Exteel

"This game TOWERS over Gundam..."

Well, the game at least. There is no Exteel anime. You might get blown off your computer chair when you first play Exteel. I tell you, it's a GREAT game for your computer if you have lot's of space. It is a 3rd person Mecha shooter (weird name huh?) which is a good game to play in your extra time. A little background, the game was made by the NC company, who also made other games like Tabula Rasa, Lineage and City of Heroes/Villains, which are all relatively popular. Since these are all nice games, you can say that Exteel is too. Don't believe me? Read on.

There are 5 game modes to choose from, all of which nets you Credits and EXP (experience points needed to Level Up). First is Capture the Flag. You are on one team and what you have to do is run to the enemy base and obtain their flag. Once you do that, you have to get back to your base as quickly as possible and bring the obtained flag there. You should be fast or else your enemy can destroy your mech. It's kinda like a Player vs. Player (PvP) but destroying the mechs of the other team isn't the main objective. Second is Deathmatch. It's basically a pure PvP where every player is your enemy. Third is Team Deathmatch. The difference with this and Deathmatch is that you have teammates who can help you defeat the other team. Fourth is Territory Control, where again, the objective isn't to destroy the mechs of the other team, but rather "occupy" their "Aerogates" or bases in general. And lastly, Last Stand. It's not a PvP but you're put up against AI-controlled Drones which will do anything in their power to "occupy" your Aerogates. You have to defend your two Aerogates and make sure the Drones don't occupy it or else you lose. During a Last Stand match, there are a lot of things you can do to increase the overall points the team earns. These include destroying enemy Bombers, destroying "Saboteur" Drones, destroying the enemy base (called a Dudley Annihilator), and much more.

The game has a Store where you can buy Parts and weapons for your mech. Parts are classified into 5, the Head, Core, Arms, Legs and Booster. These 5 parts play an essential role in your success in battle. The weapons are quite unusual but somewhat unique. Ranging from siege weapons from Tommy guns and spears, you can say that you have a whole array of weapons to choose from to beat the enemy. In the Store, there are other stuff you can buy such as Paint (to color your mech and make it look cooler) and Skills, powerful attacks that can be executed by equipping the right weapons.

The parts you buy have a stat called "Durability". The value of Durability means how long the part will last. When Durability reaches 0, the part cannot be used, but it can be repaired and used again by using "Repair Points" bought in the Store.

There is a micro-payment system used in the game called the "NCcoin". These NCcoins can be bought for $1 for 100 NCcoins. These NCcoins are used to buy better parts for your mech. But personally, I think it's a waste of money since not all NCcoin-purchasable items are good.

When you Level Up, you are given "Pilot Points" which are used to upgrade your stats such as HP or Move Speed.

What's the story? There is no story BUT there are three nations at war (Palamo, Marston and Ayer) which imply that the story is there is a war between the nations and that you are a mercenary. My guess is, during a Last Stand match, you are being hired to destroy enemy forces and you get money, well, in my opinion at least. For me, it seems that Last Stand is somewhat canonical (if you see the game's opening movie, the mechs are fighting the Drones seen in Last Stand).

The graphics in-game are spectacular! How the mech looks, the weapon textures and every pixel look amazing. Even the backgrounds, ranging from snowy mountains to a desert, you'd feel like you're REALLY fighting in that place.

Same with the musical score and sound effects. There is no real original soundtrack in Exteel but the orchestral arrangement in the opening movie and when you're not in battle sound really cool. There is a very little flaw which is the sound effects. In the game's opening, the guns firing sound really really cool, but when you fire a weapon similar in the game's opening, it dosen't sound like so. I expected something much better but hey, the sound effects aren't that bad. Not like you'll die because of it. :P

So what now? Are you convinced that this is a great game and well, better than Gundam (the game at least, not anime...)? If so, you can download the installer from the Exteel website. Just make sure you have at least 1GB free space on your PC!

Happy gaming! :3

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/10/08, Updated 11/11/08

Game Release: Exteel (US, 12/04/07)