SG X BBTAG Update #3

This third update for Skullgirls X BBTAG is gonna be an exciting announcement because we have a new character coming to my projects and being legal during my special online casual. Let's jump right in to find out who is the new character for Skullgirls X BBTAG.

"I am a diva of Bastet's Den. The just staff of justice. I am Eliza!"

You guessed it right here. Eliza is coming to Skullgirls X BBTAG and is being legal in my online casual because I actually made a Hakumen palette out of her to seal the deal that SUSANOOH is actually a perfect fit for a diva. You know that Hakumen uses ink effects in game? Well, since Eliza has a knack of blood and it comes in different colors on different palettes, I colored the effects black to turn blood into ink. Her Parasite, Sehkmet will use Susano'o's colors.

The comparison continues with a new update. During the BBTAG 2.0 period, it now has 15 eligible characters, with six characters assigned to BlazBlue themes, five characters assigned to P4A themes and four characters assigned to UNI themes while during the BBTAG 3.0 period, it now has 16 eligible characters, with six characters assigned to BlazBlue themes, six characters assigned to P4A themes and four characters assigned to UNI themes.

With Eliza now carrying the icon after finding out that I can actually make her a Hakumen palette for SUSANOOH to be a perfect fit because of her blood usage and splatter effects, the BBTAG 2.0 period has 15 eligible characters while the BBTAG 3.0 period has 16 eligible characters.

If I put together the playable characters and the non-playable characters that carry the icon that represents eligibility for Skullgirls X BBTAG, the BBTAG 2.0 period has 27 characters while the BBTAG 3.0 period has 32 characters.

On the projects department, we'll start with the elephant in the room, an update to my Discord server banner art. Because the BBTAG 2.0 period now has an odd number of eligible characters, I put Marie in Orie's colors on the middle and put Eliza in Hakumen's colors on the original position Marie was on. I also made the characters on the side a bit smaller to fit Marie in the middle.

This is actually a good placement because having an odd number of eligible characters during the BBTAG 2.0 period benefits Marie in Orie colors being faced by an even number of other characters in their BBTAG palettes; same number of characters on each side, which can make more sense because she is the current Skullgirl in Orie's colors being faced by an even number of other characters in their BBTAG palettes, hence the name "Skullgirls X BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle," considering Marie's Story Mode is gonna be half visual novel to entail on how she connects with the Skull Heart. Despite Marie being faced by other characters, her playable self will still be allowed.

Reminder: Marie's picture is subject to change and it's just a preview to show the other 14 characters in their BBTAG palettes facing the Skullgirl in Orie's colors. Same with other projects you will see later.

I'm gonna tell you this preview story, but it's not gonna be complete until I have a final picture of Marie. Skullgirls X BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle pits warriors in their BBTAG palettes against each other in a Dark Deco world and a Skullgirl appears to be Marie in Orie's colors.

An update on this graphic is obvious. The picture of Marie in Orie's colors is no longer on this one because Eliza in Hakumen's colors is now on there. But if I put Marie in a new position...

Boom, she is in the middle of this other graphic and this is actually a good placement too.

BBTAG 2.0:

BBTAG 3.0:

Eliza is now to be located after Big Band in Tager's colors and before Ms. Fortune in Makoto's colors on these graphics above that emulate the character select screen in BBTAG to match the introduction order. The BlazBlue row now has six characters depicting BlazBlue characters in both periods, with two Calamity Trigger newcomers, two Continuum Shift newcomers, one Chrono Phantasma newcomer and one Central Fiction newcomer.

BBTAG 2.0:

BBTAG 3.0:

The Skullgirls X BBTAG Palette Pack now has Eliza's Hakumen palette on both states because it is not in the game after looking through all of her palettes.

The splash art for the Skullgirls X BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle Palette Pack now has Eliza in Hakumen's colors.

But if any of you eagle-eyed fans look closer at Annie in Izayoi's colors, you will notice that her bloomers; her panties are now colored golden.

With the odd number of characters in their BBTAG palettes, my fanmade character select screen has a reposition and Eliza's portrait is now on here and the random selection is back. Marie is now on top of Eliza in the middle row. While the random square is not centered at the moment, Marie being on the top makes more sense.

Updated all of my projects to have Eliza in Hakumen's colors and they are coming along nicely even more.

Eliza coming to Skullgirls X BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle and making a Hakumen palette out of her as a cherry on top are not something that I would imagine that would happen and it's only because the usage of blood effects on her attacks is what makes SUSANOOH a perfect fit, so I colored it black to make it ink effects.

