Every Guilty Gear game comes with a roster full of unique and eccentric characters. It’s also full of designs that pop out at you, and make sure you remember them long after you turn your game off. Guilty Gear Strive is no different in that department, if not better.
Returning characters come back with entirely different appearances and outfits while some staple characters change just enough to keep it fresh while maintaining their signature looks.
There’s still some of that old anime fighter flare with a mixture of modern fashion in this iteration of Guilty Gear. However, some characters just end up pulling it off better than others.
15 Faust - Attempted Streetwear
Moving away from the spiffy suit he had in previous games, Faust makes an appearance in Strive with an entirely new motif. Faust still has his iconic brown paper bag but hardly shares any similarities with his former design.
He wears light-blue scrubs and athletic sneakers. The outfit pairs well enough with the gloves adding a nice touch and matching the color of the shoes. The red accents on the scrubs also match the blood inside of the syringe hanging from his waist and… his constantly glowing red eye that peers into your soul.
14 Zato-ONE - A Little One-Note
Zato-1’s outfits definitely matches him and his assassin origin. However, it’s a step below the rest of the roster despite being fitting and charming in its own right. Zato is adorned by a sleeveless black turtleneck, black arm warmers, black pants, and black boots. There’s a noticeable pattern here.
Zato could benefit from more color than just the red accents on the boots and blindfold. Sure, there’s a little gold on his belt to match his hair. It matches Eddie, his forbidden beast that he uses in combat, and that’s great. It’s just that everyone else has a bit more.
13 Potemkin - A Full Outfit?
This time around, Potemkin put some more clothes on than usual. Moving away from his classic jeans and shirtless look, he’s dressed from head to toe in Strive and Xrd. He’s rocking a military green uniform with an interesting choice of accessories.
The metallic additions to his gloves and boots aren’t the best looking but it matches Potemkin and his grappler play style. He packs a punch and there’s no hiding it in this outfit. The helmet and body-tight fit of the jacket might not be everyone’s cup of tea, though.
12 Chipp Zanuff - The Belt Is Questionable TBH
Chipp takes more damage than anyone else on the roster but he makes up for it in his own ways. His move set gives you a lot of options to hurt your opponents… and his outfit isn’t that bad either. As the resident ninja of the roster, he delivers on any expectations you might have of what the appropriate attire should be, minus the bright orange jumpsuit.
Chipp has a good look going on with the black tank top, white harem pants, and red sash. There’s a good balance of colors here and he’s as flashy as you need him to be. Not the best outfit for a ninja, but a good outfit nonetheless.
11 Anji Mito - He Knows How To Accessorize
Anji has one of Strive’s most eccentric designs, wearing the sleeves of a kimono but exposing most of his torso. His hakama also has a fairly unique design, which only benefits him. Anji’s look stands out, even in a roster full of distinct characters.
His hakama consists of blue, black, and white, depicting butterflies and Mount Fiji. His sleeves have some red and yellow, which complement his fans and obi. However, there is a really small detail that finishes the entire look: his round-frame glasses. He’s not Anji without them.
10 Leo Whitefang - Maybe This Is Too Many Accessories…
Leo Whitefang has a lot going on in his outfit. For starters, he’s wearing an open-collared shirt with a fur-collared waistcoat. Not to mention the pants reminiscent of cargo pants with no less than three belts. The brown, black, and white are a lot more toned down than his previous orange looks but it’s missing some accents that would make it pop out more.
Leo somehow manages to bring all of it together. Not to mention, it does well to show his arrogant personality and aggressive fighting style.
9 Millia Rage - Classic, Iconic, & Comfortable
Millia’s outfit has very little, if any, issues. She continues to wear a comfortable winter outfit with some minor tweaks and changes. She’s sporting a brown trench coat and fur hat to match. She has some black gloves and leggings to break it up. Finally, an orange shawl adds the finishing touch for some vibrance on an outfit that greatly needed it.
Millia knows how to put together an outfit. Completely inoffensive in taste and a nice outfit any cosplayer could reasonably throw together. However, there’s one concern. Is… that a license plate on her hat?
8 Axl Low - Plaid Bro
If you sent a gang leader from the 20th century into a time slip that kept sending him through different time periods, he’d probably come back with the same outfit that Axl has in Strive. Luckily for Axl, that’s exactly his predicament. He’s sort of modern but there are still some parts of his outfit that’s stuck in the past.
By sort of modern, it’s more like he’s trying to figure out what makes modern outfits work and then just wings it. It has some charm to it and he wears it well. Here are some points for trying and points for somehow exceeding all reasonable expectations, Axl.
7 Sol Badguy - Sora, But Like Not A Nerd
When it comes to Sol, you can’t mess up his design. You throw on his signature outfit and that’s all you need. There are not too many derivations of this design and for good reason, it works. It’d be sort of weird to see any other take on Sol besides some minor tweaks and improvements.
They added a belt buckle with “Free” scratched on it, which could be better if the choice of font was slightly different. However, it’s still another classic Sol outfit, but maybe sticking to that mindset is what’s stopping players from getting something really exciting and new. You never know until you try it.
6 May - My Hoodie Is Ocean Ready
May comes back in a completely new outfit and a modern one at that. As the leader of the Jellyfish Pirates, she gets some new clothes and one of the best arenas in the game. Her new design in Strive is a step up from previous games by taking the core aspects of May’s design and simplifying them.
It’s a pretty childish outfit, with the oversized hoodie, big poofy hat, black shorts, and backpack. It’s simple but it works, especially in a game where half of the roster has more belts than special moves.
5 Nagoriyuki - Cyberpunk Samurai
Cyberpunk samurai. That’s Nagoriyuki. You see his white coat covering the orange robe and obi, katana by his side, and helmet on his head. You instantly know what his whole deal is. The vampire part is something you only figure out once it’s too late.
Nagoriyuki’s look could very easily become too overbearing and complicated, but it’s not. The design does a great job of balancing the white, orange, purple, and black in his clothes by intelligently spreading them out through the outfit and small accessories.
4 Ramlethal Valentine - Sleeves Are For Plebs
This is an anime game. What’s an anime game without capes and giant swords? Ramlethal makes sure that the quota is met for both of those. Dressed almost entirely in white, she breaks it up with some red tape around her arm and leg.
The green clover on her hat makes up for the lack of green on her cape, something that will sorely be missed from Xrd. The black accents are restricted almost exclusively to the top part of her outfit, leaving room for the cape and on-and-off leg accessories to implement the white.
3 Giovanna - Simplicity (Plus Doggo)
Without being too biased to her fighting wolf spirit, Giovanna deserves a high spot on this list. Alright, maybe the dog has a bit to do with it. An outfit doesn’t need too much to look good and Giovanna’s clothing is the perfect example of that.
She has a white shirt, baggy pants, brown gloves, and color scheme-appropriate boots. In basic terms, it doesn’t sound very good but she proves it’s all in the execution. Even her red hair adds a bit to it as a complimentary color to the green. Also, it matches the dog. Sorry.
2 I-No - Your Average Punk Rock Red Mage Look
Line up 100 people and ask them what they think a music with looks like. Nothing that any of them will describe is going to look remotely like I-No. They might not even know how to process that combination of words; but, if you show them a picture of her outfit in Strive they’ll agree with little to no hesitation.
Red, black, and a tad of white is all that’d needed for the punk rock look. The cuts in her outfit show off some skin and stop it from feeling too samey. Plus, the guitar and sunglasses are a nice touch.
1 Ky Kiske - Like Sol Badguy, But Not A Tryhard
Ky returns as the most beginner-friendly fighter on the roster according to the game’s ease of use rating. Whether you need someone easy to use or someone who just looks cool, Ky can fulfill both roles more than adequately enough.
The black outfit with some blue accents, the white cape, brown belts, and brown shoes. The blue gloves and the sword with the cool handle. What’s there not to love? Not a fan of blue? Well, he looks good in any color choice.
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