 Review By: Nick Arvites |
Developer: | Omega Force |
| Publisher: | Namco Bandai / Koei | |
| Genre: | Action | |
| ESRB: | Teen | |
| # Of Players: | 1-2 | |
| Online Play: | Yes | |
| Accessories: | Xbox Live (online play), HDTV 720p |
Initially, each mode only offers three pilots each. In order to unlock other pilots or mobile suits, you need to beat the mode with a pilot. Every pilot unlocks someone else or other suits and has a different campaign mode (although they may run the same missions, the objectives are different). In addition, once you beat Official mode with a pilot, that pilot and his suit are available to go through Original Mode as well. This provides an unexpected amount of depth to the game.
The voice acting is on par with what you’d expect to hear if you watched the shows on DVD. The choice of an English dub or Japanese language with English subtitles is interesting, though I doubt many people outside of purists will go that route.
The only multiplayer available is in Versus Mode. Here, two players can duel each other in three different modes. One is head-to-head, another ropes the two players off as they kill AI enemies to gain power ups before they ultimately fight, and the third mode has players squaring off against AI suits in separate zones with the goal of keeping the AI presence under 50 (each suit killed goes to the other side). As you can see, the multiplayer experience is pretty weak, and there isn’t an option to co-op a campaign. Some form of multiplayer co-op would have been really nice, especially over Live. As it stands, this title really doesn’t utilize the service at all, and that’s a shame since it kills replay value.
I think my largest complaint is that the Official Mode only touches on the original three Gundam shows. I actually enjoyed the Official Mode far more than I enjoyed the Original Mode. The coherent story and dialogue works well, and I think it might work a little better if they would have included, well, shows that American audiences have actually watched and could recognize (read: Gundam Wing). I enjoy the original three shows, but I’m the exception to the rule. I wouldn’t have really minded not getting Original Mode if I would have gotten every show represented in Official Mode. While it is doubtful they’ll go the DLC route to do that, I’d be first in line to shell out my MS points to get more campaigns, suits, and pilots.
Bottom Line:
Like every other Dynasty Warriors game, potential players have to ask themselves if yet another version is worth the price of admission. There is a sense of fun in Dynasty Warriors: Gundam that channels old school "beat up everything on the screen" games. The problem is that the game does get really monotonous after a while, and the lack of any multiplayer options really harms potential replay value. Plus, many North American fans who aren’t Gundam fans and don’t have any knowledge of the original series may not really get as much enjoyment out of the game as people who are into it.
If you are a Gundam fan, this is your game. It captures the feel of combat in the shows, and it gives you an excuse to sit on the couch and massacre video game mobile suits for hours on end.
| Pros: | Cons: | Final Score: |
|---|---|---|
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| 7.0 |
Posted: 2007-10-23 15:27:40 PST