A side-scrolling brawler with fighting game depth
Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds Ultimate is a side-scrolling beat-'em-up built with the heart of a fighting game. You control one of four heroes—Mikoto, Waka, Itsuki, or Yuzuha—and hack and slash your way across parallel worlds to rescue Nagi, who has been taken by the villainous Phantom. The campaign spans 8 stages packed with Phantom's minions. Combat draws on fighting game mechanics, so expect strategic action and intense encounters rather than simple button mashing. As you defeat enemies you level up and earn points to unlock new skills, growing both your character and your moveset as you push toward the rescue. The whole package runs on a rebuilt version of the game in Unreal Engine 5, which brings smoother gameplay, flashier special attacks, and an improved online experience, all wrapped in nostalgic pixel art.
Playing together
The game supports local multiplayer with up to 4 players in both co-op and versus modes. Online multiplayer raises the ceiling: up to 6 players in co-op and up to 8 in versus mode. Cross-platform online play means you can team up with or face off against players regardless of platform. Online Co-Op, Online PvP, and Remote Play Together are all supported, so there are several ways to bring your group in whether you are sitting on the same couch or spread across the internet.
Roster, story, and soundtrack
A total of 38 characters are playable, including powerful adversaries from the Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds universe. You unlock them for co-op and versus modes by completing Story Mode and watching the end-roll, so the roster opens up as you play through. The story follows Waka, daughter of the ancient Kumon Family, and Mikoto as they try to stop Phantom's plan. Phantom hands out F.A.s (Fu-mension Artifacts) to the young and gifted, luring them into battles whose clashes tear rifts between parallel worlds and weaken the seals on his power. Despite their effort, Phantom escapes with Waka's younger sister Nagi. Itsuki, a maid and self-proclaimed Arbiter of Justice, and Yuzuha, a ninja who resisted Phantom's temptations, join the pursuit. For the audio, you can pick between an all-new soundtrack composed by the all-girl J-rock band The Phantom Breakers or the classic versions from the original games.