Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme Vs-Force

Gundam is pretty big in Japan, literally 59-feet-big. Such a storied franchise has plenty of anime, manga, novels, and of course, video games to carry on it’s now 35 year legacy. One of the most popular game franchises being the Gundam Vs series that grew into mass popularity in Japanese arcades and home consoles. Unfortunately not many of these titles ever made it outside of Japan, and the rest of the world has had to tide their Gundam love with the Dynasty Warriors line of games, but no more. Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme Vs Force will be the first Vs game since the PlayStation 2 era to hit Western shores. The game is already out in Japan though, released at the tail-end of the holiday season.

Extreme Vs Force is a rather simplified version of the Extreme Vs titles that have been released before it. Move sets for various Mobile Suits have been cut to fit into a constraint that doesn’t need to exist, the PSP Vs game was able to handle keeping a similar style to the arcade game just fine, but for some reason having a few extra specials is just too much for Force to handle. There’s more to it than that though, Extreme Vs Force feels less like a Vs game and more like a spin-off. The main game mode is called “Force Mode,” so main that it’s the only mode. Extreme Vs Force lacks an arcade mode, free play mode, or training mode and instead puts all its emphasis onto mission mode.

Force mode breaks its missions into two types: “Versus” and “Force.”

Versus missions play out much like previous Vs games. Two sides composed of either 1 or 2 Mobile Suits battle it out in a small arena and deplete their opponent’s score to 0 by destroying the enemy robot. All Mobile Suits have a cost and that cost is subtracted from the 6000 life total of the team each time they fall. By using proper spacing and learning how to make use of various cancel and dash maneuvers, players can quickly eliminate threats on the enemy team and grab a victory.

Force missions feel like a completely different game. Suit cost has no real effect here outside of restricting what units you can take into a mission. Instead of a life bar you’re given a penlty timer, but it’s not very effective at punishing higher cost picks. The penalty timer for dying in a 1000 cost suit is the same as a 3000. Rather than 2-on-2 or 1-on-1, Force missions can have up to 8 suits on each team with the victory condition ranging from capturing series of bases, destroying certain enemy ships, or having your mothership reach a specific base on the map. It feels like a lighter version of Dynasty Warriors Gundam with Vs battle mechanics, which doesn’t work very well.

Fights can get super crowded. It’s not uncommon in later missions to have all 6 or 8 enemy Mobile Suits rush towards you, and fighting them is a living nightmare as you can only keep focus on one because of how targeting works in the game. There is also no reliable way to drop targeting if you wanted to try and fix your point of view so you aren’t completely obscured from the fight. It’s frustrating because traditionally Gundam Vs was not meant to have up to 16 different competitors in one arena, but calling the maps “arenas” is an understatement though. Maps in Force mode are large, and way too big for the various Mobile Suits to traverse. You can boost your way across the map but, once again, because of how Vs games were originally designed, it doesn’t work well and results in a lot of unneeded meter management. Despite all this, Force mode is fun, at least when you get into the actual fighting and aren’t dealing with the camera.

The ally AI is also inept and unable to think for itself. In a lot of missions you will have an extra squad of AI controlled partners who will not move an inch unless you tell them to. Making proper use of your allies can speed up missions, but sometimes it’s better to let them sit at base and defend from the oncoming onslaught of much stronger AI while you try to clear whatever objective the mission has for you.

Clearing missions gives you GP, a currency you can use to unlock certain other missions, most notably ones that unlock other Mobile Suits. Outside of a few Suits obtained through mission progression, this is the only way to unlock the majority of the already tiny cast. The amount of representatives in the game is surprisingly small compared to other games, and teeters in at a little over 30 (Full Boost on the PS3 had 74 at launch reaching over 90 by the end of its monthly DLC suit updates).

Vs Force has a multiplayer mode though, which is probably the selling point for a massive squad based game like this, but I can’t tell you anything about it. Force’s multiplayer is local co-op only, a real shame for a title planned for launch in a country where you’re lucky to find someone else who has a Vita (much less one that has a Vita and imported this game). I couldn’t even get into the lobby making process, but I assume you can either choose to do a classic Versus match or setup to tackle various Force missions with your fellow pilots.

Extreme Vs Force feels like a rushed product. Between its small roster, lack of game modes, and fumbling design choices it’s difficult to get into as someone who has been playing the series for years. If you’re not already into the Vs games, it’s a solid action title, but you’d be cutting yourself short. Extreme VS Full Boost reached Greatest Hits status in Japan and you can find copies of it floating around on Amazon (or the Japanese PSN marketplace) for around $30-$40, which is probably about what Force will run at its launch in the West. I feel like I’d be cheating someone by recommending Extreme Vs Force to them. There's a good game in there somewhere, but it's held back by poorly designed and implemented mechanics.