This game is a collection of several other Gundam Side Stories (Cross Dimension, Blue Destiny, Rishe from the Ashes, Lost War Chronicles, Zeonic Front, Encounters in Space) plus Missing Link, a new game.
All previous games have been brought in line with this new one, and this could be a huge problem...but everything in order.
There's a story mode, divided between EFF and Zeon campaigns. Both start with Missing Link, all other games locked out. EFF and Zeon campaigns can be tackled independently, they tie in with each other, but from what I've played the Zeon campaign starts off at the beginning of the One Year War while the EFF roughly halfway.
Missions so far had only one objective, "destroy everything until enemies (or time) run out". In a mission, you squad is composed by up to three MS, each with its own weapon loadout; unfortunately, MS and weapons available are designed by the mission, and the briefing screen only exists to list objectives and to let you see your equipment. The briefing itself is extremely basic, with a scrolling text giving a modicum of backstory and the aforementioned list of objectives.
The MS in your squad are lives of sort, as when one has been destroyed, you take control of one of the remaining MS; the downed MS is out of action for 40 seconds, after which it reenters battle with a lower maximum health. The cycle continues until a MS no longer has health, and this time it's out for the remainder of the mission.
It's also possible to jump at any moment to an other MS via the d-pad, but battles are chaotic and it takes a crucial two-three seconds to fully undestand where you are, what you are targeting, and to readjust to the different weapons.
If you are in the squad leader's MS, you can also issue orders to you squad mates; orders available are support and attack, and it's only possible to swap between these two behaviours; issuing an order consumes one Action Point, and APs are gathered by killing enemies.
So far, I've completely ignored orders, as the AI is bad. Both allies and enemies can get struck in the scenery (like MS not being able to jump out hip-high water trenches, or tanks driving straight into the sea...and surviving that), and in one mission I was used for target practice while my allies where standing idle trying to jump past a trench. In one other, an enemy (a boss, nonetheless) constantly charged in a straight line against my artillery MS, which was able to knock it down (and back) nullifying any effort to get near.
To give the AI some credit, the terrain isn't exactly easy to navigate: I got struck while trying to access a bridge, every kind of building is impassable and indestructible (even pylons for electrical lines), natural walls that look too steep to climb can be climbed, and so on. Most mission areas are relatively flat, but this is not exactly an excuse for this kind of sloppy environment.
Controls are responsive and easy: triangle, square, and circle are each tied to a weapon (infinite ammo, but with recharge times between shots and clips), x to jump, the d-pad to swap MS (left and right), issue orders (down) and activate the EXAM system(up), L1 for the shield and switch to a weapon's special attack, R1 for locking. Left analog stick for movement and right for camera control.
The locking mechanic takes a bit to get used to. Pressing R1 will lock onto the enemy in your crosshair, which is always in the center of the screen, too bad that it's essentially invisible in all situations due to its size and colour. After an enemy has been destroyed, the lock automatically transitions to the next enemy, which is invariably the least menacing one behind you, so it's better to use R1 trying to lock what's in front of you...maybe you'll actually lock on what you want. This is particularly frustrating when trying to pick out a specific target among others (like the bridge of a warship among its turrets), and as weapons are linked to the face buttons, it's not possible to go full manual for aiming; lock-on also work as a rangefinder for you weapons, so you are essentially struck with it.
Visuals are a mixed bag, to be generous. MSs look great, and for example Zaku II are modelled after Real Grades, with a lot of junction lines and details, but once you get something to cast a shadow on them, you'll notice how shadows are pixellated. Everything else look very bad, from supporting vehicles, to the terrain, to any building. If not for the high resolution, the visual would look straight out of a PS2. The interface is bland as well, and it's nowhere near the great work that From Software did for Unicorn.
Speaking of Gundam Unicorn, Missing Link has a set of VR missions, where you chose one mission and the MS that form your squad. Unlike Unicorn, however, it's not possible to select pilot, MS, and main weapon, as everything is tied to the chosen MS.
You can select MSs from those bought with points rewarded at the end of each mission, and so far, I've got so many points to buy out all available MSs and still got a ton to spare. I think you can also increase a MS' level with those points, but I'm still working my way through the interface.
VR missions do not differ from campaign missions, though there are some escort duties among these.
So far Missing Link failed to impress, and thinking that all other games have been brought to this standard, I wonder how Zeonic Front have been mauled. For those not knowing, Zeonic front is an unique take on Gundam games, it's still an action game, but it was the first where you had a full set of orders for your mates, combat was much more tactical, and the briefing (which included a planning phase) was as important as the mission itself.
