Guilty Gear Strive has a diverse cast of characters, with each having a unique way of playing. While it’s always fun to pick a main and stick with them, if it’s a lower character on the Guilty Gear Strive tier list you’re going to have to work harder.

The top characters in the Guilty Gear Strive Tier List have kit that makes them naturally more powerful in the game’s balance. While no characters are genuinely broken, there are clear standouts with better moves. If you want every advantage that you can get in-game, you’ll want to focus on the Guilty Gear Strive characters who dominate the top half of the tier list. At events like Guilty Gear Strive at EVO 2023, you’ll see a lot more of the top tier characters.

Guilty Gear is still a pretty active fighting game. The title has regular GGS patch notes and we’ve now learnt we’re getting a full third season of the game. That means even more DLC characters and many more changes to where the characters stand or who is the best. If you want to stay on top of the game, you’ll need to stay up to date with how that effects the GGS tier list.

Source: Esports.net | Arc System Works

Guilty Gear Tier List

If you want to go with the characters that have the best potential, we’ll run through where everyone stands in a Guilty Gear tier list. These are the top characters to learn based on how they perform in normal play, but also at esports tournaments for Guilty Gear like EVO Japan and the ARC World Tour.

This is how it breaks down.

S Tier

Source: Arc System Works

This tier of the Guilty Gear Strive tier list is where the best characters are. There are the current fighters who have kit that feels more powerful, better match-ups, and generally a much higher skill ceiling. It still takes skill to master these characters, but you do have an advantage in a lot of matchups compared to lower-down fighters.

It’s worth noting that a lot of people would consider the very first pick to be in its own S++ tier. Although, we’re keeping Sol in with the other high tier characters for now. These are the best Guilty Gear characters to play.

Sol

Sol has basically been the most powerful character in Guilty Gear Strive for quite a while. Unless some patch notes can actually take him down a notch, he’s a safe bet for staying in this top tier. He has some of the best kit, amazing combos, and most all-round strength. That doesn’t mean there aren’t counters and other characters worth learning. If you want to put time into only one Guilty Gear character though, it might be Sol Badguy.

Source: Arc System Works

Ky

Along with Sol, Ky is one of the top characters. He’s a more general character than a lot of the others on the tier list, their kit is the foundation of fighting mechanics in this game. They have potential at every range, and enough combos to be lethal when played right. If you play other games that are some of the biggest fighting games you might find Ky an easier character to start with too.

May

May isn’t quite as OP as Sol in terms of raw power. However, the character still sits a notch above the rest. Recent Guilty Gear patches have been kind. In a Guilty Gear Strive tier list, May’s current kit has great potential. You’ll still need to put work into mastering them though.

A Tier – Guilty Gear  Tier List

Source: Arc System Works

The A tier is quite a bit bigger than S but not too much worse in performance. These are all well above average. They have stronger kit which makes them a better match for a lot of the cast. While slightly outdone by the S tier these are all still really solid choices. These are the second-tier characters in the Guilty Gear tier list.

Baiken
Testament
Bridget
Chipp
Ramlethal
Leo
Bedman?
Giovanna

The second tier up isn’t too far behind the first. There are some great picks in this section, like Baiken in Guilty Gear Strive. While they’ve got great options for different ranges, they do also have flaws in some match ups which keep them from raising to the very top of the game.

B Tier – Guilty Gear Tier List

Source: Arc System Works

The B tier is where we get to the more middle-of-the-road characters. These fighters aren’t necessarily the worst in the game, they’re a little below average in general though. Their move sets lack the better combos or potential that those above in the Guilty Gear Strive tier list. This is a fairly well-balanced game though, so great players can still do impressive things with these fighters.

Potemkin
Axl
Anji
Millia
Zato
Sin
Johnny
Jack-O

The B Tier is about average for Guilty Gear Strive. There are still some great characters in here with specialist kit. They work well with specific types of players, or if you’re willing to put the time in mastering combos. Their kit might not be as strong, but it still works. Especially if you’re really willing to spend time learning fighting games.

C Tier – Bottom Guilty Gear Characters

This is the bottom of the Guilty Gear tier list. It isn’t that these characters are terrible, just that they’re outplayed by the other tiers. If one is your favourite, there’s still a lot you can do with them.

For example, if you main Faust in Guilty Gear then enough practice and combos can still keep them competitive. If you want to get through the whole thing though, these don’t give you the best potential.

Faust
I-No
Asuka
Nagoriyuki
Goldlewis
Happy Chaos

That’s how the characters break down for the Guilty Gear Strive tier list. How you personally rank them will depend on other factors though, like play style and what type of fighter you go for. The title is still adding new fighters too, like the Bedman Guilty Gear DLC. Keep an eye on new additions and patches as they could affect the existing cast quite a bit and move around the tier list rankings. Especially if there’s fighting game news about more DLC characters in the coming months.

Read next: MultiVersus Tier List – Best and Worst Fighters