The golden age is coming to Skullgirls X BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle and with an odd number characters being legal during the current period, the fun never stops. Can't escape from crossing fate!

SG X BBTAG 3.0 Before and After Comparison

Alright, folks. Welcome to the Skullgirls X BBTAG 3.0 Before and After Comparison where I do a comparison of the chart that take place before and after BBTAG 3.0. This is gonna be an interesting one because I'll put the current state that takes place before the BBTAG 3.0 period on the left and the state that will take place after the BBTAG 3.0 period on the right. And now, without further ado, let's compare this... well, you know. Anyway, on to the comparison.

                                          Before BBTAG 3.0:                                   After BBTAG 3.0:

You know that there are 43 characters in total in both states, right? But if I list the new themes certain characters will be assigned to during the BBTAG 3.0 period...

Ottomo - Grandfather's Wish -> Howling Moon
Molly - Awakening -> Science Fiction
Hive - Queen of Rose -> YOMOTSUHIRASAKA
Fukua - MUST DIE -> Shadows of the Labyrinth
Beatrix - Princess Amagi-ya -> Pink Sniper
Andy - The Junes Hero -> Mr. Easy Going

Six of the following characters above are gonna be assigned to their new themes during the BBTAG 3.0 period.

During the BBTAG 2.0 period, it has 15 characters assigned to BlazBlue themes, 12 characters assigned to Persona 4 Arena themes, 12 characters assigned to Under Night In-Birth themes and four characters assigned to EX universe themes.

During the BBTAG 3.0 period, it has 16 characters assigned to BlazBlue themes, 13 characters assigned Persona 4 Arena themes, still 12 characters assigned to their Under Night In-Birth themes and two characters assigned to their EX universe themes.

That is a difference of one character assigned to a BlazBlue theme, one character assigned to a Persona 4 Arena theme and two characters assigned to EX universe themes. The Under Night In-Birth theme department remains unchanged.

                                   Before BBTAG 3.0:                                                    After BBTAG 3.0:

The BBTAG 2.0 period has 26 characters eligible for Skullgirls X BBTAG, with ten characters eligible for their BlazBlue palettes, ten characters eligible for their P4A palettes and six characters eligible for their UNI palettes, while the BBTAG 3.0 period has 31 characters eligible for Skullgirls X BBTAG, with 13 characters eligible for their BlazBlue palettes, 12 characters eligible for their P4A themes and still six characters eligible for their UNI themes, with the difference of five characters eligible for their BBTAG palettes.

During the BBTAG 3.0 period, Ottomo, Molly, Hive, Fukua and Beatrix carry the icon to indicate that they are eligible for Skullgirls X BBTAG because Howling Moon, Science Fiction, YOMOTSUHIRASAKA, Shadow of the Labyrinth and Pink Sniper fit well with these characters. This means they are gonna be eligible for palettes of Valkenhayn, Kokonoe, Izanami, Shadow Labrys and Yukari and these characters will be legal during my special online casual during the BBTAG 3.0 period, but will remain banned during the current period.

                                 Before BBTAG 3.0:                                                     After BBTAG 3.0:

I wouldn't do this fun thing during the comparison, but I'm gonna have to go over a developing story regarding the Cirque des Cartes characters.

Now, during the BBTAG 2.0 period, five out of six Cirque des Cartes members are eligible for their BBTAG palettes while during the BBTAG 3.0 period, all six Cirque des Cartes members are eligible for their BBTAG palettes. This is an interesting story that all six members are gonna be eligible for their BBTAG palettes during the BBTAG 3.0 period.

                                 Before BBTAG 3.0:                                                     After BBTAG 3.0:

On the playable characters section, the BBTAG 2.0 period has 14 playable characters eligible for BBTAG palettes while the BBTAG 3.0 period has 15 playable characters eligible for BBTAG palettes, with the difference of one eligible character.

What makes it interesting is that since Spirited Girl is a perfect theme for Filia so that she can be eligible for her Labrys palette in both states, during the BBTAG 3.0 period, Shadows of the Labyrinth will be a perfect theme for Fukua so that she can be eligible for her Shadow Labrys palette. It's because she is a shadow. That's what the icon is for and I will never remove it because without it, it's hard to tell.

                              Before BBTAG 3.0:                                                         After BBTAG 3.0:

The list of non-playable characters that are eligible for Skullgirls X BBTAG will be my new wish list going forward.

