Dynasty Warriors: Gundam

"Capturing the feel of the source materal. Koei and B-N have found a winner of a crossover."

Dynasty Warriors: Gundam is a game that is no stranger to controversy. A fair amount of debate has gone into its very existence. It is normally at this time that I go into an intro to my review of the game but I'd like to use this intro as a moment to try and explain some of this "conflict" to you the reader.

Koei, the makers of the Warriors franchise (hereafter referred to as DW for Dynasty Warriors), has typically been accused of not innovating on the genre they basically made. While it is true that there are few changes between versions on many different iterations, they have sometimes made a great stride forward in the series. What should be pointed out though is that this could really only happen on consoles due to the difficulty in producing "expansions" that some people hold as their beliefs of the DW sequels....as opposed to the PC market where such things are commonplace (and much much cheaper on the consumer). However, it could also be said that it may of been a bad business decision on the more blatant expansion style games because Koei has since developed a sort of infamous reputation amongst main-stream reviewers and sources....thus the generally low summary scoring that takes place on any of their games to this day. However deserved it may of been in the past, many feel that harboring such an opinion out of the box for a company removes objectivity that is a requirement as an unbiased reviewer.

In much the same way, but with different fundamental reasons, Bandai (now merged to become Bandai-Namco, hereafter referred to as B-N) has had the same issues with the Gundam franchise. The sole difference being that instead of complaints about a lack of innovation they have been more along the lines of lackluster and rushed (on a development front) design and gameplay. Yet they continued to release games (some of which being good but most having major issues).

As such, when you put them all together, you can see that there is cause for concern with this game. However, I personally feel that a game should stand on it's own merits and not of it's series or engine. Many mainstream reporting sites do not. Thus the current scores and the outcry from the fan base for not "printing fair and unbiased reviews".

This is not to say that DW:Gundam doesn't have its share of problem....but here I will present my open view and review on this newest entry (and spin-off) of the DW series.

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Story (6/10)

This game is actually split into two different story driven game modes (separate of course from verses mode which will be discussed later). As such, I'll break down each mode separately below.

Official Mode's Story is actually a series of vignettes and "what if..." scenarios coming out of the Universal Century (i.e. the main) canon and timeline. As such you are thrust into various key events from the string of different series that encompasses UC canon....with extra focus on the Zeta Gundam series due to more bits and battle references in game. Gundam the series has always been seen as a sort of space opera...and many times is referred to as the "Japanese version of Star Trek". It can be a bit overwhelming to follow the motivations and pacing if you are unfamiliar with it. However, the prevailing theme for any Gundam series (and thus any story mission in this game) is basically an anti-war story....with focus being placed on the horrors and toll of war on otherwise normal people (many times kids "growing up fast"). In terms of story in this mode, it's faithful and accurate to the source material and even the "What If..." missions remain true to the story's conjecture (such as what if Haman Karn successfully defended Grups 2 from both the Titans and the A.E.U.G. during Operation Maelstrom). Alot of credit can be put on the series original writers for making such a strong back-story but in the end it's just Koei hashing out a pre-existing story into game format. At least it's done correctly one could say....

Original Mode however is completely different.....This time you're given a story that a rogue planet is on a collision course with the Earth....and that it might be doing so by artificial means. Here, you are given people and mobile suits from not only the UC canon but also from the Wing Series and G Series spin-off canons. In most cases it's not explained why certain people are cooperating together (indeed, many combinations seem implausible in their very existence) or for that matter why many people are still even alive (if they had been killed off already in their respective canons) but nevertheless, you'll have different pilots team up with other ones and go against people who may of been at one time or another allies and friends. Original mode's story is weak in general save for giving reasons for people to fight each other. Do not buy this game if you're looking for a well written new story in the Gundam universe. This is more so a game aimed at how cool it would be to see for example the ZZ take on the Wing Zero in a big brawl with hundreds of other suits fighting around you.

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Graphics (7/10)

Outside of the fact that there is so much stuff going on the screen at one time, this title isn't pushing the hardware. However, the different units and suits look faithfully accurate. You can tell that the graphic designers were Gundam fans as every detail is perfect on all units, including the grunt type NPCs. The pilots themselves are done in a hand drawn fashion to reflect its anime origins. All the details when it comes down to stuff from the series have been impressively perfected. Sadly, if it's not something from the series it lacks the same level of polish such as landscapes. That's not to say that they are terrible as some of the battlefield locations are pretty well done and accurate (such as Core 3) but some are just very generic.

Weapon effects can be pretty impressive at times and you have to consider the fact that there's alot of them going on along with other units running around everywhere...and all at 60 FPS. It's quite a feat to say the least. Draw Distance is also quite far reaching and things come into view well before they are a factor in a combat situation. In the end it's a game that truly captures the feel of the Gundam series and it's sometimes massive battles that occur.

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Sound (8/10)

Music, while somewhat repetitive, is very much fitting in tune with the gameplay. It's typically a rock type of music with emphases is on Guitar riffs. Not grating at all and quite enjoyable while you're playing.

Voice Acting is also very good....usually. Most of the characters voiced in this game are in fact the original actors from their respective series. However, a couple of the English counterparts were not available (or were turning Koei down, it's unclear) to reprise their old roles. As such, you can pick up on who is who and who is not the real original actor or actress. Additionally, these replacements usually don't do the original works justice which is a bit disappointing. For the otaku fans, I can thankfully say that there is an option to have English or Japanese voice acting....should you be so inclined.

Sound effects, again like the music, can be repetitive but is otherwise very good. As long as there's stuff on the screen, you can usually hear the clanking of metal feet, laser blasts, and engines roaring pretty much wherever you go.

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Gameplay (8/10)

As is typical of any of the DW games or it's spin-offs, the gameplay focus is on one vs. many. One of the issues some complain about is that the grunt AI isn't up to snuff...and while nothing has changed you have to consider the fact that the term "grunt" doesn't usually mean "killer skills". It should be noted that when you fight a zone commander (more on that later) or an ace the AI does go up depending on the situation. However, it goes up in varying degrees. Typically a zone commander will only be slightly harder and aces can range from slightly harder to insanely fast in it's reaction time.

Another complaint by many is that it's in essence a "button masher".....and this is true. However, the game by it's nature implies that a certain amount of repetition would have to take place so let this not be unexpected to any who intend to give this game a go.

So, yes it is using the basic DW formula of gameplay but what it does do it does well. Units move around with fury smashing and blasting anything it their way. One of my legitimate gripes is that you can't manually target enemies with your projectile weapon (usually a gun) and that obstacles like buildings and even hills can prevent hits. Hopefully this is something that Koei can work out in the next one but keep in mind that longer range combat is a bit more wonky then melee. That melee combat though is instantly gratifying. You get a sense of power in everything you do.

There are three gameplay modes, two of which involves the aforementioned storylines (see above) and one is a straight multiplayer mode in split screen. Additionally, there is a gallery of the various different mobile suits, spaceships, characters, and voice clips that you can unlock as you go. The character roster is decent though a number of fan favorites were omitted. Same too on the mobile suit selection.

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Ultimately, this is going to be a game that caters to only two groups (and its crossover)....Gundam fans and DW fans. If you fall into either category then you more then likely already own this (unless you ran into the shortage problem that first came out, in which case do everything you can to get this as it's a fan service dream come true). If you are not however, then at the very least it's worth a rental. You might be surprised at just how much fun this can be.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 09/20/07

Game Release: Dynasty Warriors: Gundam (US, 08/28/07)