An Endless Night of Endless Fun: An Under Night In-Birth II [Sys:Celes] Review

By Manuel

Players: 1-2 (Local & Online)
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC

There have been some big fighting game releases recently, but there's one I think that has fallen somewhat under the radar. That game is question would be Under Night In-Birth II [Sys:Celes], which is the final chapter of the fighting game series developed by studio French-Bread. This release is available on most major consoles and PC (Sorry XBox fans!) by way of Arc System Works, who are very well-known for their own series of fighting games like the Guilty Gear series. While there are some who may look at this and see just another 2D fighter, there are quite a few unique aspects to Under Night In-Birth II that make it stand out above the crowd. As usual though, I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's dive into the review and see if you'll ultimately agree with me on that last point!

The story in a nutshell.

Do the tutorials!

I don't even know where to begin explaining the story of Under Night In-Birth II, and that's mainly because I still don't think I fully understand it myself. I'm going to do my best here, but I'm sure to get some things wrong. I guess if anything that follows interests you, you can simply dive into the game yourself and get a feel for how surprisingly complex the story is. The world of Under Night In-Birth II is full of people who are known as "In-Births". These are humans who can manipulate EXS powers due to surviving encounters from beings known as Voids. These Voids only appear during a certain phenomenon known as The Hollow Night. The previous Under Night game saw our cast of characters take on Hilda the Paradox, an In-Birth who leads an evil group of In-Births known as Amnesia. Her ultimate goal was to become a Re-Birth, which is basically the ultimate form of an In-Birth. The two main heroes in this series are a high school student named Hyde Kido and a 500 year old girl named Linne. Linne and Hyde team up because Linne thinks that Hyde has the power to finally end her life, though Hyde ultimately wants nothing to do with anything of the sort. A new villain arises following the eventual defeat of Hilda, Linne's brother Kuon. Kuon was apparently behind Hilda's actions and seeks to destroy the world via a final Endless Night. In-Births from all over the world come together to stop him, and thus begins our game. Among those trying to stop Kuon are The Lich Kreis, a foreign group of In-Births who launch an all-out offensive that features several powerful female fighters. While everyone is out to stop Kuon, not everyone is out to save the world. Each of the characters have their own reasons for fighting, and you can get to know all about them via repeated playthroughs. While I love that the game goes rather hard on its lore dumps, I have to say that there's no easy way to learn exactly what happened before the start of the game. I actually had to piece together what little I know via character interactions and the brief bios on the Arcade Mode's character select screen. While gameplay is usually the most important aspect of any fighting game, I do applaud Under Night In-Birth II for telling a far more in-depth story than it needed to. There's an entire universe to jump into here, and while the intro may be quite confusing, everything does wrap itself up in a nice conclusion to the series as a whole.

Our hero, Hyde Kido.

The game really does look amazing in action.

Normally I'd start discussing gameplay, but I'm not sure what to say gameplay-wise here. Fighting games are a hard genre to boil down to a few sentences, and one can argue that such an action isn't even necessary as even the most casual of gamers already have an idea of how a fighting game plays. While there are a lot of things love about Under Night In-Birth II, I'll be the first to admit that it doesn't exactly shake up the fighting game formula all that much. It's a one-on-one 2D fighter, and what you see is what you get. Your goal is to deplete your opponent's life bar before the timer ends, and then do so at least twice to win the match. I'm going to discuss the beginner-friendly nature of the game more in-depth later on, but I guess that would be the only thing that I feel is truly unique to Under Night In-Birth II. As this is a 2D fighter, you only have the core directions to worry about as far as movement goes. Besides that, there are only four other buttons to familiarize yourself with. Three of these buttons are used to attack, as in light, medium, and strong attacks, with the fourth being used in conjunction with the game's GRD (grind) system. The GRD system rewards players for playing more aggressively, and the ever-changing meter can be used to perform special actions like quickly moving around the field, filling up the EXS gauge, or even performing a special move. The EXS gauge is a meter that allows you to perform stronger special attacks, and it fills up with each action taken or received. Blocking is done by holding back, and throwing is done by combining the GRD button and the light attack button. There's more mechanics to the game of course, such as move cancelling moves and performing linked attack combos, but those are probably a bit too complex to explain within the context of a review. While this isn't the most feature-rich fighting game out there, it definitely scores bonus points for featuring mechanics that can be picked up quickly but are still complex enough that advanced players have something to work with.

