Trade shows have soaked up a bit of news lately, but they aren’t the only things to talk about in the arcade world. ExA-Arcadia has a couple of fighting games to discuss, so let’s see what is going on with Vanguard Princess R and the major content update to Axel City 2.
Vanguard Princess R Pre-Orders
Initially unveiled back in April 2024 at EVO, this particular game had some controversy surrounding the rights to it, but exA has resolved what it needed to (see the copyright notice at the bottom of the game page). That aside, working with FK Digital, they have created a remastered version of the 2009 doujin fighter, completely revamping the game system, adding full English localization, new moveset cards built into the game; providing 0.3 frame input lag response, proffering a training mode, and offering a “100% accurate version” of the 2009 original through the test mode. It also can operate in portrait mode (TATE) if you want to do that.
I played an early version of it at IAAPA 2024, where it seemed pretty smooth to me, although I had not played the original game prior to that to fully compare. This joins the ranks of other all-girl anime fighting games like Arcana Heart 3 on the platform. If you want to see the game as it was seen on test recently, there is a 12-hour livestream you can watch here.
This game will begin shipping at the end of September.
Axel City 2: The Final Storm On Test
Axel City 2 is one game that I have not had in my exA collection, but I have heard from multiple sources that it is a top performer among 2D fighters, often outperforming expectations. That is a factor, by my understanding, towards the development of this major content update to what already is an exclusive for the platform.
This update brings the already large roster up to 50 characters, and also adds more voice acting, stories for all of the new characters, and new backgrounds. It certainly makes this the definitive edition of the game.
Now, the game is on test in two locations in Japan, one in Tokyo and the other in Osaka. Usually once a game hits testing for exA, the release isn’t too far after that. That said, tests can always result in delays, changes, or cancellations, but so far I can’t recall exA canning a game after a test like this. Once it’s available for pre-order, we’ll be sure to mention it.
That will bring two new fighters to the table – some others that fans have been waiting on are still in the works, so hang tight. ExA is not listed as having a booth for IAAPA Expo Europe next week, but they are on the map for IAAPA in Orlando in November. We’ll get some good hands-on time with their latest games then.