During the BBTAG 2.0 period, there are 12 eligible non-playable characters while during the BBTAG 3.0 period, there are 16 eligible non-playable characters, with the difference of four eligible non-playable characters.

Ottomo, Molly, Hive and Beatrix have been added to my wish list during the BBTAG 3.0 period.

                              Before BBTAG 3.0:                                                          After BBTAG 3.0:

There are 24 stages listed in both periods, but if I list the new themes the following stages will be assigned to during the BBTAG 3.0 period...

Nightmare Crest - MUST DIE -> Shadows of the Labyrinth
Sound Stage 15 - Heartful! -> Twinkle☆Star

Two of the following stages are getting assigned to new themes during the BBTAG 3.0 period. And there is an interesting thing to this as well. Since Spirited Girl is a perfect theme for Filia and her stage, Maplecrest on both states, during the BBTAG 3.0 period, Shadows of the Labyrinth will be a perfect theme for Fukua and her stage, Nightmare Crest and its cadence is made to set the mood for the stage.

Twinkle☆Star fits perfectly with Sound Stage 15 and its cadence sets the mood on the stage. This is Rise Kujikawa's theme from Persona 4 Arena Ultimax that is a banger to Annie's stage. However, Annie will remain assigned to Justice Sword despite her stage getting assigned to a new theme that fits perfectly during the BBTAG 3.0 period.

                             Before BBTAG 3.0:                                                           After BBTAG 3.0:

The BBTAG 2.0 period has 12 stages that are assigned to themes that interest me while the BBTAG 3.0 period has 13 stages that are assigned to themes that interest me, with the difference of one stage.

During the BBTAG 3.0 period, Sound Stage 15 will be the new addition to the list of stages that I'll be limiting myself to because Twinkle☆Star is one of the themes that interests me during the BBTAG 3.0 period.

Here are the numbers for this comparison.

Number of characters assigned to BlazBlue themes - 15 -> 16 (Up by 1)
Number of characters assigned to P4A themes - 12 -> 13 (Up by 1)
Number of characters assigned to UNI themes - 12 = 12
Number of characters assigned to EX universe themes - 4 -> 2 (Down by 2)
Skullgirls X BBTAG - 26 -> 31 (Up by 5)

• Number of characters eligible for BlazBlue palettes 10 -> 13 (Up by 3)
• Number of characters eligible for P4A palettes 10 -> 12 (Up by 2)
  
• Number of characters eligible for UNI palettes 6 = 6

Number of limited stages - 12 -> 13 (Up by 1)

The results are good and the BBTAG 3.0 period shows a significant improvement. Most notably, the number of characters assigned to EX universe themes has went down by two and they don't deserve attention for Skullgirls X BBTAG. It's because it can only have characters that are in their BlazBlue, P4A and UNI themes. In terns of numbers, practically speaking, the BBTAG 3.0 period comes with a lot more resources to make BBTAG music even more unprecedented.

And just like that, this concludes the Skullgirls X BBTAG 3.0 Before and After Comparison. Going forward, future chart updates will have an updated before and after BBTAG 3.0 comparison. I'll do everything in my power to keep supporting the BBTAG 3.0 Character Pack until it is confirmed. And you will too. Here is a link to my wish list for the BBTAG 3.0 Character Pack.

By the way, you might want to stay tuned for an announcement because I have teasers for a palette that is gonna be outrageous and brutal.

"When blood turns into ink, an Egyptian's life as a diva of justice knows its perks in Bastet's Den. Her Parasite bears a corruption that ink spillings and drippings lie on the surface."

Pre-EVO 2023 Thoughts

What is up, everyone? Tomorrow, the biggest thrill ride of the year is coming at you live from the beautiful Las Vegas where Mandalay Bay is at and that's where EVO usually takes place at. I am so excited to watch some EVO action. I wish I can make it, but being fear of flying or not being ready to participate in an offline tournament are not the main issues. The main issue is that tickets are expensive despite the fact that they are small objects.

Anyway, onto the thoughts. This year's EVO has more entrants than last year. Street Fighter 6 has over 7,000 players. Wow! Now that's a pretty darn good way to kick off the Capcom Pro Tour 2023 with EVO being its first stop! I am astonished at that number. It's whopping. For the reveals, they are gonna be shown during the Friday Showcase where game developers showcase what do they have in store for us. I have a couple of targeted showcases to look out for.

Hidden Variable is gonna be there to showcase their upcoming and final Season 1 Pass character in Skullgirls, Marie. She has made a lot of progress that a large number of animations are completed, leaving a few animations sketchy and she got voice clips and Kira Buckland reprised her role as Marie Korbel, but sounded different from her boss version. Kira actually voices both versions Marie carries, but the Skullgirl echo is more subtle and heard rarely in her playable version.

