Under Night In-Birth has been updated yet again. This time, it’s clearing out more obstacles with Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[Cl-R], the fourth version of the fighter overall. While past entries have made major strides forward, massively increasing the size of the roster and adding to the story in such a way that a Chronicle helps people better understand its lore, this version is more about style. This isn’t to say there’s no substance; there are some very huge changes here, with a lot of them being balance adjustments, new color schemes, new animations, and altered movesets. They all serve to make Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[St] stronger and prettier, rather than do something like add a deck or in-law suite onto an already impressive house.
This applies very well to Londrekia, the only new character in this latest update. He’s as smooth as the icy powers he wields. His appearance and moveset are quite precise. They chain well into each other and the ability to have some of these ranged attacks with freezing potential makes him feel like a person who is completely in control. Also, with how well things combo together, he doesn’t feel like a terribly difficult character to get to know. I had no trouble jumping into Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[Cl-R] and going through his Arcade story, even though I haven’t touched the game since Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[st] in 2018.
What’s great is how his Arcade story helps show that even someone who seems like they have perfect execution can really not have it all. As part of Ritter Schild, there’s always been a sense of perhaps being less-than, due to the break between it and Licht Kreis. (The two were one organization, Licht Kreis, until Waldstein’s departure led to a split.) As he explores the city and attempts to even find Wagner to fight, he keeps running across situations where he could be overwhelmed. When he happens upon Nanase and Phonon, he’s mistaken for some jerk hitting on girls. When he comes across Waldstein, he lets a desire for revenge temporarily overwhelm him.
There’s just one downside to Londrekia. He doesn’t exactly get the same amount of attention as the other fighters. He doesn’t have his own Chronicle story. The only mention of him is in Merkava’s, which was present in Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[st]. Its frustrating, because while his Arcade story does provide background for why he’s there and offer some insight, not having a Chronicle makes him still feel like an outsider. I almost felt like it meant he wasn’t exactly part of the bigger picture as a result. Especially since he’s so focused on Wagner and even Waldstein.
The other rather obvious alterations, for people who are coming in and looking at a surface level, are the ways in which Under Night In-Birth Exe: Late[Cl-R] can look different. Every character has new color options, getting five different schemes than before. For someone new to the series or who hasn’t been paying as close attention, getting these new looks stands out. Also, people spending their earned IP in the gallery have new sections to peruse. There are 50 Special Voice clips from the arcade version for 400 IP each. You can also spend 1,000 IP each on 52 Rough Designs concept art images.
It can feel like Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[Cl-R] is for people who have been playing the game for years and wanted that extra boost to make it a bit better. You wanted those extra looks, both in terms of new outfits and behind the scenes. You wanted the extra balancing and alterations to existing characters. You also appreciate the idea of a new character, even if he isn’t integrated into Chronicle in the same way as everyone else is.
Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[Cl-R] is available for the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4.