Play styles are important in fighting games as most players tend to latch onto certain characters and master playing almost exclusively with only them. Under Night In-Birth II has some DLC on the way that is sure to bring new characters into the mix, but the two dozen that are currently included in the core game are quite the roster already as it is. Hyde Kido serves as the "Ryu" of the bunch if you will, and is probably the easiest to jump right into if you're new to the game or the genre. On the flip side is a character like Waldstein, who is extremely powerful but has a somewhat wonky hit box and is probably the slowest of all the characters. In between this you have characters like Hilda and Enkidu whose moves are just a tad more complex and probably aren't the best choices for inexperienced fighting game players to use. There are even some characters that Yuzuriha who add in additional gameplay mechanics that are far too complicated to explain here. While it may sound a bit trite to say that there is a character for everyone here, that's exactly how I feel about the core roster. For those curious as to my preference, I personally grew to love Licht Kreis member Orie whose quick movement and easy to chain special moves suited my particular style the best. While I personally think that the entire cast look like they walked off the set of a Persona Arena game, I must say that they are quite the mixed group style-wise, and that's just talking about actual gameplay. If there's an anime trope or character type that you're a fan of, you're more than likely to find someone here that'll match it.

That's a lot of... assets in one fight.

The animation on Orie's skirt is amazing.

I'm not sure what exactly I was expecting to find as far as game modes go, but I was somewhat disappointed by what Under Night In-Birth II offers. While there seems to be a lot of options available, they mostly all fall under either versus, online, training, missions, or arcade. Arcade Mode is where you go when you want to experience the game's story. You pick a character and go through ten fights that usually culminate in a showdown with Kuon. Along the way to Kuon you get a couple story scenes, and you obviously get an ending unique to the character you picked. This mode is also how you unlock Kuon himself, as you have to beat the mode with what I guess the game considers the "main cast" in order to play as him. Training and missions are kind of one and the same, but do have a lot of variety between them. Training can be done freely (as in with no set goals) or come via series of lessons that teach you how to play the game. I strongly suggest that anyone new finishes at least the first two rounds of training before diving into the rest of the game as they do a good job of teaching all the important mechanics. You can also complete missions here for each character. These "missions" are a series of high level combos that I'll readily admit to having a hard time with. Even if you're not able to complete them all, it's best to learn some of them for your preferred character(s) so you can implement them in actual gameplay. Versus is a standard one versus one match, and can be done with any combination of IRL or computer-controlled players. A running tally of wins and losses is kept until you leave the mode, and this is perfect for bragging right between you and your friends. The online mode in Under Night In-Birth II is just as deep as the story, but I'm sad to say that I didn't experience much of it before writing this review. This is mainly due to my own insecurity over not wanting to lose a ton of matches right off the bat, but I will say that the few matches I did try went off perfectly without any hiccups. If anything I guess I lament the fact that this game doesn't offer a standalone singular Story Mode. I know the Arcade Mode offers something similar, but it mainly tells a lot of "What If..." stories. I longed for a mode that weaved in and out of each character's individual plots and told the "true" singular narrative of the game. That's probably more of a nitpick than anything though, but it does feel like the one thing this game is lacking. Anyway, even though I started this section complaining about the amount of gameplay modes on offer, I must say that I put in way more hours than needed for this review simply because the game did such a good job of drawing me in.

All this from just hitting light attack a lot.

Is that a Fist of The North Star reference?

