All-Star Battle ★ Guido Mista
Mista makes his comeback in the PS3 title as a playable character and was confirmed for the game alongside Giorno, Kakyoin, and Polnareff.
Mista's entire moveset is based on his previous game appearance, as he uses Sex Pistols to deliver powerful shots and ricochet bullets at the opponent. Despite being one of the mass majority of playable characters in the game with the "Stand" Style, Mista cannot switch between movesets, nor does he have access to the Stand Rush ability. He shares this effect with Hol Horse and Diavolo. Instead, Mista's Style button triggers abilities that involve Sex Pistols, powering up the strength of his shots. Mista has 950 HP.
Command List
Exclusive to Mista are a Pistols Icon and Ammunition Icon above his Heart Heat Gauge. The Pistols Icon displays how many and which of Sex Pistols are readily available for use, and the Ammunition Icon displays the number of bullets left loaded in his cylinder out of six.
Sex Pistols enter Mista's gun, attaching themselves to the next bullet fired via "Gonna light you up!" and ricocheting the shot through the opponent upon contact, increasing the damage dealt and number of hits as well as imparting homing capabilities. The Stand will still ricochet the bullet even if the shot is successfully defended against, causing increased block-stun and Guard damage.
One input equates to one Pistol, and repeated inputs cause more Pistols to enter the gun at once, further enhancing the shot's damage, hit count, and homing power as the Stand passes the bullet to each other through the opponent. When this ability is used, the empowered bullet is shown flashing red in the Ammunition Icon.
This ability executes passively without action from Mista himself; This means it can be used while moving, in mid-air, and even in the middle of attacking. However, it cannot be used if "Places, everyone!" is already in effect.
Mista deploys Sex Pistols in the air, where they remain hovering and stationary. He may deploy one up to three at a time, depending on button input. This skill has a follow-up.
This ability can also be used while in mid-air, but it cannot be used if "Time to get to work!" is in effect.
Mista delivers a forceful push kick, striking the opponent in the leg and staggering them. This is a low attack that cannot be blocked standing, and a command normal that can chain into Mista's skills.
Mista instantly recalls any and all of the Sex Pistols that are in active with "Time to get to work!" or "Places, everyone!".
Any time Mista receives damage when his Ammunition Icon shows four bullets, he loses an amount of Heart Heat proportional to the damage taken as a panel of his face visibly panicking appears. This effect will continue until his bullet count changes.
Mista fires his gun, shooting a high-speed bullet that deals minor damage. The attack button inputted determines his aim. If used in the air, this skill suspends his fall and alters his possible firing angles. The gunshots can also strike a downed opponent. (Flash Cancel comboable)
Ground versions:
- Light (): Mista fires at an upward angle, allowing him to anti-air attack a jumping opponent.
- Medium (): Mista fires straight forward.
- Heavy (): Mista fires downward, making it easier to shoot a downed opponent.
Aerial versions:
- Light (): Mista fires straight forward, allowing him to challenge an opponent also in the air.
- Medium (): Mista fires at a diagonally downwards angle.
- Heavy (): Mista fires sharply downward, almost underneath him.
He may fire more shots at once with subsequent button presses, even firing at the other possible angles with the alternate attack buttons. If all six bullets land, the sixth shot will knock the opponent down.
- If the shots are fired normally with no assistance from Sex Pistols, the individual bullets will deal minimal damage.
- If "Time to get to work!" is in effect and Sex Pistols are attached to a bullet when it is fired, it will gain homing capabilities and deal drastically more damage depending on the amount of Pistols attached. To note, any subsequent shots after the initial one cannot be enhanced through Sex Pistols, merely tacking on small amounts of extra damage.
- Should any bullet incidentally come in contact with a Sex Pistol deployed with "Places, everyone!", it will automatically be redirected toward the opponent.
After "Places, everyone!" is used, Mista can fire a shot aimed at one of the deployed Sex Pistols. If there are multiple Pistols, they will pass the bullet(s) to each other, with the last Pistol kicking it at the opponent; Different inputs determine which of the Pistols he will fire at first and the order they will pass the bullet(s) amongst each other. If used in the air, this skill suspends his fall. Mista may fire more shots at once with subsequent button presses, even firing at other possible deployed Pistols with the alternate attack buttons; If all six bullets land, the sixth shot will knock the opponent down. Any Pistol that has redirected a bullet will return to Mista once he stops firing. (Flash Cancel comboable)
A shot passed through the deployed Sex Pistols deals much more damage than a standard shot fired via "Gonna light you up!". This skill also delays the landing of the bullet, and can potentially hit the opponent at unexpected angles. However, the damage does not increase past the first Pistol, making passing the bullet along additional Pistols serve to further delay the shot.
