SD Gundam: Battle Alliance review

The paradoxes of time collide in SD Gundam: Battle Alliance

There are not a few sagas, especially those from Japan, that take advantage of the attraction of their protagonists to create spin off alternates with the characters super deformed (or “heads”, to understand us). Franchises like Final Fantasy, Street Fighter or even TV series like Avatar have undergone these changes, providing a more childish and fun tone. Ditto for the Gundam saga which for 15 years of broadcasting has benefited from an alternative version thanks to SD Gundam. Although on this occasion, instead of being simpler for the little ones in the house, it followed a few very different paths with several timelines with different story arcs.

Is it universal or post-disaster?

Of course, the game based on the series was not going to be less. SD Gundam: Battle Alliance picks up the show’s baton by keeping these temporary arcs, and thus access all the bits that have appeared in their time. A product completely fan service which will be a delight and pleasure for those who grew up with Amuro Ray, Agar and company. Of course, to give a little more “shisha” to the plot, for this game there are breaks in time that produce alternate versions of important events that we know from the original anime.

bandai namco y ARTDINK were responsible for giving life to the moving suit What do we see in this title? We are in front of a Action RPG very particular, where we will have to manage our mecha and that of our allies very well to find a good balance in combat. And although this may seem like a simple control proposition, we will see that As the phases progress, complexity invades the battlefield.

In search of real missions

As I mentioned above, SD Gundam: Battle Alliance is a tribute to all timelines and the locks that appeared. We will be one of those pilots, but for a temporary break, We will see you teleported to the G universe, where all temporary anomalies are handled. From this center of operations, we will have to return normality to each universe, and to do that, we will have to close these breaks in time and fight in the true line of events.

The concept may seem interesting, because it could be a very interesting resource for present at the moving suit the most representative of each arc. Sadly, it all gets bogged down in a jumble of names, places, wars, and events that will only be readable by the most hardcore anime fans. Come on that either you’re up to date or you won’t know anything.

gun friends

Our pilot must perform a series of missions, all with a similar cut. Accompanied by two other allies (controlled by the machine or by other users thanks to the multiplayer mode), we will have to fulfill the objectives set for us. In general, it’s always usually to end the mobile suits which are scattered along the way until you reach the rival mecha at the end of each screen. Once the mission is completed, we will return to the base with new materials and parts that will allow us to unlock new mobile suits and power-ups.

Although little by little we will unlock a listing important of wicks, they can all be classified into three groups. The snipers they will be good at attacking from afar, the rebels they will be skilled in hand-to-hand combat, and SUV They will be the most ambivalent. Although each class can condition our fighting style, the reality is that the whole game is governed by the same criteria when it comes to eliminating enemies.

lead and steel

No matter what mecha we control, his attack disposition will always be the same. We will be able to attack with our sword with a weak blow and a strong blow, then we will have three special attacks that are usually long distance. And this pattern does not change at any time. We can change the type of weapon, the special attacks, but the “modus operandi” will remain intact from the beginning to the end of the adventure. And that, in missions that are always the same over the long term, it can become boring.

It’s a shame that SD Gundam: Battle Alliance takes the story too far, chaining everything together, and instead leaves the other realms flat. The idea of ​​acquiring new Mobile Suits, or parts to customize your own mecha seems super good to me. But if in the end everyone is relegated to very similar functions, he loses all the grace.

In the end, the strongest enemies will not be defeated by a better ability of our robot, or by having certain facets that we unlock and that are decisive for victory. Everything is governed by our robot level and the damage we can receive and inflict. Yes, the gun instead of two shots ends up releasing four. But basically everything is handled the same way.

Sparks without sparks

The visual aspect also does not help to get involved in the action. Besides the fact that we will repeat domains over and over, many of them they are demarcated and I find them empty of enemies and on-screen objects. Plenty of space for little robot. And areas with buildings have a kind of unnatural way of collapsing. In this context, SD Gundam: Battle Alliance has lost a very good opportunity to do work where particles, light effects and textures shine with their own light. At least the illustrations, characters, and designs of the mobile suits are very well recreated, and unwittingly take away some nostalgia.

The reverse happens with the sound aspect. There is an exhaustive care in which the music puts us in the action, as well as the voices. Fortunately for us, the game is fully translated into our language, a gesture of gratitude for not losing us even more with its temporary turns. By the way, as in several titles, the protagonists will have long conversations as we fight. And some of those conversations will be important to the plot, so we better keep one eye on the text and one on the enemy…

Conclusion of SD Gundam: Battle Alliance

BANDAI NAMCO and ARTDINK bring to light a classic anime saga that speaks directly to the most hardcore fans of these mobile suits “flattened”. Under an action RPG premise, we’ll control the mecha that made the series great, in a clear homage that touches all timelines. In fact, it’s so immersive in the saga and its breaks between time arcs that if you don’t have a general idea of ​​the traditions who distills the series, you may not be aware of what is happening on screen.

Combat can be simple, yet satisfying. Too bad the mechanics weren’t exploited a little more with a greater variety of weapons or accessories that radically change the behavior of our mecha. In the end, it all comes down to upgrading your mobile suit phase after phase, and that can be a burden. At least it has an online co-op mode with which to blast enemy mechs with co-workers, which makes SD Gundam: Batlle Alliance earn a lot of points.