Speaking of drawing me in, I was so charmed by Under Night In-Birth II that I found myself devoting an entire weekend and more to it. It's not just that it's a good fighting game though, but the fact that it's extremely inviting. Fighting games have a tendency to be very unwelcoming to players either new to whatever the series is, or even to the genre itself. They're probably the most difficult games for casual players to get into, and Under Night In-Birth II takes a really good stab at making this game friendly to players of all skill levels. Right off the bat there's the simple control scheme I mentioned earlier. While not a necessity by any means, many fighting games use far more than four buttons to control the action. Having this be fully playable without the needing to us shoulder buttons is great, and the game still manages to work in lots despite what might seem like a limitation. Next up has to be how one performs special moves and/or powerful EXS attacks. Special moves aren't exactly any easier than in other games, but just about everyone has at least one that is a standard "fireball" motion, or something equally well-known to even the most casual of players. EXS moves are even easier as something as simple as repeatedly hitting the light attack button once the EXS meter is full will unleash a really cool powerful move that'll take a good chunk out of your opponent's life bar. That's literally it too, you just hit one button again and again and hope it all connects to perform what is one of the most powerful moves in the game. You can also use the EXS meter to perform stronger versions of regular special moves. This is done simply performing the move with the strong attack button as opposed to light or medium. It's really simple to pull off cool-looking moves, and you can string everything together with simple level combos to fool yourself into thinking that you've somehow become a fighting game pro. Lastly, it's worth mentioning that everything unlocks even if you're playing on the lowest difficulty setting. I think the game is so tightly balanced that you're doing yourself a disservice by lowering it beneath the default, but the fact that the entire game is still open to those who wish to do so is great. I hesitate to call Under Night In-Birth II a "beginner's fighting game" since I think that title would come with some negative connotations, but that's how I'd describe it in a pinch. It definitely is the most welcoming fighting game I've ever played in my life. It's easy to learn, simple to play, but still complex enough that button mashing won't get you far. At the end of the day accessibility like this reflects a well-balanced game, and Under Night In-Birth II is exactly that.

That looks like it hurts!

No alternate costumes, but lots of color edits.

While I think this is an amazing game gameplay-wise, the visuals had me torn for a while. Don't get me wrong, the awesome 2D pixel graphics of the fighting game action are perfect. They're the best the genre has to offer, and have only the best animation to go along with them. I can't even fault the character design, even though I made that jab earlier about everyone looking like they stepped out of a Persona game. There's a lot of variety here, no matter if I feel that they might be vaguely similar to characters I've seen elsewhere. My main issue with the visuals is that there are no less than three completely different art styles going on in this one game. Besides the main graphics there's some SD sprites that thankfully aren't seen too much within the main game. I only mention them as they stand out the most due to them pretty much flying in the face of the game's otherwise darker themes and aesthetics. SD characters aside, what really stands out are the character portraits that are used for the dialogue scenes. These have a sort of "How to Draw Anime" look to them that feels like an early 2000s American artist trying to emulate an anime style and falling flat on their face. They still look close enough to their main designs that you can tell who they are, but they look like they come from an American comic book adaptation of the game at best. While I eventually grew to accept the art style for what it was, I never shook the feeling that it would've looked far better if they went for a more traditional anime look that matches the rest of the game. I'll admit that my gripe with the dialogue portraits is probably a matter of taste more than anything else, but there's no way to get around the fact that it's such a departure from everything else that they stand out in all the worst ways. That's probably the only real negative I have with the game, and it thankfully isn't even that bad. Other than that, the game looks great and runs smooth. Oh, and this might seem obvious to some, but the entire game takes place at night. This means that you'll only see daytime in some of the endings, so don't come into this game expecting to see pretty much any bright visuals here.

