GameHaven

Well, here it is! After receiving my free copy in the mail (courtesy of Romeo Corsi- thanks!), I eagerly booted up my PS3, popped in the disc, sat back, and prepared to see how the retail version fared. The demo was, to put it plain and simple, total crap. I expected the retail version to be better, and to my delight, it is. It’s not going to win any awards, other than best Gundam game ever made, but it is enjoyable for a little while.

REVIEW
Dynasty Warriors: Gundam
Hack and Slash
Retail

Playing the demo, I never planned to play this game. Going into the game, I was curious to see if Namco Bandai go fix what had been a colossal mess. And, in fact, they did. This is a mildly-entertaining game, but is better for casual players. With missions lasting from about 15 to 20 minutes, and a recommended playing time of about a mission or two, the game can last quite a bit, but is horrible for extended play times.

The gameplay is practically unchanged: mash the attack button, use boost to dodge when you need to, and when your meter fills up, use a special attack. Sound fun? If it does, this is the perfect game for you!

Even so, destroying hordes of enemies is actually entertaining for a mission or two. Periodic boss battles and quick cinematic sequences break up the gameplay and it’s nice overall.
There’s three gameplay modes: Original, Official, and Two Player.

Original takes the characters from the G Gundam series and puts them in a new story line following a new planet set to collide with Earth. You can choose from three pilots, each with a different Mobile Suit and different missions. Official follows the original Gundam characters going through events from the TV series. Again, three pilots from the outset.

The pilots are diverse enough to offer different experiences and levels, and its fun to switch between pilots, playing different levels.

Two Player is a nice change of pace, allowing you to do a split screen battle against one another or see who can kill more baddies in single player. It’s fun, but the battles are very hard due to low starting health and I haven’t gotten a chance to try the killing challenge yet.

However, the game does get repetitive and I highly recommend not playing for more than a mission or two at a time. Doing more will quickly get tiresome and you’ll come to hate the game.

Graphically, the game has not changed, and still looks like an early PS2 game. C’mon Namco, how can this even remotely pass for next-gen? While I admit the character models are nice, looking like accurate three dimensional representations of their TV characters, the surrounding environments are bland and ugly. Special attacks look nice, however, but are truly nothing special. The lip-syncing is better now, but if you look realy closely, you’ll notice it’s still a bit off. However, there is one highlight: the character briefings. Whenever you’re being briefed for a mission, all speaking characters are shown as nice, crisp 2D images. But overall, trust me; the visuals of this game do it no good.

Soundwise, the game has improved a bit. The voice acting is better, although it could still be better and some of the dialogue is downright awful. The music is also noting special, and you’ll quickly forget how it sounds. The sound effects are good enough that they work, but I’m not going to mince words- they could use a tune up as well.

Overall, the game is enjoyable when played in portions or with a friend, but will not appeal to the hardcore gamer crowd. For Gundam/Dynasty Warrior fans, this is a dream come true, but for the rest of us, the high repetitiveness and low quality graphics and sound make this game warrant only a rental. Try before you buy, folks.

CLOSING NOTES
-Fun gameplay, but gets repetitive quickly
-Best played a mission or two at a time
-PS2 quality graphics (if that)
-Mediocre voice acting with forgettable music and effects
-Niche title; try before you buy