After playing through the first two installments, I went into this game with tempered expectations. Now, after completing nearly everything it has to offer about 100 hours later, I can confidently say that I'm a lot more satisfied than I thought I'd be. I'll cut to the chase, this game isn't perfect. So let's get some of the bad stuff out of the way first: There are some very bizarre priorities made by the developers. Instead of shelling out the budget for proper character intro and victory animations, a second Plus Ultra for each character, a mode that disables the 3v3, and (most egregiously) a disturbing lack of cosmetics and playable stages that are already IN the game... they decided to focus on programming in 100 trivia questions, a comprehensive set of over 300 collectible cards, and a lot of PVP profile customization that I doubt many people really care about. Things like banners, emblems, HUD customization, etc. There was even something about a limited selection of comments that you can make before battle... All of that is well and good, but it should NEVER take priority over actual practical gameplay elements and playable content in this game's VS mode. There is also one other nitpick, and that's the Counter Crash system. Despised by many, it's a parry that can punish pretty much anything except a Plus Ultra or unblockable attack, and it's COMPLETELY free with VERY reliable frames. Expect it to be abused like crazy. Weirdly enough, it's much more rewarding and punishing than the "Just Guard" system, which is a heck of a lot tougher to pull off and just gives you a free punish after perfectly timing the block button on an opponent's attack and then releasing the block button right after. Those are really my only complaints, so let's get to the positives! This game is a lot more than just an anime fighter like the previous two installments. It's designed in such a way where casual anime fighters will have a good time with it (since characters and stages are unlocked easily), but die-hard MHA fans will be reveling in it. With a massive open world city, complete with NPC citizens who say their own things and even have their own interactions, you can choose up to 3 students from Deku's class and roam around with them, making use of their unique special ability to help make travel or combat easier. Each character has their own thing to offer, and I personally don't think that any of them is really better than any other in the open world. The only exception is that Tokoyami is hands down the best character for travel, because he gets a VERY high jump and can soar through the air with sustained flight. As for the sub quests themselves, they're kind of like little puzzles for you to figure out and complete. Some of them are basic battle missions against henchmen, but then you'll run into interesting ones that have you investigate missing objects or eavesdrop on the citizens to get information that you report back to the NPC quest giver. There is one genuinely unsettling mission in this mode that tries to recreate the hopeless vibe in the city from when a particular event in the story took place, and I just want to praise that particular level because it was a solid change of pace that really gave me some goosebumps. As you complete those Team-Up missions, you'll gradually unlock the corresponding battle in the Archives Mode, and this time it's with the ACTUAL characters from that simulated event. Unlike the story mode, the Archives Mode does have different rankings for you to earn and rewards for you to unlock when you clear the levels in under a certain time limit. However, the final level of Archives Mode is probably the TRUE final boss of this game now that the story mode final boss has been nerfed... but ONLY if you're going for that gold rank. It's next to impossible to do unless you master almost all of Class 1-A, manage your Rising gauge with flawless precision, and fight in such a way that you can manipulate the CPU's actions throughout the battle. The CPU in this level is also on its highest difficulty, and you're gonna be wanting to rip your hair out as you fight for your life to wipe out SEVERAL health bars in under 5 and a half minutes (even with the timer stopping for Risings). If you manage to achieve this, the feeling of accomplishment is pretty cathartic. Now for the story mode itself. I've heard great things about it, and I can definitely see why after having played it. It animates a few select cut scenes with the game models, but a lot of it is done with screenshots of the anime that dynamically shake, pan, and move around with the action as the story is being told. It's like reading a motion manga, in a way... and it really works well imo. The developers took advantage of the fact that the final season is a series of simultaneous battles from different characters' perspectives and decided to break it up into branching paths. Sometimes you'll be fighting Himiko Toga as Uraraka, other times you'll be facing off against All For One with Endeavor, etc. It's once you get into the story mode that you start to realize that the OST for this game is pretty incredible, a huge step up from the previous two games and it really lives up to the legendary MHA soundtrack. The story is also plenty challenging. You'll find that the CPU enemy or enemies in each story mode level will inflict 3 times as much damage as you, and always start out with super armor that you have to carefully chip away at until you can make them vulnerable and get your combos to safely connect. Throughout the entire battle, the characters exchange impactful and emotional dialogue that tells out the story and makes the whole thing feel very personal for each level. By the time you reach the final two levels, the difficulty spikes majorly, and as I mentioned before, the final boss of the story mode was actually so Dark Souls worthy that the developers ended up nerfing it after the fact. You'll get your money's worth just with this story mode alone, because no matter how good you are at the game, it's NOT a cakewalk... thanks to that pesky super armor. One other mode worth mentioning is a relaxing slice-of-life set of levels for each member of Deku's class that has you see what a day in the life of each student is like. There is only ONE of these levels that is truly difficult... Thankfully, the game is set up so that you'll still clear the level even if you fail to complete a brain-teasing puzzle designed by Satan. As for the gameplay itself, I have never played an arena fighter with such variety between such a massive cast of characters. Deku can use Black Whip to swing around effortlessly in battle, Aizawa can lock down the opponent's attack options, Mineta can throw balls at the opponent and actually slow their movements mid-combat, Tokoyami has two different modes to switch between where he attacks with the Dark Shadow separately or wears it like armor and changes his whole moveset while equipped, Yaoyorozu has a whole bag of different tricks... That's not even getting into some real gems like Kurogiri (a warping counter-user) and Gentle Criminal (a master zoner with bouncing bubble discs), I can honestly say I've never had as much fun with other characters in a fighting game than I have with those two. TLDR; This game has a lot going for it. Casuals will love it, MHA fans will sink their teeth into it. It feels like the world of MHA is at your fingertips, not just the battles, but the hero aspect of it as well. TONS of characters, and they ALL play differently. There's also plenty to challenge even veterans of arena fighters, hundreds of collectible items, and a lengthy journey if you're planning to 100% the title. And just gonna throw this out there, but at the time of me writing this, there IS a way to unlock the non-usable costumes and stages, and all it takes is a quick Google search. You will not regret it, and it'll genuinely make the game 10x better. ;)