French-Bread, and by extension Arc System Works, are known for having amazing soundtracks to go along with their top-tier fighting games. I'm glad to report that Under Night In-Birth II is perfectly in line with this, and may even go above and beyond what you might already expect. There's a lot of music to enjoy here, as just about every screen and character have a theme attached to them. They're all rocking, energetic, and really get the blood pumping. This is a soundtrack that not only is worth picking up on its own, but also would translate perfectly to being performed live in concert. There were several themes that stuck with me long after the game was finished, and there wasn't a single track that I didn't like at least a little. There are also several vocal tracks that bookend the game in the intro and endings. These are all great too, and you'll even hear a ballad or two to shake up things a bit. I was actually surprised as to how many songs this game has, especially the numerous vocal ones. Not only is the music all but perfect, but the voice acting is on point too. Just about everything aspect of the game is fully voiced, and the cast all does an amazing job bringing the characters to life. This is especially important here as a lot of the game's story scenes are done via still character portraits.  The great acting is very much appreciated and probably did the most to make me forget that said portraits were originally the bane of my existence. It's also worth mentioning that while the Japanese voice cast is great, the game does not offer any dubbed option. That said, English dubs aren't exactly all that common within the fighting game genre anyway, unless you're a modern Street Fighter game I guess. While there are some who probably would've dug the game being fully voiced into English, I'm sure that the awesome music will win them over in spite of that.

Psssspssss

I didn't even mention the gallery.

This is the part of the review where I talk about how the game's replayability stacks up compared to its price. First off I have to mention that the Under Night In-Birth II currently carries a $49.99 price tag for the base game. This is a premium price of course, but the quality of the content more than makes up for that in my opinion. I initially decided that I would play the game far enough to unlock Kuon for this review, while also completing the training modes and trying out everything else the game has to offer at least a couple times as well. While that was my goal, I eventually more than surpassed it before sitting down to finish this article. As of this writing, I have over two dozen hours with the game, and I'm nowhere near the point where I plan to put down the game indefinitely. I've long since unlocked Kuon, but in the course of doing so I fell in love with the game as whole. Seeing as the online mode will probably be where a lot of players will sink their time into, that's my next goal too. My point to all this is that there is a near infinite amount of replayability here, and that's not even getting into the topic of what future DLC may bring to the table. There's a Season Pass already on offer, and I think I'll circle back around to check that out when it drops. Seeing as the game is so incredibly inviting, I'm sure you'll be quickly drawn into an infinite gameplay loop just like me in no time at all. Not only is this game worth its asking price, I'd even say that you might want to consider going the Deluxe route so you can potentially save yourself some money on the DLC. It really is that good.

Waldstein is brutal!

I really like Orie!

I'm not sure if it's obvious, but I whole-heartedly recommend picking up Under Night In-Birth II. It's one of the best fighting games I've ever played, and one of the better games I've played recently across any genre. It's a no-brainer that fighting game fans should pick this one up immediately, but I also think it's an important release for those who may want to get into fighting games, but are put off by how imposing the genre can seem from the outside. This game almost seems made for gamers like that and I can't stress enough how easy it is to get deep into the gameplay here. It's almost ironic that other fighting games published by Arc System Works are arguably the main reason the fighting game genre as a whole is so uninviting, but they're definitely making up for that here. Grab this on whatever platform you can and thank me later. Also, be sure to let me know who your favorite character is if you do. Whoever it is, I'm sure I can beat you with Orie, and I welcome anyone to prove otherwise! See you in the Endless Night!

For More Information on Under Night In-Birth II [Sys:Celes]:
https://www.arcsystemworks.com/game/undernight-in-birth-sysceles/

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Story: A-
Gameplay: A
Graphics: A
Music/Sound: A+
Value: A

Overall: A

Pros:
+ A fighting game that features deep mechanics, but presents them in a way that is very beginner friendly.
+ Smooth 2D graphics, with backgrounds that incorporate 3D elements, make this a great looking game.
+ French-Bread are known for their amazing soundtracks and the one in Under Night In-Birth II is no exception.
+ A variety of characters mean that there is one for just about every play style.
+ Several gameplay modes, both offline and online, make for a robust game that is sure to keep players interested long for a long while.

Cons:
- The story is extremely hard to follow for those not familiar with the series.
- While it is very welcoming to new players, experienced fighting game fans might find it a bit on the simple side.
- The different art styles used in the main game and cutscenes really clash with each other.
- Since this is a modern fighting game, you can expect to see loads of DLC for it. While I see nothing wrong with this personally, it may turn off some players.

A copy of this game was provided to us free-of-charge by the publisher for the purpose of this review. This did not affect our review in any way.

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I can't wait for the next French-Bread project!

#UNI2