Arc System Works began sending out Granblue Fantasy Versus closed beta codes for those who signed up, and they also provided a guide for the beta with everything you need to know before kicking off on May 31.
The closed beta starts on May 31 and ends June 1, 2019. The game will be inaccessible outside of the beta testing period. You can learn more about its schedule here.
Below is the full guide from Arc System Works with info on getting started:
Title Screen
Press any button on the Title screen and you will be directed to the Announcements screen.
Select Start and press X to go to the Main Menu.
Online Mode
Select Online from the list of play modes.
Before playing online, you first need to agree the End User License Agreement and Privacy Policy. Please read them carefully before agreeing.
Next set your player name.
Online Lobby Screen
Follow the on-screen instructions and select your region, area, lobby, avatar, and in-battle character.
Once this process is complete, you will enter a lobby.
Lobby Matches
Walk up to any empty arcade station seat and press X to sit down. When an opponent is sitting at a station next to you, press X to confirm that you are ready for the match. The match will start after both players confirm they are ready.
Lobby Interface
- Lobby Info – Displays lobby information and the current time
- Information – Walk over to the bulletin board and press X to see various news.
- Communication Notebook – Each lobby has a notebook where players can start threads and leave comments.
- Avatar – Player-controlled avatar. Your avatar’s appearance can be changed.
- Chat Log – A history log showing the set phrases, stickers, and chat messages posted.
- Arcade Station – Start a match against another player.
Communication
You can communicate with other players with set phrases, stickers, and chat messages. Press triangle to open the Communication Menu and select what you want to post. The history of posts by you and other lobby members will be displayed on the Chat Log.
Communication Notebook
Select a thread and press X to enter.
Once you have entered, press X again to leave a comment.
To start a new thread, press the triangle button from the thread list.
Lobby Avatar
To change your avatar character, select Lobby Avatar from Lobby Menu. (You can open the Lobby Menu by pressing the Options button.)
The character’s color can also be changed.
Character Select
To change your character for lobby matches, select Character Select from the Lobby Menu.
Name Display
You can either have your player name or your online ID displayed in the lobby. To switch, select Other Settings from the Lobby Menu, and then Miscellaneous.
Notes: Online lobbies will be unavailable during server maintenances.
When lobbies are unavailable, either Versus CPU or Casual Match mode can be played instead. ( The available mode will differ based on the maintenance status.
Versus CPU: A mode to play matches against the CPU.
Casual Match: A mode to play non-lobby online matches against other players.
Beta Test Survey
Your feedback on the game is welcomed! Please consider taking part of the online survey.
To access the survey website, select Survey from the Main Menu and either select Open the Website or scan the QR code displayed.
The following section covers the Match Rules and Controls part of the guide:
Battle Interface
- Win Counter – Displays the number of rounds won by the player.
- Skill Icons – Displays available skills. (Unavailable skills’ icon will be darkened.)
- SB Gauge – Skybound Art or Super Skybound Art can be activated when this gauge is full. Fills up upon dealing or taking damage, among other actions.
- Round Timer – Displays how much time is left in a round. The round ends with the timer reaches 0.
- HP Gauge – Displays the character’s health. The round ends when it reaches 0.
- Chain Counter – Displays the number of consecutive hits performed.
- System Text – Displays contextual combat information such as counters.
Match Format
A player wins a round when they reduce their opponent’s HP to zero. The first player to win two rounds in total wins the match.
Round Time Limit
Each round has a 99 second time limit. When time runs out, the player with the higher amount of remaining HP wins the round.
Controller Layout
- Directional Buttons – Move/Guard/Jump
- Square – Light Attack
- Triangle – Medium Attack
- Circle – Heavy Attack
- X – Unique Action
- L1 – Throw (Can also be activated with square + X)
- L2 – Overhead Attack (Cvan also be activated with triangle + circle)
- R1 – Skill
- R2 – Guard
This controller layout is the default. Button settings can be changed by selecting Button Configuration in Main Menu’s Customize menu or the online lobby’s pause menu. (Pause menu will open by pressing Options when you are in an online lobby.
Avoiding Damage
Evade (Back + R2) – Evade avoids all damage from incoming attacks except for throws. However, there is a brief moment of vulnerability at the end of the move.
Cross Over (Forward + R2) – Cross overs avoid all damage from incoming attacks while advancing forward. However, it doesn’t work against throws and low attacks.
*You can hold R2 and press back or forward to pull of these moves.
Skills
Press the R1 button to use skills specific to that character. Once activated, each skill cannot be reused until its cooldown time passes. (The respective skill icon will be darkened during cooldown.)
Skybound Art
(Quarter-circle forward + R1) Deals more damage than regular skills. It can be activated once the SB gauge reaches 100%.
Super Skybound Art
(Half-circle back + R1) A Super Skybound Art is an even more powerful Skybound Art.
It can only be activated when the SB gauge reaches 100%, and your HP is 30% or lower.
Technical Commands
Instead of using the R1 button as a shortcut, button inputs for activating skills, Skybound Arts, and Super Skybound Arts can be entered manually. The skill’s cooldown will be shorter when activated by technical commands.
Lastly, you can check out a Characters/Command list for Gran, Katalina, Charlotta, Lancelot, and Ferry below:
Gran
Katalina
Charlotta
Lancelot
Ferry
You can check out introduction trailers for the five characters here and here.
Granblue Fantasy Versus releases for PlayStation 4 in 2019. Check our previous report for a look at some high-level action featuring Daigo Umehara and Fuudo.
