Skullgirls Mobile is a free-to-play mobile spin-off/prequel of the original Skullgirls developed by Hidden Variable Studios. It was released for iOS and Android under LINE Corporation on May 25th, 2017.
On January 15th, 2018, LINE Corporation separated from Autumn Games and Hidden Variable Studios, resulting in the LINE version of Skullgirls Mobile becoming inactive permanently.[1] The game was subsequently re-released under Autumn Games on January 18th, 2018.[2]
There are many game modes, including: Story mode, Rift Battles, Versus, Prize Fights, Daily Events and a Training option.
Relics[]
Skullgirls Mobile functions as an RPG, with characters you can unlock with relics. There are many relic types:
- A Seasonal Relic which you can get for 500 Theonite, or by completing the Seasonal Prize Fight for the respective relic.
- A 'Take a Break' relic, these are earned every 4 hours and can unlock blockbusters, shards, special moves, coins and 'XP treats'.
- Element Relics which you can purchase for 300
- Theonite, which can be used to unlock a character of the respective element, with bonus shards or Essences.
- Premiere Relics which you can purchase for 100 Theonite, these are randomized and gives you a random Bronze, Silver, Gold or Diamond fighter.
- Silver/Gold/Diamond relics, for every character earned, you also get a small amount of 'shards' which can be used to unlock a character for the respective shard. (Only exception are bronze, which can be won from 'Deployments' and the 'Viewing Parlor'.
- Daily Relics, these are earnt every 24 hours and earn similar loot to that of the 'Take a Break' Relic, with a chance to get a silver Valentine 'Oh Mai' Fighter Card.
- Rift Relics which you can purchase for 50 Theonite, these offer rift coins and Catalysts, which help in Rift battles
- Bronze/Silver/Gold relics, these can be earned in prize fights, or can be bought for a limited time for 10, 20 and 50 Theonite respectively.
Story[]
Including the game's tutorial, the story of Skullgirls Mobile is told in the style of a visual novel, interspersed with a series of matches, and is set before the events of Skullgirls.
Main Story[]
In the tutorial, the player is introduced as having has just awoken after being experimented on by Brain Drain and Valentine at Lab 0. She tests the player's movements, introducing basic controls of the game.
Part 1: Egret Boot Camp[]
Having escaped Lab 0 thanks to Valentine, the player joins the Black Egrets and trains with Princess Parasoul to further understand the game's mechanics.
Part 2: A Fishbone to Pick[]
The player investigates Little Innsmouth to find out what the Fishbone Gang is up to.
Part 3: Who's The Boss?[]
The player tails Andy Anvil to see who he is after.
Part 4: Going All In[]
Having identified the real threat to New Meridian, the Black Egrets and the player infiltrate the River King Casino and "scrounge up some incriminating dirt".
Part 5: Ascent of a Woman[]
The Black Egrets and the player ascend New Meridian's tallest tower and take on the deadliest crime organization in the city.
Origin Stories[]
Introduced in Update 1.3[3], these delve into the backstories of the Skullgirls characters. Every fight within an Origin Story requires a Fighter of that story’s character type.
Meaner. Better. Faster. Stronger.[]
Peacock's Origin Story, added on July 31st, 2017. This chapter covers her rescue from slavers by the Anti-Skullgirl Labs and her willing transformation into a soldier by Lab 8.
Beating the Odds[]
Big Band's Origin Story, added on September 4th, 2017. This act concerns Ben Birdland who was betrayed by the corrupt police force, before being modified as an Anti-Skullgirl soldier by Lab 8.
Growing Pains[]
Painwheel's Origin Story, added on September 29th, 2017. Carol awakens as Painwheel and has her abilities tested by Lab 0 while struggling to maintain her free will.
Last Hope[]
Valentine's Origin Story, added on November 15th, 2017. Valentine embarks on a mission with the rest of the Last Hope to take down the Skullgirl and her shape-shifting cohort.
Main Attraction[]
Cerebella's Origin Story, added on December 21st, 2017. This chapter takes place a year prior to Skullgirls, where Cerebella, Beatrix, and Feng are tested to see who will become the next agent for the Medicis.
No Shelter[]
Parasoul's Origin Story, added on August 9th, 2018. This chapter begins with Umbrella asking Parasoul how their mother became the Skullgirl, forcing Parasoul to question if she should tell her the truth.
Hostile Makeover[]
Filia's Origin Story, added on June 5th, 2019. This chapter focuses on Filia's first encounter with Samson and the events that led to her becoming the Parasite's host.
The Fall of the House of Contiello[]
Squigly's Origin Story, added on August 8th, 2019. The events leading up to Selene becoming the Skullgirl, her ensuing actions, and Squigly's death and un-life are further explored.
Prize Fights[]
Prize Fights is a game mode that unlocks at player level 10.
The game mode puts the player in a continuous string of 3v3 fights where they choose 3 among their collection of fighters and get matched to another team of 3 (created by other players). The matchmaking method is based on the total fighter score of the 3 chosen fighters (as a result, choosing higher-point fighters results in getting matched with tougher opponents). If the player wins a match, they will get an amount of score that counts towards reward tiers of the Prize Fights' theme (for example, the 'Medici Shakedown' theme contains Canopy-Coin reward tiers). The more the player wins, the longer the win streak and, therefore, the higher the score multiplier will be so the player can get to higher reward tiers.