Let's see how everything turns out.
All previous games have been brought in line with this new one, and this could be a huge problem...but everything in order.
There's a story mode, divided between EFF and Zeon campaigns. Both start with Missing Link, all other games locked out. EFF and Zeon campaigns can be tackled independently, they tie in with each other, but from what I've played the Zeon campaign starts off at the beginning of the One Year War while the EFF roughly halfway.
Missions so far had only one objective, "destroy everything until enemies (or time) run out". In a mission, you squad is composed by up to three MS, each with its own weapon loadout; unfortunately, MS and weapons available are designed by the mission, and the briefing screen only exists to list objectives and to let you see your equipment. The briefing itself is extremely basic, with a scrolling text giving a modicum of backstory and the aforementioned list of objectives.
The MS in your squad are lives of sort, as when one has been destroyed, you take control of one of the remaining MS; the downed MS is out of action for 40 seconds, after which it reenters battle with a lower maximum health. The cycle continues until a MS no longer has health, and this time it's out for the remainder of the mission.
It's also possible to jump at any moment to an other MS via the d-pad, but battles are chaotic and it takes a crucial two-three seconds to fully undestand where you are, what you are targeting, and to readjust to the different weapons.
If you are in the squad leader's MS, you can also issue orders to you squad mates; orders available are support and attack, and it's only possible to swap between these two behaviours; issuing an order consumes one Action Point, and APs are gathered by killing enemies.
So far, I've completely ignored orders, as the AI is bad. Both allies and enemies can get struck in the scenery (like MS not being able to jump out hip-high water trenches, or tanks driving straight into the sea...and surviving that), and in one mission I was used for target practice while my allies where standing idle trying to jump past a trench. In one other, an enemy (a boss, nonetheless) constantly charged in a straight line against my artillery MS, which was able to knock it down (and back) nullifying any effort to get near.
To give the AI some credit, the terrain isn't exactly easy to navigate: I got struck while trying to access a bridge, every kind of building is impassable and indestructible (even pylons for electrical lines), natural walls that look too steep to climb can be climbed, and so on. Most mission areas are relatively flat, but this is not exactly an excuse for this kind of sloppy environment.
Controls are responsive and easy: triangle, square, and circle are each tied to a weapon (infinite ammo, but with recharge times between shots and clips), x to jump, the d-pad to swap MS (left and right), issue orders (down) and activate the EXAM system(up), L1 for the shield and switch to a weapon's special attack, R1 for locking. Left analog stick for movement and right for camera control.
The locking mechanic takes a bit to get used to. Pressing R1 will lock onto the enemy in your crosshair, which is always in the center of the screen, too bad that it's essentially invisible in all situations due to its size and colour. After an enemy has been destroyed, the lock automatically transitions to the next enemy, which is invariably the least menacing one behind you, so it's better to use R1 trying to lock what's in front of you...maybe you'll actually lock on what you want. This is particularly frustrating when trying to pick out a specific target among others (like the bridge of a warship among its turrets), and as weapons are linked to the face buttons, it's not possible to go full manual for aiming; lock-on also work as a rangefinder for you weapons, so you are essentially struck with it.
Visuals are a mixed bag, to be generous. MSs look great, and for example Zaku II are modelled after Real Grades, with a lot of junction lines and details, but once you get something to cast a shadow on them, you'll notice how shadows are pixellated. Everything else look very bad, from supporting vehicles, to the terrain, to any building. If not for the high resolution, the visual would look straight out of a PS2. The interface is bland as well, and it's nowhere near the great work that From Software did for Unicorn.
Speaking of Gundam Unicorn, Missing Link has a set of VR missions, where you chose one mission and the MS that form your squad. Unlike Unicorn, however, it's not possible to select pilot, MS, and main weapon, as everything is tied to the chosen MS.
You can select MSs from those bought with points rewarded at the end of each mission, and so far, I've got so many points to buy out all available MSs and still got a ton to spare. I think you can also increase a MS' level with those points, but I'm still working my way through the interface.
VR missions do not differ from campaign missions, though there are some escort duties among these.
So far Missing Link failed to impress, and thinking that all other games have been brought to this standard, I wonder how Zeonic Front have been mauled. For those not knowing, Zeonic front is an unique take on Gundam games, it's still an action game, but it was the first where you had a full set of orders for your mates, combat was much more tactical, and the briefing (which included a planning phase) was as important as the mission itself.
Let's see how everything turns out.
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