Guilty Gear Strive turned three years old in mid-June, and developer Arc System Works revealed the game has now crossed 3 million players worldwide.
The anime fighter originally released for PlayStation 4 and 5 and PC in 2021, followed by a Japanese arcade release in July that same year. It finally came to Xbox One and Series X|S in March 2023, in addition to Xbox Game Pass.
3 million players, but how many sales?
It’s unknown how this player milestone translates, sales-wise. As of last August, the fighter sold 2.5 million copies, and both Arc System and Bandai Namco have been mum on its commercial performance since.
Strive was the first mainline Guilty Gear entry since 2014’s Guilty Gear Xrd, and the first game in the series to release on current consoles.
Along with the typical post-launch DLC with new fighters, Strive will be further supported with an upcoming anime. Developed by animation studio Sanzigen (which made an animated music video for the game), the Dual Rulers show will adapt Strive’s story mode.
Fighting game franchises like Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter, and Tekken have jumped over to animation with continued success, so it makes sense Arc System would have its newest fighting game step into that ring to bring more attention to Guilty Gear.