Guilty Gear Strive Starter Guide sees Bedman? catch Zs

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Tomorrow will see the return of one of the fighting game genre’s strangest and most esoteric characters, as the mysterious, and surprisingly tragic, Bedman? makes their grand return to the roster of Guilty Gear Strive — And to get fans into their PJs and prepped for slumberland, publisher Arc System Works has released a new Starter Guide, reintroducing fans to this bizarre combatant.

The original Bedman seemingly perished at the climax of Guilty Gear Xrd – Revelator, but not before having the foresight to ensure that their personality had been programmed into the bed itself, essentially allowing the sickly Gear to live on after death. And so, both guided by and protective of his loving sister Delilah, Bedman? returns to the GG ring. The bed itself is looking a little worse for wear, but is no less the formidable opponent, equipped with an array of attacks and weaponry capable of ensuring the siblings’ existence — At least in some form or other…

It has to be said that Bedman? is looking to be a particularly complex member of the GG Strive roster, requiring masterful use of both timing and positioning, as well as full understanding of their non-standard hit/hurtbox — even by Guilty Gear standards. Bedman’s set play is based around launching specials, either at range or in melee, and then effectively spacing out a range of automatic follow-up attacks, which can themselves be delayed by the player or cancelled entirely by the opponent.

Bedman’s projectile, Call 4BA, dash attack, Call 4B3, and brutal knockdown attack, Call 4B9, are among the attacks that put Bedman in Error 6E State, resulting in one of several follow-up attacks a second or two later. The masterful Bedman? player will not only learn to effectively use these attacks to close distance and overwhelm their opponent, but will also need to effectively learn how best to manage the follow-up attacks, and the timing between their activation and detonation, to keep the opponent locked down and anxious to counter.

This is not to speak of Call 13C, a Tension-based move that powers up Bedman’s range of attacks and can cause an auto Area Shift in the corner. Bedman? looks to most assuredly be an expert tier character, and one that essentially “directs” the fight, once in the hands of a player who truly understands the timing of their skills. It should also be noted that the Bedman? design is excellent, and the addition of the nervy-but-loving Delilah is another one of those touches that truly sets GG apart from its contemporaries.

Bedman? is available to purchase tomorrow, April 6, in Guilty Gear Strive as part of the Season 2 pass. As a quick refresher, here are the links to the previous Guilty Gear Strive starter guides for May & Axl Low, Sol Badguy and Ky Kiske, Chip Zanuff & Potemkin, Faust, Millia Rage, Zato-1, Ramlethal, Leo Whitefang, Nagoriyuki, Giovanna, Anji Mito, I-no, Goldlewis Dickinson, Jack-O Valentine, Happy Chaos, Testament, Bridget, and finally Sin Kiske.