It's really starting to feel like not just SEGA vs. Capcom: The Next Level so far, but also Persona 4 Arena because Marie is capable of summoning her Stand in game. Hilgard has his own KO animation when someone hits Marie, like in Persona 4 Arena, but minus the Persona Break. Her power to summon her Stand in game is also what makes Purity & Strictly a perfect fit like her maid's outfit and that's what I'm gonna play when Marie's Alpha launches. Perhaps I should consider Marie, an undead version of Orie in Skullgirls because Orie is the only character in Under Night In-Birth that can summon her Stand in game, so I screen captured it. And Eldritch Hounds... The world will not be engulfed.

SonicFox and Dekillsage are having yet another iconic grudge match, but it's a special Marie edition where they set up a Marie mirror match. There might be a good chance that all of Marie's animations might be finished before her Alpha. Development should be smooth now that the Xbox port and the Nintendo Switch update are completed, but the update for the Japanese PS4 version is still on the docket. If there's anything I can look for, it's Marie's Orie palette. If it didn't make it to the game, it stays on my palette pack. After that is a special announcement they are having. It can't be the Season 2 Pass because Marie is still in development. It has to be either the return of the SGCS or something interesting.

Eighty Sixed has planned a new addition that is a long time coming to be revealed tomorrow. Whatever that is, I'll get it. Maybe it's a poster or a t-shirt that has the whole cast of 18 characters. Or maybe it might be some decorations.

Over a week ago, GameMill Entertainment has announced Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2, a sequel to the original game that has a ton of new content, such as crossplay, new characters, new modes, gameplay refinements, better VO at launch, better netcode and a meter that is consumed by various actions, like slime cancels, augmented attacks and the most outrageous attack that spends all three bars, Ultimates.

You guessed it. Ultimates are coming to Brawl 2. They are super abilities that allow each character to unleash their maximum potential. The trailer haven't shown any of them, but a gameplay breakdown is gonna be shown at EVO, so we'll probably see what Ultimates look like on it. The first one is like Melee because it doesn't have super moves, so Brawl 2 will be like Smash Brawl because super moves are coming to the game. If you are a fan of Nickelodeon, you know that the orange hours unfold.

EVO is gonna be big, but there is only one developer who will be a no show for the second year in the row, MANE6. Since their acquisition by Modus Games, the developers of Them's Fightin' Herds got a new talent they are getting used to. Sadly, despite that, they are not attending at EVO, yet the third character in the Season 1 Pass, Nidra, is still on the docket. She was announced at Combo Breaker and supposed to come out this Summer. It's August and we should be getting info about that soon. I just don't get why they would not make it at EVO and I'm disappointed. They wanted to attend at more offline events, but not EVO? Only the fact that both Skullgirls and Them's Fightin' Herds having their Season 1 Passes can make me wait for both Marie and Nidra to drop.

Regarding the tournaments, Street Fighter 6 is what I'm gonna watch in celebration of its first debut at EVO. Rashid is tournament legal to mean that he can be played. With it having the most amount of signups, it's gonna be played last at the Sunday Arena Finals. A second character in the Season Pass is in the works and a trailer for them is gonna be revealed there.

Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate has the least amount of signups to be the first game to have Top 6. It's the perfect opportunity to give it a big finale to prepare for the next era of the franchise, which has a public build there. It's Top 6 and it might be a bit shorter than Top 8. I wanted to watch it so that I can find out how will the finale unfold. Don't get me wrong. I am a Mortal Kombat fan and honestly, I don't think Midway is gonna have their case since it was bought out by WB Games and rebranded into Netherrealm Studios. So far in the development of Mortal Kombat 1, 16 characters are confirmed, with Geras being the latest addition no longer Kronika's goon because following Liu Kang's part in restarting history, he is a good guy and is doing his part to find someone who is threatening the peace.

A throwback tournament is coming and this year, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is making their debut as the first throwback tournament. But my main problem is that they are only gonna choose Bonne Wonderland because it's the only stage that is legal and not only brighter, but can also fight lag. It happens both offline and online. This needs to be fixed like right now. Okay? Fortunately, it's one of the games that is a part of the Sunday Arena Finals. Maybe they might announce something of all things Marvel vs. Capcom. The matches in UMvC3 are quicker and it's gonna end in a fastest amount of time. I should be able to watch the whole Top 6.

