Mobile Suit Gundam vs. Zeta Gundam (GC/PS2)

There’s a port of Mobile Suit Gundam vs. Zeta Gundam for the Playstation 2 and the Gamecube, with the Playstation 2 receiving both an English and Japanese version. This review will apply to both since there’s very little difference between them outside of what the hardware entails (e.g. the GC version naturally has better loading times.)

Now for the skinny: Mobile Suit Gundam vs. Zeta Gundam is a third person action game based on Yoshiyuki Tomino’s iconic mecha franchise. The game puts you in control of a mobile suit, drops you and a partner in a large expansive stage, and pits you against enemy mobile suits.

The choice of mobile suits and armors is limited to the ones you’ll find on the original series, Zeta Gundam, Gundam ZZ, and the movie Char’s Counterattack. You won’t find any suits from the Gundam Wing or Seed franchises in here, and you won’t find any from the Unicorn series either even though that’s set in the same timeline.

Mitsume Ga Tooru/The Three Eyed One (NES/Famicom)

Mitsume ga Tooru is based on the same-titled manga and anime franchise from Osamu Tezuka. You play the role of the bald, three-eyed Hosuke Sharaku, who is supposed to be the last of his kind. The intro shows that another three eyed man named Prince Godaru invaded Sharaku’s city while riding on the ancient tank Gomorrah, Godaru then destroys a large part of the city and kidnaps Sharaku’s friend, Wato Chiyoko. From thereon, you play a sidescrolling/platforming action game similar to Mega Man, using Sharaku’s ability to shoot energy from his third eye and his ability to summon an ancient spear called the Akai Condor, which not only serves as a powerful offensive projectile, but also as an additional platform if you need to jump higher. There’s also a store that you can access at the beginning of each stage where you can buy upgrades for your health, weapons, etc.

Basically, if you enjoy Mega Man, you’ll enjoy Mitsume Ga Tooru. Especially because Mitsume ga Tooru isn’t punishingly difficult. There are a number of things that make it easier than even the least difficult Mega Man game, the most notable being the presence of a health bar, which means you don’t die from one hit. There’s room for mistakes in this game. The controls are fairly responsive and there’s no floatiness so it’s not difficult to do precision jumps despite Sharaku’s limited mobility. Besides, the Akai Condor will help you reach places beyond Sharaku’s jumping ability.

Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 Full Burst (PC)

If the title hasn’t made it clear yet, Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 Full Burst isn’t the first entry in the series. In fact, it isn’t the 3rd one either as the series goes way, way back as it traces its roots to the Clash of Ninja series on the Gamecube. However, it is worth tackling because it is the first one to be ported to the PC, which is amazing because the PC isn’t the platform of choice when it comes to fighting games and games based on anime/manga franchises. Yet here we are, UNS3FB for the PC, with UNS Revolution reportedly following suit.

The Story

Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 Full Burst is a 3D cel-shaded fighting game based on Masashi Kishimoto’s extremely popular shonen franchise, featuring a story mode that takes you from the first appearance of the masked man (spoiler: who claims to be Madara Uchiha but is eventually revealed to be someone else) all the way to the fourth great ninja war.

The progression of the story isn’t linear, as it uses flashbacks to tackle key points from the past (pre-timeskip stories are only addressed in flashbacks.) Additionally, the ending deviates from the story in the manga and anime, probably to give it a proper ending – which it can’t if it tries to remain true to the manga’s (which is still unfinished.)

SD Gundam Sangokuden Brave Battle Warriors: Shin Mirisha Taisen

SD Gundam Sangokuden Brave Battle Warriors: Shin Mirisha Taisen is an RPG action game for the Nintendo DS, which is based on the TV anime series BB Senshi Sangokuden: Brave Battle Warriors. As the SD prefix impies, the game depicts the Gundams in super deformed/comical style. Also, they’re living creatures instead of bipedal combat vehicles.

The closest comparison for SD Gundam Sangokuden Brave Battle Warriors: Shin Mirisha Taisen (a mouthful, innit?) is Tecmo Koei’s Warriors Orochi series series. Imagine if it was ported properly to the DS (gameplay is retained but graphics have been downgraded to accommodate the hardware) and given an SD Gundam theme.

The game follows the story of the TV anime and comes with over 40 playable characters, giving you the option to play 3 characters that you will switch between on every stage. As implied above, combat is similar to Tecmo Koei’s Warriors series, where you have a light and heavy attack, a jump, and a super (musou, brah.) attack that can be launched when a certain bar is filled.

Lupin Sansei - Densetsu no Hihou o Oe! (Super Famicom)

Don’t let the title and the intro fool you into thinking that this game requires you to understand Japanese - Lupin Sansei - Densetsu no Hihou o Oe! can be enjoyed by people who don’t speak a single word of Japanese. In fact, it can even be played by people who don’t speak a single word of any language. It’s an action platforming game akin to Rolling Thunder.

