Gallery Mode.
Guilty Gear Strive Season 3 balance adjustments for all characters in version 1.29 update
- The battle version has been updated from Ver. 2.06 to Ver. 3.00.
- The battle version can be checked in the Replay Theater.
- Fixed minor issues and made new battle changes.
- Details regarding these changes can be found here.
Guilty Gear Strive Season Pass 3 price and contents
Arc System Works revealed that Season Pass 3 has the following:
- 4 New Characters – Beginning with the Johnny DLC on August 24
- 2 New Systems – Introducing Wild Assault and Deflect Shield on August 24
- 2 Additional Battle Stages – Releasing later this year
- Additional Color Pack #3 – More details to come soon
- Plus, the Season Pass 3 Purchase Bonus – Enabling players to use a total of 12 additional character colors (4 characters x 3 colors)
Guilty Gear Strive Daredevil Edition contents and price
Arc System Works announced the Guilty Gear Strive Daredevil Edition priced at $99.99 including season passes 1-3, digital sound and artworks, and more. This is a celebration of Season 3 and the 25th anniversary of Guilty Gear.
- Guilty Gear -Strive- main game
- Guilty Gear -Strive- Season Pass 1
- Guilty Gear -Strive- Season Pass 2
- Guilty Gear -Strive- Season Pass 3
- Guilty Gear -Strive- digital sound and artworks
- Guilty Gear -Strive- Daredevil Edition Special Color
- Guilty Gear 25th Anniversary Colors
Guilty Gear Strive Season 3 update
This Season 3 update will add the following and it will arrive on the Guilty Gear Strive Johnny Release date.
- New Special Moves – Added to six of 15 initial roster characters. More characters to come in later updates.
- New Offensive Mechanic – Wild Assault: Perform a lunging attack to the front. Available to all characters. Properties vary depending on the character.
- New Defensive Mechanic – Deflect Shield: Can block any attack. Including overheads, lows, and projectiles. Available to all characters.
Guilty Gear Strive Johnny DLC release date and price
Asuka R# is out today for $6.99. Johnny is included in Season Pass 3 or sold separately.
Guilty Gear Strive Johnny theme song on Spotify and Apple Music
You can stream the Guilty Gear Strive Johnny theme song “Just Lean” on Spotify here and Apple Music here.
The game recently hit Xbox platforms including Xbox Game Pass with full cross play. Johnny is the 10th DLC character in Guilty Gear Strive following Asuka #R who arrived a little while ago. Check out the official website here.
Guilty Gear Strive is out now on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and Steam. Read my PS5 review here, Xbox review here, and platform comparison here.
