<s>
First	O
released	O
on	O
May	O
14	O
,	O
1998	O
,	O
for	O
the	O
PlayStation	B-Device
,	O
it	O
is	O
the	O
first	O
installment	O
in	O
the	O
series	B-Application
of	I-Application
the	I-Application
same	I-Application
name	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Devised	O
by	O
Ishiwatari	O
,	O
it	O
spent	O
a	O
year	O
and	O
a	O
half	O
in	O
production	O
,	O
with	O
influences	O
from	O
Street	B-Application
Fighter	I-Application
and	O
manga	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
also	O
features	O
instant	O
kill	O
techniques	O
that	O
,	O
if	O
successfully	O
landed	O
on	O
an	O
opponent	O
,	O
ends	O
the	O
match	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
story	O
of	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
takes	O
place	O
in	O
the	O
22nd	O
century	O
,	O
in	O
the	O
year	O
2180	O
,	O
five	O
years	O
after	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
the	O
Crusades	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
features	O
ten	O
playable	O
characters	O
available	O
from	O
outset	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
concept	O
for	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
was	O
conceived	O
by	O
Daisuke	O
Ishiwatari	O
during	O
his	O
period	O
in	O
vocational	O
school	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
Ishiwatari	O
joined	O
Arc	O
System	O
Works	O
,	O
he	O
initially	O
worked	O
on	O
other	O
concepts	O
,	O
until	O
revealing	O
to	O
Arc	O
System	O
Works	O
president	O
Minoru	O
Kidooka	O
that	O
he	O
wanted	O
to	O
make	O
a	O
game	O
like	O
Street	B-Application
Fighter	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
During	O
the	O
planning	O
stage	O
,	O
he	O
was	O
inspired	O
by	O
Street	B-Application
Fighter	I-Application
II	I-Application
,	O
especially	O
by	O
its	O
simplicty	O
and	O
tactics-emphasis	O
,	O
but	O
he	O
abandoned	O
this	O
idea	O
in	O
favor	O
of	O
a	O
"	O
flashy	O
game	O
"	O
after	O
discussing	O
with	O
programmer	O
Hideyuki	O
Anbe	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
such	O
,	O
Ishiwatari	O
created	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
,	O
as	O
he	O
was	O
dissatisfied	O
with	O
other	O
fighting	O
games	O
,	O
focused	O
on	O
creating	O
"	O
cool	O
"	O
characters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
influences	O
of	O
the	O
fantasy	O
setting	O
of	O
the	O
manga	O
Bastard‼	B-Error_Name
,	O
Ishiwatari	O
created	O
the	O
series	O
hoping	O
it	O
would	O
appeal	O
not	O
only	O
to	O
game	O
fans	O
but	O
to	O
anime	O
fans	O
too	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Two	O
main	O
aspects	O
prioritized	O
for	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
were	O
prediction	O
of	O
the	O
opponent	O
's	O
movement	O
and	O
strategy/tactics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ishiwatari	O
also	O
inserted	O
them	O
as	O
a	O
selling	O
strategy	O
and	O
because	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
would	O
be	O
released	O
as	O
a	O
home	O
console-only	O
video	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
took	O
a	O
long	O
time	O
between	O
its	O
first	O
announcement	O
after	O
Arc	O
's	O
then	O
latest	O
Wizard	O
's	O
Harmony	O
(	O
1995	O
)	O
—	O
and	O
its	O
actual	O
release	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
first	O
released	O
in	O
Japan	O
on	O
May	O
14	O
,	O
1998	O
for	O
the	O
PlayStation	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
PlayStation	B-Device
Power	O
reported	O
that	O
both	O
Japanese	O
and	O
American	O
reviewers	O
commended	O
the	O
combination	O
of	O
humor	O
and	O
"	O
futuristic	O
manga-style	O
"	O
action	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
variety	O
of	O
moves	O
and	O
combos	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
IGN	O
staff	O
said	O
it	O
would	O
be	O
well	O
received	O
by	O
fans	O
of	O
traditional	O
2D	O
fighting	O
video	O
games	O
and	O
considered	O
it	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
bests	O
of	O
the	O
genre	O
on	O
PlayStation	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Writing	O
for	O
Electronic	O
Gaming	O
Monthly	O
(	O
EGM	O
)	O
,	O
a	O
reviewer	O
dubbed	O
"	O
Sushi	O
"	O
said	O
it	O
was	O
the	O
second	O
best	O
2D	O
fighter	O
on	O
PlayStation	B-Device
behind	O
Street	B-Application
Fighter	I-Application
Alpha	I-Application
2	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Writing	O
for	O
Eurogamer	O
,	O
Tom	O
Bramwell	O
noted	O
"	O
the	O
classic	O
'	O
cartoon	O
 '	O
look	O
suits	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
perfectly	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
Randy	O
Nelson	O
from	O
IGN	O
praised	O
its	O
"	O
unrivaled	O
animation	O
quality	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
EGM	O
reviewer	O
deemed	O
the	O
graphics	O
and	O
animation	O
as	O
"	O
the	O
big	O
draw	O
"	O
of	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
,	O
while	O
a	O
Jeuxvideo.com	O
contributor	O
said	O
it	O
could	O
be	O
"	O
more	O
