Guilty Gear X2 (released as Guilty Gear XX: The Midnight Carnival in Japan) is a 2D fighting video game developed by Arc System Works, and published by Sammy Studios. It was first released on May 23, 2002 for Japanese arcades, and later ported to the PlayStation 2[1] for North America in 2003.[2] The game received updated versions for several platforms, each containing various adjustments: Guilty Gear X2 #Reload (2003), Guilty Gear XX Slash (2005), Guilty Gear XX Accent Core (2006), Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus (2008), and Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus R (2012).
Although each installment has received both praise and criticism for its particularities, all the Guilty Gear X2 updated versions have generally been well received by critics. Graphics, online option and its price were the aspects most praised for the first update, while Accent Core divided opinions about its innovations and was panned by its Wii controls. Core Plus was the source of much praise, although it was not totally satisfying for reviewers; Plus R is the one that has the lowest average scores from GameRankings and Metacritic. However, as of 2022, Plus R is currently the highest rated traditional 2D fighting game on Steam.[3] Sales-wise, there is a decline from #Reload to Core Plus.