All inputs listed in this article are in numpad notations.

Guilty Gear Strive’s new DLC character, Happy Chaos, is a unique beast. The Strive storyline’s main antagonist in the game’s story mode fights with a handgun, a bunch of dopplegangers as cover, and a relaxed meta attitude.

He doesn’t play like any other fighting game character I know, and that’s A-OK by me. While his gun mechanic is similar to Guilty Gear Xrd’s Elphelt Van Titties Valentine and her sniper mode, Happy Chaos’ plays and feels completely different. See, Happy Chaos can fire his gun at any time with a press of the HS button; it’ll hit his opponent when the reticule is on them and when it’s small.

The gunfire is not a special cancel or anything; when you’re doing a Gatling combo, pressing the HS will have Happy Chaos firing his gun alongside the combo you’re doing, adding more hits and damage. For example, his simple S, S Gatling can be mixed in with simultaneous presses of the HS button. Shots fired indeed!

His Steady Aim deals a ton of damage for a zoning attack that hits anywhere as long as the reticule is small and on the opponent. To aggravate foes further, he can summon walls called Scapegoats (which uses his health) and throws a curse ball that afflicts his opponent with an aura that makes the gun reticle close in faster.

Of course, there are limits. The gun Happy Chaos uses has ammunition, which you need to reload with a special move called, well, Reload. He also has a Concentration meter to factor in: if he runs out of that meter, he can’t fire his gun. Pressing HS or pulling off At The Ready and Steady Aim will have him fumbling his gun instead, leaving you open for attacks. Speaking of which, he cannot block when he has his gun out, so if you’re jumping in with a gun ablazing, you better make damn sure you commit.

Thankfully, he can sheathe his gun by pressing 2+HS. He can also recharge his Concentration with the special move Focus, which leaves him vulnerable but refills his Concentration fully. His two Overdrive moves, Deus Ex Machina and Super Focus, can help solve his low ammunition and concentration problems. The former is a Super move that hits opponents anywhere on screen while refilling his bullets, but requires some Concentration meter. The latter just fills up his Concentration instantaneously while also making it drain slower than usual.

Long story short: he’s a unique character that breaks some rules in Guilty Gear Strive. While he’s meant for galaxy brain players who feel that the game may be too easy for them, his damage output and “hit anything anywhere” gameplay is pretty unique, with his many regular moves like his 6S clothesline being great punishing tools for his gun kit. Juggling all the ammunition, Concentration, and reticule info can be incredibly taxing for newbie players though, so he’s clearly not meant for beginners like Jack-O and Zato-1.

Want to see Happy Chaos’ reaction to Faust’s Overdrive and other fun stuff? Check out the other videos we have below.