HOW TO PLAY

Being able to play is easy to pick up, but to master all of your skills you must know what they are. Reading up here will give you help from details of basic gameplay to tips for more adept players.

THE CONTROLS

Knowing what you are capable of is very important in the heat of battle. Here are the 7 buttons you need:

• - Use the L and R buttons to run. You can double-tap them to Dash.
• - Press J to jump. The longer you hold it the higher you go.
• - Press B to guard incoming attacks. You can stun enemies by guarding just as they attack with the Power Guard. Don't hold it too long or you'll stun yourself and lose Chaos!
• - Press 1 on the ground to perform Fast Attacks, or press it in the air for an Aerial Action that helps you move around.
• - Press 2 on the ground to perform the slower heavy attacks, or press it in the air to use an Aerial Attack.
• - Press 3 to perform special Chaos Moves (see "Using Chaos").

Always remember that the controls can be changed by going to the Options Menu.

THE GAME DISPLAY

When you begin a fight you will see the heads up display (The following image demonstrates the maximum stats possible during a Tag Duel).

• 1) The character's portrait.
• 2) Player ID. This shows if someone is human or computer controlled.
• 3) Health Guage. If this runs out than that player is unable to battle.
• 4) Boost Guages. These show what boosts someone has collected. (See "Item Boxes")
• 5) Chaos Guage. Used for special moves (See "Using Chaos").
• 6) Timer. Shows how long you've fought or how much time you have left.

The HUD will tell you of bonuses, items, and penalties you and your opponent(s) get during the fight.

USING CHAOS

GETTING CHAOS
Some ways you can get Chaos include:

• - Finishing a Combo;
• - Attacking someone while they are attacking;
• - Hitting someone with a Heavy Combo;
• - Performing a Power Guard;
• - Recovering from being sent back or juggled;
• - Opening Chaos Boxes (See "Item Boxes");

However, you can lose it as well by using attacks that need Chaos as well as blocking too often. Make sure you keep a note on how much Chaos you and your opponent has.

CHAOS CHARGE
The Chaos Charge is a move that needs over half your Chaos Guage to be used. All you need to do is press ATK-3 and the charge will activate like so: Chaos Charges have varying effects depending on the type of your fighter, like having faster or stronger attacks. Chaos Charges only last for a while, so use it wisely!

CHAOS ATTACKS
This is the most powerful move in anyone's moveset. To be able to start one up you must have your Chaos Guage filled 100%, then press 3 near you're enemy. The attack is unblockable, and you will see yourself performing the Chaos Attack while this appears:
This is the Chaos Attack Meter. It will constantly fill and deplete itself. You need to press 3 when it is filled up. You see the star in the middle? If you press ATK-3 and the star isn't there the Chaos Attack "fails".
If a Chaos Attack fails, it does less damage and is UNABLE to Knockout an opponent even if they are very low on health, meaning they can strike back! Be sure to succeed!

ITEM BOXES

These powerups can really help you when you're in a jam during a match. They can also be found in Story Mode if you explore a little. You can find out what each one does here.

Open up one of these and you get the number of rings inside. These only appear in Story and Mission Modes.

Grabbing one of these will boost up one of your skills. Blues make you run faster, Yellows make you jump higher, and Reds increase your power. These last until the battle ends.

These item boxes give you a top-up for your Chaos Meter. The box with the larger Chaos Emerald on it gives you more Chaos.

Grab one of these and all your enemies lose a bit of their health. You can't KO someone with one of these though.

A simple pick-me-up. Getting this item box will give you back a bit of your health.

When you pick this up, no attack will be able to harm you... not even Chaos Attacks. It doesn't last very long though so make the most of it!

If you grab this item all the players' health and Chaos will average out. For example if P1 has very low health and everyone else has alot, P1 will gain some health and the rest will lose health.

The unlucky sucker that opens this box will lose a portion of their health. It can't Knockout a player, but it's annoying anyway.

AERIAL COMBOS

One new battle mechanic being introduced into the game are Aerial Combos. Every character has these and they are the hardest combos to understand. Get them right though, and you'll open up many opportunities.

Start off by attacking your opponent with an Upper Combo (throws also work) to send them off their feet.

To start an Air Combo, just HOLD the Jump button (Don't tap it). When the attack ends and the Jump button is still held down, you will chase the opponent. When you get in close, you can start an Air Combo.

Air Combos do 3 hits (though some characters might have less), and the last strike can be charged up for extra damage! Slam Combos send your enemy straight to the floor. You can use it to send enemies into traps and weak flooring to break it.