And that's all I had to say about tomorrow's biggest event. Expect blood to be spilled, fists of fury to be pulled, the bloody moon to strike and destruction to be caused. Signing out.

Remembering My Favorite Twitch Channels

I just want to relay on what is making me feel so sad enough to hold on to what I will remember, my favorite Twitch streamers. I been watching them for years and stopped following their channels for a while. I'm not talking about the ones I unfollowed and followed. I'm talking about the ones I unfollowed and the ones that are dead. I'll talk about the following streamers below.

Clawmaster:

He was affiliated with Mission Start Podcast, which no longer exists as he is no longer affiliated with them. He had his own weekly online Skullgirls tournament, Monday Night Blockbuster. I watched it for years since my following with his channel. I had to unfollow his channel because it is dead and no longer available. He also streamed an online DBFZ tournament, but didn't turn out to be smooth because of spectating issues. I will remember his channel and cherish memories as it will forever be on our hearts.

Skullgirls Slapfest:

It's an online casual that streams every Tuesday and that's something I've been watching for years. Datagram is the owner of the channel that is known for streaming Skullgirls. They chat about anything and that's what I want to hear. They chat about upcoming things. What makes it exciting is that since Annie came out in her Beta phase on PC, I was rambunctious every time I see her in action back in the first week of March 2021 in a Johnny Test sort of way. Three weeks later, I gave listening to BBTAG music a go as a test. After a few tests, it has turned out well enough for me to confirm it and I was able to get Justice Sword on upon Annie's entrance. I was also able to play Active Angel upon Umbrella's entrance while watching the stream on day one of her Alpha.

I unfollowed their channel and retired from watching it for a while. I hope that I can watch their stream again. But that will not stop there. An online casual of my own I'm running is similar to this, but will be a different approach to restrict us to playing even ratios and as these characters in their BBTAG palettes that represent eligibility to be legal in mine below.

I plan to make another separate Twitch channel that will be streaming only Skullgirls for my own online casual that will be restrict to these characters and even ratios, hence "special online casual."

RonaldoKun:

Of course, you know, he is one of my streamers who streams various games and weekly online tournaments. The one that I watched often is a weekly online Skullgirls tournament that starts every Friday called Skullgalz Showdown. I watched it for years. Not gonna lie, though. He has a knack of maining Parasoul and playing Missions for the Brilliant Executor upon her entrance would be a garnishment. It's a perfect fit so that she would be eligible for her P4A Mitsuru Kirijo palette. I didn't tell Ron on Twitter, now called X, that I got BBTAG music ready for action to play Missions for the Brilliant Executor upon his character's entrance because I was reluctant and couldn't be direct. It's a completely different ballgame that Team Sonic Racing would be the seal of approval to bring some of the mojo back. Others I know, FizzXWizz, Taterade, DizzySenpai, others.

I listened to BBTAG music while watching Skullgalz Showdown and I am intrigued at the way it turned out to be. Playing Justice Sword and Active Angel upon Annie and Umbrella's entrance would be the cherry on top, but I didn't get to play Walpurgisnacht upon Black Dahlia's entrance since I retired from watching it and Purity & Strictly will soon be played once Marie enters Alpha. But ruby_chan participated and he was rocking out the BellaBeoBand team to fuel my endeavor in listening to BBTAG music while watching Skullgalz Showdown with a lot of magic.

I'm going to put this under consideration, which is returning to watching Skullgalz Showdown when Marie is fully released. As soon as Marie's Alpha drops, I'm gonna look through all of her palettes for her targeted Orie palette. If it's not in there or didn't make it, I will put it on my palette pack along with others who don't have BBTAG palettes in the game. That controversial censorship update will not stop me from doing my endeavor.

These are my favorite Twitch channels that I unfollowed until further notice. Doing so made me miss watching and playing some Skullgirls that I am losing my mojo. I can't go full blast on both PC and console until Marie is fully released. But I am going to showcase Annie's Smart Combos and BBTAG-style combos to showcase on how will she perform in BBTAG in the future on console and share it on X. I recorded Tianhuo's Smart Combos, so I got to record her BBTAG-style combos. And then, something has got some of my mojo back.

Madxruler is developing their fan project called SEGA vs. Capcom: The Next Level. Teased back in 2021, it is a vs. fighting game that has SEGA and Capcom characters clashing each other. It uses the Ikemen GO engine, an expansion to the original MUGEN fighting game engine for PC. Because this is a MUGEN project, there won't be any cease and desist worries as neither Capcom or SEGA didn't bother other creators in the MUGEN community. Now, I am interested in it, even though it's a MUGEN fighting game.

