Preview

Platform: PlayStation 3
Developer: Omega Force
Publisher: Namco Bandai Games America
Previewed by Justin Fassino on 2007-07-11

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. But maybe add a new coat of paint. That's the strategy for the upcoming Dynasty Warriors: GUNDAM, the joint effort between Namco Bandai Games and KOEI. Japanese gamers had no complaints with that; the title is still one of the best-selling PS3 games in the Land of the Rising Sun.

Just like any Dynasty Warriors game, you'll pick a character and battle through hordes of weak and mostly-dumb enemies while building skills and strength. Admittedly it feels strange playing a GUNDAM game in this genre; all the characters and enemies in the E3 demo "stood" on floating invisible discs while doing battle in orbit above a planet. This caused a dimensional sensation of a flat-plane that the Mobile Suits ran around on, when one would expect that Mobile Suits could fly in a full 360 degrees.

The enemies went beyond the usual dumb-as-bricks formula, too. In fact, they just stood there and took the punishment my Mobile Suit dished out without so much as lifting a laser rifle or beam sword. I was told the level I was playing was very early in the game, and the demo may have been running on easy mode, but one would hope that the game presents some sort of challenge in the final build.

DW: GUNDAM will sport three modes and feature chracters and Mobile Suits from six different GUNDAM series. Original mode features characters and mecha from Mobile Fighter G Gundam, Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, and other non-Universal Century series. Official mode will conatain content from Mobile Suit Gundam, Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam, and Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ. There's also an online mode.

Controlling your Mobile Suit is pretty simple: you can fly, jump, slash, and shoot with a single button-press. Character and enemy models are fairly detailed, but when they get destroyed they sort of fall apart and disappear in a very unspectacular fashion. The game is accessible to all types of players as it's really quite simple in scope, but that's nothing new for a Dynasty Warriors game.

DW: GUNDAM is scheduled for a fall release for both the PS3 and Xbox 360. GUNDAM fans should be at least moderately excited, as Namco admitted Mobile Suit Gundam: Crossfire, their PS3 launch window title, was not their best effort and are hoping that DW: GUNDAM will be a sweet, sweet make-up session.

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