Guilty Gear -STRIVE- Ver. 2.03 Tier List: Every Winner and Loser

Guilty Gear -STRIVE- Ver. 2.03 landed on September 24, reworking Counter Blitz, simplifying the Deflect Shield input, and adjusting fourteen characters at once. Nothing on this list got a full moveset overhaul, but frame data changes at this density move a fighting game's neutral game fast, and several characters are walking into ranked matches with noticeably different tools than they had the day before.

This is where the cast lands based on what Arc System Works actually shipped, not on guesswork. Every placement below traces back to a specific frame or hitbox change from the Ver. 2.03 patch notes. Call it an opinion, because it is one — tournament results over the next few weeks will settle arguments this list can only start.

01What Ver. 2.03 Actually Changes

Two universal systems moved, and both affect every matchup regardless of who you play. Counter Blitz can now be activated any time up through the end of recovery of the move that scored the counter hit, its startup dropped from 10F to 4F, its Guard Crush duration increased, its frame disadvantage on block improved from -10F to a flat 0F, and it knocks the opponent back further on a blocked first hit. That is a straightforward buff to the tool across the board — it is faster to use, safer when it whiffs into a block, and punishes counter hits harder than it did last week.

Deflect Shield's input changed too: it no longer requires a directional input, just D+P or D+K. That sounds like a small quality-of-life tweak, but simplifying an input that used to demand precise directional timing tends to raise its usage rate across every skill bracket, not just at the top.

On top of the systems work, fourteen characters got direct adjustments: Sol Badguy, May, Axl Low, Potemkin, Millia Rage, Zato-1, Leo, I-No, Testament, Bridget, Sin Kiske, A.B.A., Unika and Jam Kuradoberi. The other characters in the roster are untouched this patch, which by itself is a small relative buff if their tools were already strong against a now-weaker neighbor.

【#GGST Patch Notes】 The patch notes for Ver. 2.03, scheduled to be released during maintenance on September 24, are now available. Details regarding battle balance adjustments will be shared separately. Please check the details below. ▼Ver. 2.03 Patch Notes

— GUILTY GEAR OFFICIAL (@GUILTYGEAR_PR), Sept. 24, 2026 on X

02S Tier: Bridget, I-No and A.B.A. Come Out Ahead

These three got changes that solve a real problem each character had, rather than a marginal numbers tweak.

• Bridget — Kick Start My Heart's startup dropped from 10F to 7F and its total duration from 50F to 47F, making it a noticeably faster tool to reach for. Starship also gained increased launch height, which opens up more consistent combo routes after it connects. Both changes push Bridget's offense forward without adding any new risk.
• I-No — both the K and S versions of Sultry Performance now cause a stagger on ground hit and carry increased knockback. A move that used to just deal damage now opens a follow-up window, which is a meaningful upgrade to her okizeme and damage output in the same patch note.
• A.B.A. — Jealous Rage End used to leave her fully exposed for 10 frames of recovery once her gauge ran out; she can now block or Roman Cancel during that window. That single change removes one of the scarier commitment points in her kit, and safety upgrades like this tend to matter more than raw damage buffs.

03A Tier: Sol, Testament and Sin Kiske Get Quiet Upgrades

Smaller buffs, but real ones.

• Sol Badguy — Sidewinder Ignited's Clean Hit area was expanded forward, upward and downward, making the harder-to-land bonus version of the move easier to actually land.
• Testament — Stain's launch height increased, giving Testament more consistent combo extensions off a move that already anchored a lot of their offense.
• Sin Kiske — Hawk Baker's first hit launches higher and the second hit's downward blowback increased, with a follow-up hitbox added above the second hit. That is a direct combo and damage upgrade to one of his core buttons.

04B Tier: The Rest of the Cast Holds Steady

Chipp Zanuff, Ky Kiske, Faust, Nagoriyuki, Giovanna, Anji Mito, Baiken, Ramlethal Valentine, Happy Chaos, Asuka R#, Johnny, Elphelt Valentine, Goldlewis Dickinson, Queen Dizzy and anyone else not named in the Ver. 2.03 notes simply didn't change this patch. That's not a knock — several of those characters were already considered strong going into this update, and standing still while Potemkin and Axl Low get weaker is its own kind of relative gain. Treat this tier as "unconfirmed, watch this space" rather than a verdict; a proper read on where they sit requires results from the current, unchanged version of the game.