And I have another thing to relay. When I was a little kid, right? When I was a kid, I went to my cousin's house. He had a PS1 and I was playing Crash Bandicoot. The sound of hitting Wumpa Fruit reminds me of the old Nick Jr logo. But there is something about Eldritch Hounds. Learning about the SPL team unlocks greatness that if I miss playing some Skullgirls, it's Crash Bandicoot goodness to think about. Quig was a Hounds player, but he is now a Kings player for Genetics to move to the Warriors roster in preparation for the Road to the SMITE World Championship.

EVO is a week away and the Friday Showcase is gonna have a lot of things on the pipeline, like the gameplay breakdown for Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2, which was announced yesterday to look dope and has a three-bar meter that is used for slime cancels, EX specials and super abilities that spend all three bars. The trailer didn't showcase the super abilities, but I can assume that they can be cinematic. Arc System Works is gonna be there to announce what do they have in store for us. What I really want from them is the BBTAG 3.0 Character Pack and crossplay. Hidden Variable is setting up their booth and they are gonna showcase Marie at EVO and give us a special announcement afterwards. The Friday Showcase is not the Jump Off, but after all, I do want to see what do companies have in store for me and that's what the New Terrance and Phillip Movie Trailer episode inspired me to do.

If Madxruler makes it at EVO to showcase SEGA vs. Capcom: The Next Level during the Friday Showcase, I'll be hyped for it. Maybe that should keep my spirits up after letting them go down from unfollowing channels I missed watching so darn much. If this year's EVO is gonna get the Eldritch Hounds seal of approval, the magic surges.

BBTAG Music to SG Update 4.2

Here we are, guys and welcome to part two of this update. This one not only provides the final changes to the stage section, official name of Marie's stage and what theme it is assigned to and the final changes to the canon solo match section. It also provides other updates I had to make, like the final updates to the legend key and the character section. Also, this one will not have any updates for Skullgirls X BBTAG because I already posted the next standalone update.

Before we get right into the update, I am gonna announce how can I celebrate the announcement of Skullgirls' first Season 1 Pass and the shift to BBTAG music as a cherry on top.

I have no plans to play the RWBY themes independently, but there is one theme that I'm gonna play independently to celebrate that. You guys are familiar with the Persona 4 Arena version of Reach Out to the Truth, right? It has lyrics on it, but it has an endless cadence and this is the only theme that I'll be playing independently to celebrate the announcement of the Season 1 Pass and the shift to BBTAG music once Marie is fully released. That controversial censorship update cannot stop me from doing so. But that will not be until one thing is implemented first, crossplay.

Since 2nd Encore came out on PS4 and PSVita, crossplay between PS3, PS4 and PSVita was available, until Annie and the Season 1 Pass came out, which on that point, the PS4 is no longer crossplaying with older PlayStation consoles. But there is still crossplay between PS3 and PSVita. With all of the awesomeness that is Them's Fightin' Herds, KOF XV and Guilty Gear Strive, it's time that Skullgirls 2nd Encore gets crossplay between Steam, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch once the whole season is done. As a result, the P4A version of Reach Out to the Truth will not be played until crossplay is implemented and that's when crunch time begins.

But this is not the only piece of news that I stated because there is another one.

Skullgirls 2nd Encore is being played at EVO 2023 as a Community Tournament and as a treat, they are hosting their booth there and gonna have a build for Marie's Alpha hosted there, like last year when they have the playable build that has the changes in Black Dahlia's Alpha. It is a couple of weeks away and I'll be seeing how far they did. Judging from her accelerated development, turns out, Marie's Alpha is gonna have almost everything at launch, including her stage. I can't reveal the theme for it yet, so here's a little hint: it is assigned to an Under Night In-Birth theme.

But that's not all. I have a new feature, the random theme rotation. It goes like this. At the beginning of each match, I will be playing the theme for that point character on both sides at random. The stage's theme will also be a part of the random theme rotation as long as it's one of them in my list of limited stages that you will see later. It's what Street Fighter 6 does. I'll be putting this random theme rotation into action in the future.

That's all of the news. Now, on to the update.

As we approach to the point where I lock everything in for the BBTAG 2.0 period and get everything prepared for the before and after comparison for the BBTAG 3.0 period, I'm gonna talk about the icons I removed from the legend key.