The following are Prize Fights' themes:
Character Prize Fights (Canopy Coins, Theonite, Skill Points, and Bronze/Silver/Gold Moves)[]
- Two to Tangle (Filia)
- Dame of Thrones (Parasoul)
- Rumble Pack (Beowulf)
- Cutting Room Floor (Peacock)
- No Pain No Gain (Painwheel)
- Frags to Riches (Black Dahlia)
- Second to Nun (Double)
- Night's Ghoul (Squigly)
- Casket Match (Valentine)
- A League of Her Clone (Fukua)
- Blood Sport (Eliza)
- Infinity and Beyond (Annie)
- Big Ben's Beatdown (Big Band)
- High Wire Hijinks (Cerebella)
- Ones and Zeros (Robo-Fortune)
- A Head of the Game (Ms. Fortune)
- Cloudy with a chance of Pain (Umbrella)
- Death Mettle (Marie)
Medici Prize Fights (Canopy Coins and Gold Moves)[]
- Medici Pit Fighting
- Medici Fight Club
- Medici Crime Spree
- Medici Heist
- Medici Shakedown
Elemental Prize Fights (Elemental Shards, Elemental Relics, and Elemental Essences)[]
- High Tide (Water element)
- Ring of Fire (Fire element)
- Eye of the Storm (Air element)
- A Shining Example (Light Element)
- A Shot in the Dark (Dark element)
Miscellaneous Prize Fights (Various Rewards)[]
- Hot Off the Presses (Skill Points)
- Show Me Your Moves (Move Relics)
Daily Events[]
Daily Events is a game mode unlocked by finishing 'Who's The Boss?' in the Story Mode.
The mode is akin to a daily Story Mode with varying sets of fights and rewards based on themes. Rewards for completion are Canopy Coins, a Special Moves, Blockbuster moves, and Theonite. The quality of the moves (Bronze, Silver, or Gold) depends on the difficulty (Basic, Advanced, Expert, and Master respectively). In the 5.1 update, Daily Event Tickets were added, which can be used on any difficulty as long as the difficulty is completed. You can only collect 4 at one time and you can redeem them daily, only if your tickets are completely empty.
For each character, a daily event is available for a select amount everyday:
- Monday: After School Special (Filia); Ghoul's Night Out (Squigly); Grave Situation (Marie)
- Tuesday: Walking The Beat (Big Band); Days Of Future Cats (Robo-Fortune)
- Wednesday: Routine Checkup (Valentine); Wednesday Night Rawr (Beowulf)
- Thursday: A Clone With my Thoughts (Fukua); Anger Management (Painwheel)
- Friday: Tickets to the Fun Show (Cerebella); Double Feature (Double); Sweating Bullets (Black Dahlia)
- Saturday: Saturday Morning Cartoons (Peacock); Caturday Night Fever (Ms. Fortune); Pier Pressure (Umbrella)
- Sunday: A Royal Audience (Parasoul); Sanguine Soirée (Eliza); Cosmic Encounters (Annie)
The only two exceptions to this are:
- Holodeck Hazards (Resets everyday, but is consistently shown.)
- Accursed Experiments (Resets at the start of every week.)
Fighter Cards[]
In total, there are around 200+ different Fighter cards. There are 4 different ranks, Bronze, Silver, Gold and Diamond. Each character has 2 Bronze fighter cards, 3-4 Silver cards, 4-6 Gold cards, and 2-4 Diamond Cards. Each character has a different 'Signature Ability'. All of the cards can be unlocked by the use of Relics, with there also being Bronze, Silver, Gold and Diamond relics for each type of character. Fighter Cards can also be evolved by sacrificing a specific amount of 'Sacrifices'.
- To evolve a Bronze to a Silver, you will need to sacrifice 3 bronze cards for the same character.
- To evolve a Silver to a Gold, you will need to sacrifice 4 silver cards for the same character.
- To evolve a Gold to a Diamond, you will need to sacrifice 5 Gold cards for the same character, and 3 elemental essences for the characters respective element.
For a Neutral Elemental Gold to be evolved, you need 1 Fire essence, 1 Air essence and 1 Water essence. You cannot evolve diamond fighters, the option to evolve is replaced by a 'convert' button. Converting a diamond gives you:
- One Fighter essence for that same Card depending on which element it is.
- 500 fighter points.
- 40 diamond relic shards.
Update 3.3.1 introduced a standardized greyscale palette for Sparring Partners in Training Mode.[4]Each character uses their 'original' card and palette for Versus Modes.
Controls[]
Swipe Away: Dash backwards
Swipe Forward: Dash forward and attack
Swipe Forward Twice: Dash forward attack followed by knockback attack
Tap Light One Finger: Light attack, press consecutively to combo
Tap Hold One Finger: Charge Attacks
Swipe Down One Finger: Perform a crouch (trip) attack
Swipe Up: Launch opponent in the air. (Tap Immediately after launching the opponent to follow with aerial attacks)
Hold the Screen Two Fingers: Block
Swipe Anywhere Two Fingers: Throw
Press buttons on-screen to Tag-out, use Power attacks, and Blockbuster Attacks
There's also an unlockable 'Autopilot' button for hitting Level 40 which can be toggled, which automatically controls your character, this can be toggled off in settings.