In Lupin Sansei - Densetsu no Hihou o Oe! you control the infamous thief and womanizer, Lupin. And while the story is lost on someone who can’t understand the pre-level cutscenes, the goal is still fairly obvious – either sneak or fight your way through a level using his ability to punch and kick, jump, crawl, and use a wide variety of tools that include a pistol, a flash bang, a whip, and probably more as the game progresses.

Dragon Ball Origins (Nintendo DS)

Dragon Ball Origins is a third person action adventure game in the same vein as Legend of Zelda, based on Akira Toriyama’s Dragon Ball manga and anime franchise. Note the absence of the “Z” prefix – this game is based on the early parts of the series, with a young Goku who exhibits powers and abilities above those of normal men, but not at the point where he shoots lasers that can level planets and move faster than the speed of light.

In a way, this is a good thing because this allows the game to focus more on exploration and challenging combat, because Goku doesn’t have the option to just Kamehame Wave every problem until it gets solved. As mentioned above – it’s a Zelda-like game so you’ll be fighting various cannon fodders, the occasional end level boss, and will be faced with various puzzles. There are a couple of frustrating parts in the game, as some levels that require backtracking, but the puzzles themselves aren’t too difficult and can be solved without the need for a FAQ.

Mobile Suit Gundam 00 (Nintendo DS)

The Nintendo DS isn’t exactly the handheld of choice if you want games based on the Gundam franchise, so Mobile Suit Gundam 00 should at least get points for bringing the franchise to Nintendo’s dual screen handheld. To wit, it’s the best action Gundam game on the DS, but that isn’t saying much considering that it’s the only one on the system (the Gundam Seed-based one was cancelled for who knows what reason.)

The game is Japanese-only, and can be text-heavy. Thankfully, the game itself is an air-combat-based shooter, so it doesn’t require an understanding of the story. And the menus and dialogue scenes can be navigated easily. Personally, I just pressed A like spastic madman until the giant-robot-shooting action starts.

Gameplay-wise, Mobile Suit Gundam 00 (Kidou Senshi Gundam 00) uses an engine similar to the one on the PS2, where you’re basically piloting an airplane shaped like a Gundam. There’s no ground combat, and while you do have a melee attack, it’s not as useful as simply shooting down everything that crosses your path. The fact that you’ll end up destroying enemies before they get close enough to recognize makes the game kind of lonely – you’re a lone Gundam shooting down various dark-colored shapes.

New Mobile Report Gundam Wing: Endless Duel (Super Famicom)

New Mobile Report: Gundam Wing: Endless Duel is a 1 on 1 Fighting Game based on the Mobile Suit Gundam Wing anime series. The game has never been released outside of Japan but it’s a fighting game so story isn’t really that important and the menus can be navigated easily. Endless Duel uses the same game engine as Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Fighting Edition, with a number of improvements that make it stand out as the significantly better game.

Gameplay

Basically, it’s the SNES’ version of Capcom’s Marvel Superheroes arcade fighter, with Mobile Suits as fighters instead of spandex-clad heroes; The stages are slightly narrower than your average fighting game, but the mobile suits can use their verniers to “fly” (basically a super jump) upward or dash forward.

The usage of the verniers are a big part of the game, because the suits – as expected of hulking pieces of metal – move a little bit slower compared to your average shotokan practitioner. The controls are responsive, mind you, there’s no lag or floatiness involved, but they walk and jump a little bit slow so if you want to get from one place to another, you use the vernier. Additionally, the ability to block while in the air makes the game more dynamic fast paced.

Kishin Douji Zenki: Batoru Raiden (Super Famicom)

Kishin Douji Zenki: Batoru Raiden (Demon Child Zenki: Battle Raiden) is a sidescrolling action platformer for the Super Famicom, based on the manga/anime series that ran from 1992 to 1996, which focuses on a demon guardian spirit who’s been sealed away by a powerful monk and later revived by the monk’s descendant in the form of a bratty demon child.

The game is in Japanese and there have been no English ports, but it’s hardly a point of contention because the game can be played without any need to understand the story - just go from point A to point B while killing every monster that blocks your path. But in case the story is important for you and you’re a big fan of the series, it is worth pointing out that the game diverts a lot from the source, presenting a simpler version of events (many important characters won’t be making an appearance, for instance.)

Dragonball Z: Shin Budokai 2 (PSP)

Akira Toriyama’s Dragonball Z franchise no longer require an introduction, so we’ll go straight to the introduction of Dragonball Z: Shin Budokai 2 (Dragonball Z: Shin Budokai Another Road in some regions) for the Playstation Portable.