The [-] and [...] icons:

They don't meet up with my standards and are intended to get in the way during the before and after comparison and having them on there is not that necessary and is redundant. Now, effective immediately, when a character is revealed, the [-] icon will no longer appear by their name and when they get into development, the [...] icon will no longer appear.

The [X] icon for non-playable characters:

This is one of the icons that is good to make it easy to tell, but unfortunately, it can also get in the way during the before and after comparison. Effective immediately, the not yet playable characters are no longer having the [X] icon.

The star icon for characters in my wish list:

It's also good for wishlisted characters, but it is no longer the case because I am shifting my wish list to the ones that are eligible for their BBTAG palettes going forward.

Colored the text of the BBTAG character theme names in colors that vary by universe of the theme characters are assigned to to make it unique. Despite Marie no longer carrying the [...] icon, she is still in development.

Because the non-playable characters are no longer carrying the [X] icon, threw in a new section of non-playable characters. If one of them is confirmed, they will be moved to the playable characters section. This process is easier than before.

A while back, I told you that during the current period, there are 26 characters carrying the icon. But after coloring the text of the BBTAG character themes and removing the brackets from the icon, I wanted to share this again.

Because of the star icon removed, my wish list of characters I want is now shifted to this list of twelve non-playable characters carrying the icon that represents eliglbility for Skullgirls X BBTAG going forward.

I feel that the removal of icons and leaving the one icon left are gonna make a sound state for the chart in preparation for the Skullgirls X BBTAG 3.0 Before and After. Now, on to the stage section.

Marie's stage is revealed to be Hilgard's Castle and Snow Sisters is the theme to fit perfectly with and there are a couple of theme changes below.

New Meridian Rooftops - MOTOR HEAD -> The Junes Hero
Meridian Area Rapid Transit - VARIABLE HEART -> Sector7

I'm gonna give you an insight on how Snow Sisters is a perfect fit for Hilgard's Castle and why is it assigned to it. Spared from the destruction of No Man's Land, deep in the mountains, away from the ravages of the Grand War, the ruins of Hilgard's Castle bears a gloomy nature Marie once called home. Snow Sisters is the perfect theme for its gloomy and sad cadence to fit well with the stage's gloomy environment.

It is also a perfect theme for Aeon to indicate that she will be eligible for her Vatista palette. I was about to assign it to Princess Amagi-ya, but the environment of Hilgard's Castle is so gloomy that I feel Snow Sisters is the perfect fit. But if they confirmed a variant that bears a sunny and healthy environment, who knows?

I made some changes to this section of limited amount of stages that are assigned to themes that interest me. It now has twelve stages, including the newest one, Hilgard's Castle, now carrying the Snow Sisters name. I'm gonna put that into action once Marie is fully released. I'll be limiting myself to playing on these stages that are assigned to themes that interest me. But to help me decide which of these stages to pick, I plan to create a random wheel that contains these stages, only if I'm on the Player 1 side. In the meantime, I'll do a test, by playing Snow Sisters when I pick Hilgard's Castle.

And here we are. The canon solo match now cemented after a lot of changes and there has couple of interesting ones that I'll go over.

God of War:

If you watched the ending of Eliza's story, Marie went all Godzilla to stop Eliza on her tracks after warning her. That's juicy. There is a challenge where you play as Eliza and your opponent Marie, but in her boss version. And since Marie is being relegated to her playable self, I believe God of War is gonna be played when there is a canon solo match between Eliza and playable Marie. That feels like the part in Godzilla vs. Kong. Great movie, by the way.

END GAZER:

Peacock and Marie have a friendship between them at the Orphanage and this theme would be a perfect fit for this canon solo match since, you know, Xblaze took place 500 years before BlazBlue. The Webtoon adaptation entered its hiatus and it's set to return later this month and that's when Peacock comes in to bring Marie back for the juicy part we'd seen. With the next episode having the juicy part like in Johnny Test and Naruto, END GAZER is gonna fit well with the canon 1v1 match.

 

Under Heaven Destruction:

Most fighting games have iconic canon solo matches, like Street Fighter's Ryu vs. Ken, Mortal Kombat's Scorpion vs. Sub-Zero, Guilty Gear's Sol Badguy vs. Ky Kiske, BlazBlue's Ragna vs. Jin, Them's Fightin' Herds' Arizona vs. Velvet and Injustice's Batman vs. Superman. These iconic matches are so iconic that fighting games cherish and Skullgirls is seemingly one of the fighting games to have that and I believe Parasoul vs. Valentine is that iconic match in Skullgirls. I assigned it to Under Heaven Destruction and it's deemed a perfect fit. The gallery has an art that features them facing each other to seal the deal. I played it one time when I was watching Skullgalz Showdown. It's strange, but satisfying since Crash Bandicoot.

