Girls’ Frontline 2: Gameplay, release date, controversy and more

Girls' Frontline 2 (GFL2) has become one of the most anticipated upcoming gacha games, thanks to the popularity of its predecessor, Girls' Frontline. The game has recently started sharing pieces of information, including a new key visual, on its social media platforms and website launched in mid-July and quickly gaining interest from fans worldwide.

Check out what's already known about Girls' Frontline 2 recapped by esports.gg below.

Girls' Frontline 2 — announced with Girls' Frontline 2: Exilium as its official title —  is a 3D role-playing strategy game developed for PC and mobile by MICA Team, the same studio that created the original game. Despite being a sequel, Girls' Frontline 2 is reportedly to run alongside the original Girls' Frontline game rather than to replace it.

While there's not much information announced yet, the official X (Twitter) has been introducing the game's key characters (referred to as Tactical Dolls or T-Dolls in the Girls' Frontline universe) one by one, with Gronza as its main promotion girl. They also share other information, such as region and faction, that will be essential to the gameplay.

Girls' Frontline 2 has not officially shown its gameplay footage, but the community can take a look at the Chinese version launched in late December 2023. The game will mainly feature a turn-based strategy combat gameplay similar to XCOM,

Based on footage from the Chinese version, the game will adopt similar gameplay to its original game. It will mainly involve the acquisition of T-Dolls through gacha mechanics, collecting resources to empower them, and using them to complete combat missions.

Players can assemble T-Dolls they own into squads known as echelons and send them onto the battlefield. The combat is largely automated, but players can manually move their T-Dolls around and activate their skills.

Additionally, the game is polished with RPG elements, such as interacting with T-Dolls, dressing them up with collectible cosmetics, as well as decorating the dormitory.

Girls' Frontline 2 global platforms were first launched on 18 July 2024, with the game announced as "Coming Soon". There is no official update regarding the global launch release date at the time of writing, but several sources mention the game to be launched later this year.

The game was first announced as a 3D game on 18 May 2018 during the livestream for Girls' Frontline's second anniversary with the full title "Girls' Frontline 2: Exilium" revealed on 15 May 2020 during MICA Team's 4th-anniversary stream.

The game received a first closed beta test from 29 June to 3 July 2021 and a second from 18 to 31 October 2021. On 13 May 2022, a second trailer was released on Weibo alongside new gameplay videos and a new character reveal.

The official preregistration website for the China server was launched on 28 April 2023. The fourth beta test and first open beta took place from 28 September to 12 October 2023 on Android and PC, with the game launched exclusively in China on 21 December 2023.

While the worldwide community is enthusiastic about the launch, Chinese fans have recently shown dissatisfaction with the server's state, resulting in the game's low ratings and revenue in the mainland.

The game's Chinese version is recently been review bombed with one-star reviews on BiliBili (with a 5.4/10-star rating at the time of writing), with the majority complaining about the poor gacha rates and lack of ways to gain premium currency for free.

Bugs that are being left unfixed are also mentioned as one of the reasons players are starting to lose interest. The game's turn-based combat is considered niche and doesn't appeal to the Chinese market, with some describing the gameplay as slow-paced and time-consuming.

But despite that, the game's initial announcement was well received by the global audience, and we do hope that the controversy will be solved before the global launch.

Stay tuned at esports.gg for further news regarding the Girls' Frontline 2 global launch.