polished	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Conversely	O
,	O
Play	O
criticized	O
its	O
speed	O
as	O
"	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
takes	O
it	O
away	O
too	O
far.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Lomas	O
praised	O
its	O
combo	O
system	O
,	O
and	O
compared	O
to	O
Street	B-Application
Fighter	I-Application
Alpha	I-Application
games	O
,	O
while	O
IGN	O
staff	O
also	O
commended	O
its	O
"	O
over-the-top	O
"	O
combos	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Though	O
stating	O
that	O
Capcom	O
was	O
still	O
the	O
best	O
developer	O
,	O
Nelson	O
said	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
is	O
"	O
better	O
than	O
90%	O
of	O
those	O
[	O
2D	O
fighting	O
games ]	O
on	O
the	O
market	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Nelson	O
,	O
on	O
other	O
hand	O
,	O
called	O
them	O
"	O
the	O
best	O
...	O
outside	O
Capcom/SNK	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
Mielke	O
found	O
them	O
"	O
truly	O
awesome	O
"	O
,	O
noting	O
that	O
their	O
diversity	O
"	O
keeps	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
fresh	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
of	O
criticism	O
,	O
however	O
,	O
is	O
directed	O
to	O
how	O
the	O
AI	B-Application
makes	O
the	O
game	O
difficult	O
and	O
how	O
there	O
are	O
some	O
attacks	O
that	O
cause	O
too	O
much	O
damage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
spite	O
of	O
it	O
,	O
Game	O
Informer	O
considered	O
the	O
instant-kill	O
move	O
to	O
be	O
the	O
"	O
biggest	O
"	O
concept	O
introduced	O
by	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
retrospect	O
,	O
Evan	O
Shamoon	O
wrote	O
for	O
the	O
Official	O
Dreamcast	O
Magazine	O
that	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
is	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
"	O
beloved-yet-under-appreciated	O
"	O
games	O
,	O
commenting	O
it	O
defined	O
itself	O
for	O
its	O
balance	O
,	O
"	O
wonderful	O
art	O
design	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
"	O
extremely	O
tight	O
control.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
1999	O
speech	O
condemning	O
advertisements	O
for	O
violent	O
video	O
games	O
aimed	O
at	O
children	O
,	O
US	O
President	O
Bill	O
Clinton	O
held	O
up	O
an	O
advertisement	O
for	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
,	O
denouncing	O
how	O
the	O
game	O
promoted	O
violence	O
with	O
a	O
tagline	O
about	O
how	O
players	O
could	O
"	O
kill	O
your	O
friends	O
guilt-free.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
portrait	O
of	O
Bill	O
Clinton	O
was	O
later	O
added	O
to	O
the	O
Digital	O
Figure	O
mode	O
in	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
Strive	I-Application
to	O
commemorate	O
the	O
incident	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
game	O
was	O
the	O
first	O
installment	O
of	O
the	O
series	O
that	O
is	O
considered	O
a	O
cult	O
classic	O
among	O
video	O
game	O
fans	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
followed	O
by	O
five	O
direct	O
sequels	O
,	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
X	I-Application
(	O
2000	O
)	O
,	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
X2	I-Application
(	O
2002	O
)	O
,	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
2	I-Application
:	I-Application
Overture	I-Application
(	O
2007	O
)	O
,	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
Xrd	I-Application
(	O
2014	O
)	O
,	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
Strive	I-Application
(	O
2021	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
several	O
spin-offs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Arc	O
System	O
Works	O
rereleased	O
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
in	O
a	O
on	O
September	O
22	O
,	O
1999	O
for	O
a	O
cheaper	O
price	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
later	O
became	O
available	O
by	O
download	O
on	O
PlayStation	B-Device
Store	O
as	O
a	O
PSone	B-Application
Classic	I-Application
in	O
Japan	O
on	O
May	O
31	O
,	O
2007	O
,	O
in	O
Europe	O
on	O
January	O
7	O
,	O
2010	O
,	O
and	O
in	O
PAL	O
region	O
on	O
January	O
8	O
,	O
2010	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
also	O
released	O
as	O
a	O
mobile	B-Application
game	I-Application
for	O
PlayStation	B-Device
certified	O
devices	O
in	O
2012	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
20th	O
anniversary	O
,	O
Arc	O
System	O
Works	O
announced	O
the	O
production	O
of	O
a	O
port	O
for	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Switch	I-Application
,	O
PlayStation	B-Operating_System
4	I-Operating_System
and	O
PC	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Guilty	B-Application
Gear	I-Application
Original	O
Sound	O
Collection	O
was	O
composed	O
by	O
Ishiwatari	O
,	O
Takahiro	O
Uematsu	O
,	O
Hatsuaki	O
Takami	O
,	O
Takuya	O
Moritou	O
,	O
arranged	O
by	O
Yasuharu	O
Takanashi	O
,	O
and	O
consisting	O
mostly	O
of	O
rock	O
and	O
heavy	O
metal	O
music	O
.	O
</s>
