Depleting a player's life gauge decreased their stock of souls and temporarily incapacitated them, and each remaining soul allowed a player to return to battle with a full life gauge. It also eschewed the typical multiple-round format in favor of each player having a limited stock of 'souls'. Guilty Gear Isuka prominently allowed up to four simultaneous players in battle, as well as the option to divide the characters into teams.
The series' emphasis on speed and technicality and introduction of unique movement options such as an 'air dash' would ultimately become the foundation for the 'anime' subgenre of fighting games. In the case of timed matches, the player with the most remaining life when time runs out is the victor of that round.
Players are tasked with depleting their opponent's life gauge by utilizing attacks unique to each playable character.
Guilty Gear consists primarily of one-on-one competitive battles.