Update: Elphelt’s trailer has officially dropped and you can check it out after the jump below.
Earlier: Though The Game Awards 2023 is just a handful of hours away from kicking off today, it appears that one of its potential announcements may have been unveiled a bit early. The next DLC character set to join Guilty Gear Strive in Season 3 has been revealed, and apparently, they’re available for download right now.
We snapped a few stills from the trailer if you’d like to slow things down:
Click images for larger versions
The official Bandai Namco Entertainment Asia website has uploaded a full blog post that announces Elphelt Valentine as Guilty Gear Strive’s next playable DLC character. Short of a trailer, this post features plenty of details on the new fighter.
Guilty Gear Strive has been set to receive four DLC character for its third season. Johnny was the first to be released and saw his launch back in August of this year, and now it appears Elphelt is set to follow him today.
“Arc System Works Co., Ltd. is excited to announce that the new playable character, Elphelt Valentine, for Guilty Gear -Strive- is now available for download,” reads the Bandai Namco Asia website. “The upcoming new versus mode, TEAM OF 3, is also currently on sale for PlayStation®4, PlayStation®5, Steam®, Xbox Game Pass, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and Windows.”
Along with the announcement, Bandai Namco shared some details about Elphelt in Guilty Gear Strive:
Profile:
• Name: Elphelt Valentine
• Height: 5’6″ (168 cm)
• Weight: Dreamy
• Blood Type: Unknown
• Date of Birth: December 25
• Origin: Backyard
• Hobbies: Romantic discussions, pretending to be a bush dog, impromptu singing
• Values: Smiles, her bush dog shaped coin bank, anything sweet
• Dislikes: Creepy insects, killing, loneliness
According to this blog, Elphelt “can overwhelm the opponent with an arsenal of mix-up tools, while remaining simple enough for players to pick up and play.”
Click images for larger versions
We have not yet been able to confirm if Elphelt is indeed available for download right now, as the blog notes. However, if she isn’t, it would make sense as this page from the Bandai Namco Entertainment Asia reeks of an announcement that was supposed to happen later today at The Game Awards.
With the big event being just a few hours away and this website being tied to Bandai Namco’s Asia branch and showing a date of “December 8” on the post, it seems very possible that this announcement wasn’t meant to happen until later.
A trailer can be seen in the blog post, but it is currently marked as private. It will likely go live later today when The Game Awards takes place.
Guilty Gear Strive’s Season Pass 3 includes Johnny, Elphelt Valentine, and two upcoming playable characters set for release next year, two additional battle stages, the Season 3 Character Color Pack as well as the Season Pass 3 Exclusive Bonus: Season 3 Character Additional Colors #13 to #15. You can purchase Season Pass 3 for $24.99 USD.
Along with the Elphelt update, Bandai Namco notes that Guilty Gear Strive is receiving more battle balance adjustments. “A free update released today makes battle balance adjustments across the board,” says the website. “This update includes new special moves for the characters Axl Low and Potemkin. Keep your eyes peeled for the new battles in Season 3, with the excitement ramping up!”
Lastly, Guilty Gear Strive fans can also look forward to an upcoming “TEAM OF 3” game mode that is set to be released in 2024. This new online versus mode apparently pits six players against each other at once.