Skullgirls Encore / 2nd Encore
  

 
 
STORYSet in the fictional Canopy Kingdom, Skullgirls pits players against ranks of deadly but beautiful opponents in an attempt to control the enigmatic Skull Heart, a mysterious artifact with the power to bestow wishes - but not without a substantial price. Should the soul be less than pure, both the victor's wish and her being shall be corrupted into a living nightmare that haunts humanity. She will be known as the Skullgirl, a monstrous entity of immense power.
 

Nice... I approve of these "brighter" stages thrown in the mix.

  
ABOUT:  In the later half of 2013, Lab Zero Games went through severe difficulties while submitting patch updates for Skullgirls due to problems involving their relationship with Konami. In an attempt to expedite the patching process, Lab Zero severed legal ties with Konami. On December 31st, the original Skullgirls was removed from PSN and XBL while the game transitioned to new publishers. The game returned as Skullgirls Encore, marking the beginning of the era funded by Lab Zero's Indiegogo campaign. The first new DLC character was Squigly, and she was followed by Big Band, Eliza, Beowulf and (soon) Robo-Fortune.


Skullgirls Encore features a variety of updates and changes. For starts, Encore features 3 brand new hand-drawn stages, including: River King Casino, New Meridian Rooftops & Rooftops Assault. The bizarre "Typing of the Skullgirls" mode is also new in Encore, where players can actually play with a keyboard, typing words as they fight it out. Some visual updates include palletized hit effects & HUD select portraits, and improved animation on the "Encore Performance" screen. A slew of gameplay and balance changes were also implemented into Skullgirls Encore.

 

Squigly is the first of the DLC characters to join Skullgirls Encore.

 

Skullgirls: 2nd Encore
is the final enhancement, originally released on PlayStation 4 on July 7th, 2015. 2nd Encore features all previously released DLC characters, stages, and new modes. The PS Vita version of the title is cross-buy, so owners of the PS4 version will receive the Vita version for free. Along with the new playable characters, 2nd Encore includes a fully-voiced story mode, new challenges, trials & survival mode, plus trophy support. The title also features cross-play with PS4/PS3 versions.

 

Well someone's in a bad mood...

 

For the PS4 version of S
kullgirls: 2nd Encore, Lab Zero was able to create a driver that enables legacy controller support (later used by other fighting game companies), which allows PS3 fightsticks & controllers to be used on PS4 exclusively for the game. The Nintendo Switch version of Skullgirls: 2nd Encore released on October 22nd, 2019. An Xbox One version was originally planned for 2018/2019, but has been "delayed indefinitely".


 

Page Updated: March 10th, 2023
Developer(s): Lab Zero Games, Hidden Variable
Publisher(s): Autumn Games    
CyberFront
Marvelous AQL    (PC)
Skybound Games    (Switch)
Designer(s): Mike Zaimont    Project Lead & Designer
Ian Cox
Peter Bartholow
Artwork by: Alex Ahad    Lead Artist
Mariel Kinuko Cartwright 
   Lead Animator
Jonathan "Persona" Kim
Platform(s): PS4, PS3, PSVita, Xbox 360, PC, Arcade, Nintendo Switch
Release Date(s): Feb. 11th, 2014             PSN - Skullgirls: Encore
Apr. 4th, 2014                 XBL - Skullgirls: Encore
July 7th, 2015                 PS4 - Skullgirls: 2nd Encore
Oct. 29th, 2015                Arcade
Apr. 5th, 2016
                 PSVita - Skullgirls: 2nd Encore
Apr. 13th, 2016              Steam - Skullgirls: 2nd Encore
Oct. 22nd, 2019             Nintendo Switch
March 2021                      Steam - Skullgirls: 2nd Encore Season Pass 1
Characters Filia, Cerebella, Peacock, Parasoul, Ms. Fortune, Painwheel, Valentine, Double, Marie, Squigly, Big Band, Eliza, Beowulf, Robo-Fortune, Annie (Season 1), Umbrella (Season 1), Black Dahlia (Season 1)

Featured Video:

Related Games: Skullgirls, Arcana Heart 3, AquaPazza, SNK Gals Fighters, The King of Fighters XIII, Marvel VS Capcom 2, Persona 4 Arena: Ultimax, Xuan Dou Zhi Wang, Under Night In-Birth EXE Late[st], Yatagarasu: Attack on Cataclysm, Dengeki Bunko Fighting Climax, BlazBlue: Central Fiction, Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR, Street Fighter 5, The King of Fighters XIII, The King of Fighters XIV, BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle, SNK Heroines: Tag Team Frenzy
  

Gameplay Engine   
Story / Theme   
Overall Graphics   
Animation   
Music / Sound Effects   
Innovation   
Art Direction   
Customization    
Options / Extras    
Intro / Presentation    
Replayability / Fun    
"Ouch" Factor    
Characters    

BOTTOM LINE

   

    

  

First Impression: The original Skullgirls was an instant cult classic... becoming known for its clever art style, wacky character designs, and stylish 2D animation. The 2D sprites clearly ooze personality and charisma... and in an age where seemingly "everything is 3D," a fully hand-drawn 2D game like Skullgirls offers a unique visual experience and enjoyment that you really can't get elsewhere these days.

Side Story:  As a competitive 3D fighting game player in 2012-2014 (traveling to tournaments for TEKKEN and SoulCalibur), I was a very busy person in 2012-2014 when Skullgirls was first released... just to offer you some perspective of the time period, from me.

Even as a fighting game player who put 4 hours a night (on average) into TEKKEN Tag Tournament 2 and other "current gen" fighting games games in the 2010's, I did buy the first Skullgirls to support the devs (because long live fighting games!). I played the original Skullgirls for a few hours... but never commit to playing it regularly (or buying the DLC).

Alas, Skullgirls was a game that I ended up "overlooking" in my "actual playing fighting games time" but it was a game that didn't want to overlook (and didn't actually 'overlook' it since I did write about 25 news articles on Skullgirls updates. lol.) Even though I haven't played much of Encore or 2nd Encore, that doesn't mean I can't appreciate the great artwork and character designs... because I do enjoy them.

All of this to say... I kinda regret not playing more Skullgirls. However, the GOOD NEWS is... I will finally review Skullgirls: 2nd Encore (the final version of this game) when it comes to Nintendo Switch. The convenience of playing on Switch will make it easier for me to enjoy an aesthetic game like Skullgirls (while I'm traveling). I look forward to finally reviewing the final version of Skullgirls someday.
 
~TFG Webmaster | @Fighters_Gen
 
 
 
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