Bad Habits - Mobile Suit Gundam: Gundam Vs. Zeta Gundam - September 21 2005
There’s just something about giant robots battling in outer space as the fate of the Earth hangs in the balance that brings out the true geek in me. And if those giant robots are actually huge mechanized battle suits, piloted by angry heroes, all the better. Unfortunately, not every mecha title is created equal. While Bandai’s Mobile Suit Gundam: Gundam vs. Zeta Gundam may end up pleasing diehard fans of the anime series that gave rise to this particular franchise, people less familiar with the Japanese cartoon will probably find that this one falls a little flat.
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For starters, the plot elements of the game’s Universal Century mode (the campaign mode, for those not conversant in Gundam-speak) are weak. Rather than assuming the role of just one of the show’s main characters, you get to play as all of the series’ Gundam pilots. And while this may not seem like a negative at first — in fact, it probably leaves fans of the show psyched — this lack of focus means that you never really come to identify with any of the characters.
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What’s worse is that the game’s missions aren’t strung together by intervening cutscenes or dialogue sessions to help the non-Gundam fanatic understand what the hell is going on. Instead, the missions are laid out on a timeline, and players are left to choose between them with nothing more than a brief one- or two-line description to guide their decision.
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In addition, many of the missions are exactly the same. For instance, one mission may have you playing as show’s hero Kamille Bidan while he fights to defend a moon base. Another mission will have you defending the same base as one of Kamille’s wingmen. A third mission will have you defending the base yet again, but this time as yet another wingman. As you can see, the variety is dizzying.
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In the game’s defense, though, some of these repetitive missions do offer the chance to change history — at least as far as the TV show is concerned. If you play particularly well, a pilot who may have died in the anime series will instead survive, and you’ll be able to use him in later missions. Of course, since he’s sure to be flying the same missions as at least one or two other of the game’s characters, this doesn’t really open up any new challenges. Still, it is kind of satisfying, particularly, I imagine, if you’ve actually seen the episode where the poor sucker bought the farm.
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The other game modes really aren’t much better than the Universal Century mode. The training mode, for instance, doesn’t actually school you on how to better pilot your mecha or explain which Gundam is better; it simply gives you unlimited lives so you can continue battling until you’ve got the hang of things.
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The game’s one bright spot is all the unlockable bonuses, like audio and video clips, character profiles and mecha art. The more you play, the more gallery points you earn, which in turn you can spend on the extras. But if all you really care about is Gundam concept art, there’s got to be a better way to get it than spending $40 on an extremely mediocre mecha title.
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WHAT’S COOL: Piloting a giant mechanized battle suit; playing as all the different characters from the anime series; the wealth of unlockable bonus material.
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WHAT’S UNCOOL: The repetitive nature of many of the missions; the lack of cutscenes to help explain the plot; the lack of useful equipment stats.