Guilty Gear Strive has served as the flagship title for Arc System Works` veteran fighting game franchise since its launch in 2021, receiving four seasons of downloadable content characters over the years. The game`s noticeable absence from the recent Arc System Works Showcase may now be explained by a new report: the next installment in the Guilty Gear series has reportedly been cancelled.
According to anonymous sources cited in a report, Arc System Works has internally cancelled the game intended as the follow-up to Guilty Gear Strive. The cancellation is said to have occurred recently, within the past couple of weeks. While the new title is reportedly “back to the drawing board,” the sources suggest the project is not completely abandoned.
This development follows earlier reports hinting at significant future plans for the franchise from Arc System Works. Speaking at Anime Expo, series producer Ken Miyauchi mentioned to Dexerto that speculation about Strive no longer receiving updates after season four was “not true,” and that the team was “preparing something big and exciting that people probably won`t expect.”
While the path forward for the main Guilty Gear series is currently unclear, Arc System Works remains active with other projects. The recent PlayStation State of Play concluded with the reveal of Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls, a 4v4 fighting game featuring Marvel heroes and villains. Additionally, the Arc System Works Showcase highlighted several upcoming titles, including a new Bubble Bobble game.
Guilty Gear Strive is currently available across various platforms, including Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, and PC.