As the title implies, Shin Budokai 2 is actually the second in a series of “Budokai”-style DBZ games on the PSP, but there’s no sense in reviewing the first one, because there’s nothing in it that isn’t included in Shin Budokai 2, which also included a ton of new content and several minor tweaks to the gameplay.

If you’ve played the Budokai games on the PS2, you’ll find Shin Budokai to be familiar ground. It’s basically a more streamlined version – combat is faster and controls are simpler. It’s easy to describe Shin Budokai as “Budokai-lite,” but it would be an unfair description because the PSP fighters brought a number of improvements to the table.

Rurouni Kenshin: Enjou! Kyoto Rinne (PS2)

Rurouni Kenshin: Enjou! Kyoto Rinne is a 3rd person action adventure game for the Playstation 2, based on Nobuhiro Watsuki’s popular manga and anime franchise, Rurouni Kenshin. The story follows the series closely, taking you from the start of the series (with Kenshin’s fight against Jin-E serving as the tutorial) all the way to Makoto Shishio’s defeat.

Let’s get this out of the way first: Rurouni Kenshin: Enjou! Kyoto Rinne is quite possibly the best Rurouni Kenshin title to date (even besting the two PSP fighters) when it comes to adapting the series into game format. However, it can also be inaccessible to people who can’t read Japanese, despite being an action title. The reason lies in the fact that the fights are framed by a story mode that requires you to walk around town and talk to people, with some parts of the story requiring you to talk to the right NPC and say the right thing in order to advance. Saitou Hajime’s story mode, for instance, will stump non-Japanese speakers because it requires you to solve a murder mystery.

Thankfully, there are translations and FAQs floating all over the net, or if you just want to unlock the survival and boss rush mode, you can just download/copy a save with all the characters unlocked (since the game is playable on PCSX2, this becomes an easy task.)

When it comes to gameplay, once you get past the story parts, you can start enjoying the meat of the game. As mentioned above, it’s a third person action game that puts you in control of either Himura Kenshin, Saitou Hajime, or Sanosuke Sagara (with Aoshi Shinomori also available as an unlockable character.)

Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenkaku Romantan Kansen (PSP)

While technically a full-blown sequel to Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenkaku Romantan Saisen, Kansen is basically the same game with an updated roster and a few minor tweaks under the hood. This means two things: first is that there is no longer any need to get Saisen if you don’t have it yet because there’s nothing in it that isn’t in Kansen and second, there’s no longer any need to go over the basics in this review. You can check out my old review of Saisen for the specifics on the game. This time we’re going to focus on the changes that Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenkaku Romantan Kansen brings to the table.

Graphics-wise, there’s nothing different. It’s still the same engine and you won’t notice anything different other than the new menu and characters. The same goes for the audio side of things (again, refer to the Saisen review for details).

Content-wise, there are tons of welcome changes. The roster was already decent for a fighting game in the previous game, but now they’ve added several more without removing any of the previous playable characters.

The new additions include some odd choices, like Okita Souji, who only appeared in the series during a flashback. There are also some characters added from the Reflection OVA, such as Kenshi’s estranged son Kenji and the teenaged version of Yahiko. As expected, you have to unlock most of the characters first. If you have a savefile from Saisen, you’ll automatically unlock some of the old hidden characters as well as get a certain amount for upgrading the weapons.

Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Impact (PSP)

Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Impact is a 3rd person crowd-brawling game for the PSP, following Kizuna Drive and Akatsuki Rising. The main difference between Ultimate Ninja Impact and its predecessors, besides tweaks under the hood and roster updates, is the use of cel-shading in order to provide anime-like visuals.

For the uninitiated, 3rd person crowd-brawling games give you a character, an expansive stage to run around in, and waves upon waves of enemies that you have to wipe out. Sometimes you also get a boss fight at the end. If you’ve ever played any of Tecmo Koei’s –Warriors series of games, then you know what crowd brawler game is like. Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Impact is basically like that – Dynasty Warriors with Naruto Shippuden themes.

The bad things first, because they’re few and far in between: the game is lengthy and takes you from the rescue Gaara arc all the way to the Ninja summit, but once you’ve finished the story mode, the extra missions won’t be that appealing.

There is a tendency for the combat itself to be repetitive, but this is more a flaw of the genre than the game. I mean, crowd brawlers by design will have you fighting tons of cannon fodder over and over again; complaining about it is like complaining that water is too wet. Lastly, the extra modes, as mentioned, isn’t that different from the story mode so there’s very little incentive to take them on once you’ve had your fill of the main game. It would have been better if they included a 1 on 1 vs mode against the CPU.

Now we get to the good parts: