Under Night In-Birth Exe Late [st] Review - Excellent balance between fighters

It's a mouthful, but do not let the title put you off. Developer Ecole Bread and French Software have joined forces for the up and coming Japanese fighting game Under Night In-Birth Exe: Late [st] or UNIST in short. However, they have not only achieved the release of this game. Arc System Works is also involved in this game, this time in the role of publisher. Arc System Works naturally has the necessary experience with 2D fighting games, such as the well-known Guilty Gear and Blazblue series and the recent Dragon Ball FighterZ. Is that a collaboration that has led to success? You can read that below.

Re-release

Under Night In-Birth Exe: Late [st] is an updated and reborn edition of the 2015 release of the same title for the PlayStation 3. This game was in turn a renewed release of UNDER NIGHT IN-BIRTH, which is appeared in the Japanese arcade halls in 2012. At the time the game was flown a little under the radar, which is why this new edition should not be called a bad thing. The game itself is a 2D fighting game in which the cut scenes are presented as a visual novel. Think of images that seem to come out of a manga and thus you soon notice that the game has a different approach than usual. Because of this, it also tries to be unique in the genre.

Unfortunately, due to the chosen way of presentation, you also notice that the game is a new edition of a game that is already more than 5 years old. The sprites of the characters are not optimized enough for the PlayStation 4, because there are enough edges of the edges visible at times. The main menu also looks very messy, because it presents too much information on the screen at the same time, making it a bit cluttered.

Complex but stylish

The story of Under Night In-Birth Exe: Late [st] is quite complex. Namely, a phenomenon called 'Hollow Night' has passed and as a result zones have arisen in Japan. The result is that various playable characters have received special powers or skills and are therefore called 'In-Birth'. Two factions have also emerged, namely Yato and Light Kreis, who are fighting for order - and power - in the zones. Although the story is difficult to follow, every character breathes their own personality and they all have a different style of fighting.

For example, the character Hyde can be called an all-round fighter, where Waldstein is very slow. For example, he can not run, but it does mean that he is extremely strong. Enkidu is a close combat specialist and so each character has his or her own advantages and disadvantages. None of the 20 playable characters feels fortunately too strong or 'cheap'. It is noticeable that Ecole Software and French Bread have paid a great deal of attention to finding the right balance between the fighters and that suits the game well.

More than a story

Under Night In-Birth Exe: In addition to well-known various offline modes such as Time Attack, Survival and Tutorial, Late [st] also features a multiplayer mode where you can fight against a friend, as well as an Arcade mode. All in visual novel style, in this mode you see the roughly three battles a scene in which some more is told about the story, which then focuses on the character you have chosen. It sounds nice, but in practice it is just a lot of text, which appears as a conversation between characters on the screen. The sprites of the characters who are speaking during a conversation actually change little to nothing, which is a bit of a shame.

Apart from an Arcade mode in which the story is explained, UNIST also contains a Chronicle mode. Here you play multiple short storylines of all characters. This way you discover how certain characters know each other or why these characters are enemies of each other. Although these Chronicles are presented in the same style as in Arcade mode, and thus quickly appear as a piece of text, it is a nice extra to learn more about the characters. UNIST has a lot of content for a fighting game with all modes, which is very positive.

Full on the attack

Then regarding the actual fighting itself. On your screen there are two other bars next to a life bar. For example, there is an 'EXS' meter, which slowly fills up. Once this bar is (half) full, you can use a powerful attack. That is not the only thing, because unlike other fighting games, an active attitude is appreciated in this game. This valuation is expressed by the second bar on your screen, the so-called 'GRD' meter. The more you attack, the faster this meter will fill.

Creating distance and withdrawing is, however, fatal for your GRD meter and the meter will decrease again as a result of these actions. Once the bar is full, it ensures that your attacks are just a little stronger or you can use a move that will fill the EXS bar further. With this you can use an even more powerful attack. It is therefore important to keep an eye on these meters, because it has an important influence on the gameplay.

The game has a four-button system, with one button dedicated to charging the GRD meter at the expense of the opponent's GRD meter. That is, of course, an option that can be disadvantageous for the opponent, but also for you, in some cases. By using the other three buttons efficiently, you can create and release combos on your opponent, making it important to fight strategically for the best result. Initially, the game is fairly accessible, so that everyone can step in. But to get the bottom out of it, you will have to invest a lot of energy in it, because the actual depth is very complex.

Challenge the world

If you have enough of the offline part, you can enter the wide world online. Online you can play a casual match with various options in addition to a ranked fight and you can also create a custom match with your own set of rules. The online part of the game works perfectly, without any lag or framedrops. By the aforementioned EXS and GRD meters you are also invited online to go on the attack. Because of this, no match can be called boring once you have a character under control. It is also clear online that UNIST knows an excellent balance between the fighters. In addition, combos can never be used indefinitely, so you will not end up in a corner and become unfair.

Conclusion

Under Night In-Birth Exe: Late [st] is a new edition of a game that has been out for more than 5 years now, but passed by unnoticed. That it is a somewhat older game is especially noticeable in the visual aspect. At times, the game just does not seem optimized enough for the PlayStation 4. Although the game offers enough content, the story does not hold your attention through the presentation via a piece of text, which is a shame. In terms of gameplay the game is solid and well balanced. By adding the two extra meters you are encouraged to look for the attack which adds a good extra layer to the gameplay that benefits the experience.

The plus and minus points

✔ A lot of content
✔ Characters exude personality
✔ Excellent balance between fighters
✔ Fun system with EXS and GRD meters
✔ Solid online
✔ Accessible...
✖ ...but hard to really master
✖ Graphics not completely optimized
✖ Messy main menu
✖ Story is essentially a wall full of text

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