And that's it for this update. It has been one heck of a long ride and this system came a long way ever since my inception to BBTAG music back in the fourth Tuesday of March 2021 when I gave it a go while watching Skullgirls Slapfest. It started out rocky and rough, but after revisions, it gets better and better. I am amazed at the way this system turned out well to be world-class and in full swing so far. In hindsight, I should've made sure that they are in a right position before making an announcement.

It given me the opportunity to start that approach in May 2022. The approach is if a character is assigned to a BBTAG character theme that fits perfectly with their personality, they get a marking on my chart. The marking is not just for an assigned BBTAG character theme a perfect fit for a character's personality. It's also for eligibility for Skullgirls X BBTAG when I make BBTAG palettes out of Skullgirls characters that are assigned to a BBTAG character themes that fit perfectly with their personality to promote MvC1 mode and they are eliglble for my special online casual.

When I started the approach, Annie and Umbrella became eligible for their BBTAG palettes since Justice Sword and Active Angel became a perfect fit and making Izayoi and Platinum palettes out of them would be the cherry on top. Then Black Dahlia was announced and her Nine palette was made after finding out that Walpurgisnacht is actually a perfect fit thanks to the elemental bullets of fire, ice and lightning and her wicked personality. And finally, Marie was announced and Purity & Strictly fits well with her so that her Orie palette would be in the works thanks to her maid's outfit and an ability to summon her Stand. All Season 1 Pass characters have been eligible for their BBTAG palettes. It is only a matter of time before a Season 2 Pass is greenlit so that I can expect more eligible characters to be in it.

SEGA vs. Capcom: The Next Level is using the same approach I am using for its advantage system. If a character is assigned to an advantage that fits perfectly with them, they get a star to represent a main advantage that is perfectly suited for each character. For example, if Sonic is assigned to a Speed advantage, he gets a star to represent an assigned advantage perfect for a character because speed is his forte.

And now, here we are. Everything is now locked in and cemented for the BBTAG 2.0 period after nine updates including the small revisions, with Hilgard's Castle carrying the Snow Sisters name to fit well with its gloomy environment. Even the legend key. There will be no more theme changes until the BBTAG 3.0 Character Pack is confirmed. However, this will not be the final update because going forward, future updates after this will entail the reveal of future characters while some of them will also have updates to Skullgirls X BBTAG if that eligible character is revealed.

It has been a wild ride, man. The RWBY themes were sunset, I started that approach when characters that are assigned to BBTAG character themes that fit well with their personality get eligible for their BBTAG palettes and a ticket to my special online casual and a new feature the random theme rotation was introduced. I am so sad. Well, not sad, but glad that everything is cemented for the BBTAG 2.0 period. That said, the Skullgirls X BBTAG 3.0 Before and After Comparison is in the works and will be released in the coming weeks.

Since all four Season 1 Pass characters are eligible for their BBTAG palettes because Justice Sword, Active Angel, Walpurgisnacht and Purity & Strictly fit perfectly with them, this will be my treat for shifting to BBTAG music. But this one is still WIP because Marie's current portrait is a preview. I really got to know how to add some yellow shading to Umbrella's hair...

The devs said that if the Season 1 Pass is sold well, a bonus fifth character would be confirmed and it should sell well because the update for the Nintendo Switch port and the Xbox port that come with the Season 1 Pass dropped. I want the fifth character to be one of the characters eligible for their BBTAG palette.

If I think about my references, on the era when the Season 1 Pass is available on Steam during Annie's Beta, the chance of it selling well is slim. The chance is slightly increased during the era when it's available on Steam and PS4. During the era when the Season 1 Pass is available on Steam, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch, the chances of selling well is significantly increased. And on the era when the Season 1 Pass is available in all four digital storefronts when the Xbox port and its players joined the party, the chance is greatly increased.

Exciting times lie ahead for Skullgirls and now that the Xbox port and the Nintendo Switch update are out of the way and complete, devs can now double their efforts on developing Marie, who will be fully released on all four digital storefronts and that's when Purity & Strictly will be played to the true max, along with Justice Sword, Active Angel and Walpurgisnacht. That's when I'm gonna go full blast. But the update for the Japanese PS4 version is still on the docket. May the "true" Skullgirls launch party where it is now completely open to players that own the game on all four digital storefronts begin.