Due to the modular timing and delay offered by this skill, Mista may use it for unique purposes such as combo utility or even setting up an automatic combo-breaker if the opponent attacks while he's firing.
When out of ammunition, either of Mista's special skills that would shoot bullets will instead cause him reload his revolver, rapidly inserting each bullet individually. This action can be chained from those skills.
Consuming half of a Heart Heat Gauge, Mista can instantly reload by dropping the bullets from his hat directly into the open cylinder, reloading the bullets all at once. This skill can be used whether or not he's actually out of bullets.
Mista leaps forward in a flying knee-butt attack, knocking the opponent off their feet. This is Mista's only melee special skill. (Flash Cancel comboable)
- Light () or Medium (): The attack can activate Rush Mode, and gains brief strike-invulnerability during its start-up period, allowing it to function as a reversal.
- Heavy (): The attack executes noticeably slower and does not grant invulnerability, but instead becomes a middle attack that cannot be blocked crouching.
Mista grabs and holds the opponent as he roughly knees them in the torso, then kicks them away. If the backwards version is used, Mista elbows them in the back of the head after the knee instead.
Mista shoots a singular bullet, which is followed and broken into seven pieces by all six of the Sex Pistols kicking it at once. The pieces are launched at the opponent (similar to his attack on Sale) in a vertically fanning formation, dealing more damage the closer the opponent is.
This HHA deals most of its damage on the first hit, and as a successful Counter Hit doubles the damage of a single initial hit, the damage increase to the attack is massive compared to most other attacks in the game. Coupled with the attack's speed and range, it becomes an reliable tool for retaliation and punishment.
Mista rapidly fires off a full chamber of six bullets, while Sex Pistols carry each bullet toward the opponent, possessing some homing capabilities. If any one of them hits, Mista will take the opportunity to Quick Reload, dropping bullets from his hat cleanly into the cylinder chambers, and shoots another whole cylinder. Each bullet is then redirected and ricocheted by Sex Pistols multiple times, passing them to each other, as they hit the opponent from different angles. The attack finishes with the final bullet being ridden then kicked by all six Sex Pistols at once through the opponent's forehead at an incredible speed.
This GHA has the added passive effect of reloading Mista's Ammunition Icon.
Gameplay Overview
A highly specialized fighter, Mista revolves almost entirely around his revolver with very few other traits that do not involve shooting or usage of Sex Pistols. As such, he is a proper "zoner" character who performs well at any range with high-speed bullets pressuring an opponent from anywhere. Despite a limited skill quantity, he possesses excellent versatility in his abilities. Up close, Mista has a simple high-low mix-up technique with his available melee attacks that can service him well, one of said attacks being a quick reversal. He can combine different applications of his Stand with gunshots to alter the timing of offensive maneuvers and make himself unpredictable.
As "Time to get to work!" passively enhances his next gunshot and can be performed during most other actions, Mista's best combos involve multiple enhanced bullets. When his bullets being able to strike downed opponents is also taken into account, his can uniquely deal tremendous damage against both juggled and knocked-down foes alike with repeat, enhanced gunshots.
However, Mista is a very difficult combatant to play, with an awfully steep learning curve that makes him unsuitable for beginner players. His simplified set of skills betrays astounding depth that requires practice and proficiency to properly command. Achieving greater damage output with him also requires very tight combo execution, with constant Style button presses. More obviously, however, is his need to manage Ammunition and repeatedly Reload throughout the battle, and extra caution be taken to avoid the effect of "Unlucky Number 4".
Mista is a deeply technical and nuanced character. He cleverly wields both his gun and Sex Pistols to deliver surprise attacks both up close and afar, and is rewarded with the potential for massive damage. When the tide of battle is in his favor, he rarely gives his opponent the opportunity to openly strike, leaving them wary of his attacks' timing and angles.
Miscellaneous
Alongside the rest of Team Bucciarati (sans Narancia) and Ermes Costello, Mista is one of the only characters who activate Resolve Mode instead of the normal Rumble Mode when low on health. In this state, attacks that do not result in hard knockdowns or blow-backs no longer phase the character.
If Mista is fighting against Polnareff, they will have special dialogue, where Mista asks if the young Polnareff is the same wheelchair-bound man who becomes a turtle, while Polnareff merely wonders aloud if Sex Pistols is similar to Hol Horse's Emperor. Mista also has special dialogue with Hol Horse himself, wherein Hol Horse decides to see which one of the two is the faster gunman, a challenge that Mista accepts. If Mista wins, he'll note how funny of a guy Hol Horse is. If Hol Horse wins, he'll note that, unlike Mista, his bullets are also part of his Stand.