If you’ve spent any time at all in the fighting game community, you know that the lore of Guilty Gear is basically a fever dream written by someone who loves heavy metal and existential dread. At the center of this hurricane is one figure. A silhouette. A guy everyone calls That Man. For years, he was just a hooded figure in the endings of arcade modes, the ultimate "big bad" who seemed responsible for every single tragedy in the series. But honestly? Calling him a villain is kinda missing the point.
The history of That Man—or Asuka R. Kreutz, to use his real name—is a mess of good intentions and catastrophic failures. He didn't set out to destroy the world. He actually wanted to save it. But when you’re messing around with the fabric of reality and trying to outsmart a literal god-like entity, things tend to go sideways. Fast.
Why That Man Isn't the Monster You Think He Is
For the longest time, players hated this guy. And why wouldn't they? He's the one who turned Frederick Bulsara into Sol Badguy. He’s the reason the Gears exist—monstrous biological weapons that nearly wiped out humanity during the Crusades. If you look at the surface level, he’s basically the Dr. Frankenstein of the Guilty Gear universe, but on a global scale.
But here is the thing: Asuka was terrified.
He discovered the Backyard—a dimension of pure information that makes up our reality—and realized that a "Universal Will" was planning to reset humanity. Basically, a cosmic "delete" button. To prevent this, he created the Gears as a way to evolve humanity so they could survive the coming apocalypse. Was it a good plan? Probably not. Did it work? Sort of, but it cost millions of lives and turned his best friend into a grumpy, flame-wielding bounty hunter.
You've gotta appreciate the irony here. Sol Badguy spends decades hunting That Man for revenge, only to eventually realize that Asuka was doing the galactic equivalent of jumping on a grenade. It doesn't excuse the Gears, but it makes him way more interesting than your standard "I want to rule the world" bad guy.
The Gear Project and the Sin of Creation
The Gear Project started in the late 20th century. It wasn't just Asuka; it was a team. You had Asuka, Frederick (Sol), and Aria (who eventually became Justice). They were the "Original Three." When Aria fell ill with an incurable disease, Asuka didn't want to lose her. This is where the emotional core of the story lives. He didn't just turn her into a Gear to make a weapon. He did it to put her in stasis so he could find a cure later.
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It backfired. Hard.
The military got involved. The Universal Will interfered. Aria lost her mind and became Justice, leading the Gears in a hundred-year war against humans. Asuka took the blame. He leaned into the role of the villain, becoming That Man because he believed he needed to be the "devil" that humanity united against. It’s a classic trope, but Daisuke Ishiwatari (the series creator) weaves it so deeply into the music and the gameplay that it feels earned.
From Shadows to the Stage: Asuka R# in Guilty Gear Strive
For over twenty years, we didn't get to play as him. He was a plot device. A ghost. Then Guilty Gear -Strive- happened, and suddenly, he’s on the roster as Asuka R#. Well, technically, he's Asuka R. Kreutz, but the version we play in Strive is often a magical clone or a projection because the "real" Asuka is busy broadcasting a radio show from the moon.
Yes, the moon.
Playing as That Man is a nightmare for your hands. He doesn't play like Sol or Ky. He’s a "resource-management" character who uses a literal deck of spells. You aren't just punching people; you're managing mana, cycling through 26 different spells, and trying not to explode when your shield breaks. It’s the most "honest" representation of a wizard in a fighting game because he’s constantly juggling a million variables.
- Mana Gauge: If this hits zero, you take massive damage.
- Spell Cards: You have to "draw" them like a TCG.
- The Cube: His primary projectile that changes based on the spell.
Most characters in Strive are simplified compared to older games like Accent Core Plus R. Not Asuka. He’s arguably the most complex character Arc System Works has ever designed. If you see a high-level Asuka player, they aren't playing a fighting game; they're playing Magic: The Gathering at 300 beats per minute.
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Addressing the "Villain" Misconception
People still call him a murderer. Technically, they aren't wrong. The Crusades killed a huge chunk of the population. But in the lore of Guilty Gear, the alternative was total extinction. Asuka is a character defined by the "Lesser of Two Evils" philosophy.
He even allowed himself to be captured by the United States government (the "G4" summit) just to ensure that the threat of the Universal Will could be neutralized. He surrendered his power. He gave up his god-hood. He basically said, "I'm done being the boogeyman." This shift in Strive is why he's finally being seen as a tragic protagonist rather than a shadowy antagonist.
The Mystery of the "Other" That Man
Wait, there's more. Because it's Guilty Gear, nothing is simple. For a while, there was another guy—Happy Chaos.
Happy Chaos is actually the "Original," the man who taught Asuka magic in the first place. For a long time, the lore was a bit muddy on who was doing what. Chaos is the one who actually has the "evil" vibes down pat. He’s pure impulse. Asuka is pure logic. When you see fans debating about That Man, half the time they're actually confusing Asuka's actions with the chaos caused by his mentor.
Asuka wants order. He wants humanity to thrive. He's just really, really bad at the "social" part of being a savior.
How to Actually Fight Against Him (If You Value Your Sanity)
If you're jumping into Strive and run into an Asuka player, don't panic. He looks scary because of all the projectiles, but he’s a glass cannon.
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- Watch the Mana: If his blue bar is low, go aggressive. He can't block effectively without mana.
- Pressure the Draw: He has to manually "bookmark" or draw new spells. That's your opening.
- Don't Respect the Cubes: Some cubes can be swatted away. Learn which ones are "real" and which ones are just visual noise.
Honestly, the best way to understand That Man is to play him. You'll quickly realize how stressful it is to be the smartest guy in the room. One wrong move and you're dead.
The Actionable Truth: What to Do With This Info
If you’re a lore nerd, go back and watch the "Story Mode" in Xrd and Strive. Don't skip the "Library" or the "Glossary" sections. They contain the actual dates and specific events, like the destruction of Japan, which was Asuka's attempt to stop the Gear Justice from being summoned.
For the players? Stop treating him like a zoner. He’s a "setup" character. If you give him space, you lose. Close the gap. Make him panic. Make him run out of mana.
That Man spent centuries hiding in the shadows because he couldn't face the people he hurt. In Strive, he finally stepped into the light. Whether you forgive him for the Gears or not, you have to admit—the moon-radio-host-wizard is one of the most unique characters in gaming history.
Stop looking for a simple hero or villain in this story. There isn't one. There's just a man who tried to play god and realized too late that he was only human. If you want to master him, start by learning his "Test Case 3" deck. It’s the most balanced for beginners. Master the mana recharge cancel. Once you can do that without thinking, you're on your way to playing the lore-accurate version of the most hated, loved, and misunderstood man in the series.
Load up the training mode. Set the CPU to aggressive. See how long you can keep your mana up while cycling spells. That’s the real Guilty Gear experience.