05C Tier: May, Unika and Zato-1 Take Small Hits

• May — Overhead Kiss's recovery grew from 21F to 22F and its follow-up buffer shrank slightly, while Mr. Dolphin's hitboxes were reshuffled rather than simply weakened. The net effect reads as a minor tax on her pressure rather than a real downgrade.
• Unika — A.C.T.G. Blast-Off's two hits had their launch heights redistributed — the first hit launches higher, the second lower — which changes combo routing more than it changes overall power.
• Zato-1 — Eddie's Life Gauge now recovers more slowly after unsummoning an active Eddie, which makes his resource management stricter without touching Eddie's actual attacks.

06D Tier: Potemkin, Axl Low, Millia Rage and Jam Kuradoberi Fall Hardest

These four lost real ground, and Potemkin lost the most.

• Potemkin — →+HS now lets grounded opponents tech on counter hit, its recovery grew from 29F to 35F, and its frame advantage on block collapsed from -17F to -23F. F.D.B. took a similar hit, going from 12F to 20F recovery and from -4F to -12F on block. Two of his core neutral tools are dramatically easier to punish than they were last week, which is the single biggest swing in this patch.
• Axl Low — Crouching P's recovery increased from 14F to 21F, cutting into the frame advantage that made it a reliable poke.
• Millia Rage — Kapel now carries a counter-hit state through the end of its recovery, its own recovery grew from 9F to 12F, and its hurtbox expanded downward. A tool that used to be relatively safe to throw out is now a real liability if it whiffs or gets stuffed.
• Jam Kuradoberi — Choukyaku Kouryumon lost forward movement speed and part of its forward hitbox, blunting one of her main approach options.

07Counter Blitz and Deflect Shield Reshape Neutral

The character-specific changes matter, but the two universal changes are arguably the bigger story for the average ranked match. A Counter Blitz that is faster, safer on block and hits harder off a counter changes how aggressively both players can afford to press buttons — it rewards reads on counter hits more than it did in Ver. 2.00. And an easier Deflect Shield input means more players at more skill levels will actually use it as a real defensive option instead of dropping the input under pressure.

Put together, that pushes the whole cast slightly toward players who can react to a counter hit and confirm off it, and slightly away from characters like Potemkin whose game plan leaned on a couple of now-unsafe pressure tools to hold that reactive advantage. If you're deciding what to drill this week, "correctly react to a counter hit and pick the punish" is going to pay off more than usual.

Arc System Works' Season 5 and 2.0 Update Trailer, uploaded March 22, 2026, shows the current-season roster and systems Ver. 2.03 builds on.

08How to Adjust Your Play This Patch

None of these changes require relearning a character from scratch, but a few habits are worth building before your next ranked set.

How to Adjust to Ver. 2.03 This Week

1. 1The directional requirement is gone; it's D+P or D+K now. Spend a few minutes in training mode until the new input is automatic before you take it into ranked.10 min
2. 2Counter Blitz now starts up in 4F instead of 10F and is only 0F on block instead of -10F. Practice recognizing and punishing opponents who lean on it more aggressively.15 min
3. 3If you fight Potemkin, know that →+HS is now -23F on block and F.D.B. is -12F. Both are punishable by far more of the cast than before Ver. 2.03.10 min
4. 4If you play I-No or Bridget, Sultry Performance now staggers and Kick Start My Heart is faster. Drill the new combo routes those changes open up.20 min
5. 5Only 14 of the roster got direct changes this patch. Check the official notes for your specific character before assuming anything changed.5 min

Fourteen characters is a lot of players to reshuffle in one patch, and Ver. 2.03 is barely a day old as of this writing. Consider everything above a frame-data-first read rather than a tournament-proven one; if you're weighing it against the broader mechanics Guilty Gear -STRIVE- is built on, that context is worth a read before your next training-mode session. Expect this list to firm up as results come in from the characters most affected — Potemkin players in particular have a rough week ahead of them.