Previously expected in summer 2015, Skullgirls 2nd Encore for PlayStation Vita now has a confirmed release date of April 5 in North America, and will include cross-buy with the PlayStation 4 version.
As Peter Bartholow of developer Lab Zero Games explained, Skullgirls 2nd Encore for Vita was pushed back due to the huge amount of hand-drawn animation (about 1,500 frames per character), “so balancing performance and image quality on the handheld proved trickier than expected.” They also had to focus on deadlines for Arc System Works’ release in Japan when they were getting close with the Vita version.
With Skullgirls 2nd Encore on Vita, Lab Zero Games added front-screen macros, allowing you to tap sectors on the screen to activate a customizable macro, letting you call an assist, switch characters, and more. You’ll also find local multiplayer support through PlayStation TV, as well as cross-play with the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3 versions.
Here’s what else is included inside the 2nd Encore version of Skullgirls:
- All 5 DLC characters
- Fully voiced story mode
- New Challenges — including playing as the Skullgirl herself, Marie!
- New Trials
- New Survival Mode
- Full Platinum Trophy set
With the Vita version now complete, Lab Zero will begin wrapping up development on the final Skullgirls patch, which adds multiplayer lobbies. It’s a big undertaking as they have to release nine patches simultaneously in three regions from three different publishers, but preliminary internal testing for the patch on PS4 and PS Vita should start soon.
Bartholow adds:
Skullgirls’ multiplayer lobbies allow eight players to gather and fight or spectate, but also have a feature we like to call “All Play.”
In most fighting game lobbies, eight players will queue up, and six players will wait while the first two players fight. When those two are done, the next two will fight, and so on.
With All Play, eight players enter the lobby, and all eight can be paired up to fight at once. And as they complete their matches, they’ll be paired up again as soon as they’re out.
This means less time waiting your turn and more time playing, something we think the genre has needed for quite some time.
Also coming soon is the Skullsgirls PS4 Theme featuring two new pieces of art, icons featuring characters, and an instrumental arrangement of Michiru Yamane’s In a Moment’s Time. On top of that, a free Indivisible Dynamic Theme is expected soon.
There was no mention of a European release date for Skullgirls 2nd Encore.
[Source: PS Blog]
