Everyone knows that giant robots are badass. Ever since Robotech landed on our television sets, every boy has dreamed of piloting a mecha at some time or another. Size or speed makes no difference. Neither does the country of origin. Both Japan and the United States have had their share of television series’ which brought us from our mundane living rooms into the cockpits of a fighting machine in one way or another.
Gamers have also had a plethora of mech games on every platform imaginable. Some are heavily grounded in the simulation and building of the perfect mecha while others focus more on the action and leave the strategy sitting on the sidelines. No matter if you are a fan of the Armored Core series or of the Macross, just about everyone who has picked up a controller in the past ten years has experienced a mech game of one sort or another. Usually these games take place in the faraway future where mankind has evolved from his barbaric ways to embrace technology and use it for the greater good of humanity. Others have us continuing on our current path of hate and destruction turning technology against our brothers for nothing less than the conquest of our planet. One such series is the Gungriffon franchise.
Set in the post-apocalyptic world where global warming has turned the nations of the world into warring factions over the last remaining resources, Gungriffon Blaze continues on the tradition of the franchise established back on the Sega Saturn in 1996. Although this is the third game in the series, it actually is only the second iteration to make it here across the Pacific. How does it match up with other genre titles? Read on and find out for yourself.
Gungriffon Blaze picks up where the previous games left off. With use of the American AWGS’s (Armored Walking Gun Systems), Japan concedes WW III in 2015. US and AFTA countries station units in Europe and Asia to help quell tensions rising from food shortages. Because the weather patterns continue to worsen, citizens begin a mass migration to the south throwing the US and AFTA nations into anarchy. It is at that point, a power grab commences forcing the US and Japanese forces to work together to quash this new threat.
Part mech simulator, part first-person shooter, Gungriffon Blaze finds a way to meld the two genres into one big, fat, happy serving. As the game starts rolling, players are granted a look into some of the best FMVs (Full Motion Videos) seen up to this date (October 2000) on any system. After the title bursts into flames, you get right into the creation of your personal character. There are bunches of choices to make, including the nationality, name, age, sex, eyesight and even IQ. Although these make little difference in your actual playing ability, it is a unique way to enter codes for special unlockables by entering the proper combination, all of which you can find on a local code site nearest to you. Players also have the ability to alter bunches and bunches of options before getting hot and heavy into the mix. The menu system can be somewhat confusing for the beginner and could have used some streamlining, nevertheless you should be able to find your way to the meat of the sandwich after only minimal trial and error.
Before the mission actually starts, gamers are given a detailed explanation of their objectives and possible placement of enemy forces. Once this completes, you are dropped immediately into the fray. After you eliminate the first wave of combatants, you get your first opportunity to take a look around. Your line of sight is usually to the horizon with only rare instances of draw-in evident. Environments properly reflect your location, however there is not an excessive amount of variance. In fact, compared to today’s games, one could consider these to be barren.
Normally the game runs along at a steady 60 FPS, but there are slight instances of slowdown when multiple buildings begin to collapse and explode. And blow up buildings you will, as just about everything that you will run across will be destructible. However, this is one of the possible pitfalls that novice gamers might become trapped by, as each and every mission is running on a timer. If you spend too much time clearing the landscape, you might not have enough reserve time to complete your assigned missions. Environments are big enough to give you a challenge but still small enough to keep you from getting hopelessly lost. One downside is the invisible wall that keeps you in the prescribed playing field, when the landscape, and even opponents, are on the other side just screaming for your personal attention.
Do not expect this to be a one man show. For every assignment, after the training session, you will have numerous allies assisting you on your mission. This does take some getting used to, as your first instinct is to blow away everything moving in your field of vision. Enemy and friendly forces are designated by a different colored HUD (Head’s Up Display) overlay, but this is only active when you have a unit squarely in your crosshairs. Have an itchy trigger finger and you could easily waste one of your own people. Don’t think that a mistake like this will go unnoticed. Send a few rounds in the wrong direction and you will actually hear your counterparts warning you off. In fact, if you listen closely, the radio chatter will keep you abreast of the happenings out of your line of sight. Most of the time, allies do little to actually help you complete your missions, but there are those rare occasions where they will help eliminate a necessary enemy or pick off a combatant from over your shoulder. Needless to say, they are not the smartest bunch of NPCs (Non-Player Characters) you will ever meet, but it’s nice to have a little bit of help mopping up the numerous amounts of forces you will encounter.
Voices will not be the only thing sounding through your speaker system. The background music is a curious mix. The main menu offers players a selection of a classical sounding piece while the in-game music pounds out something similar to what one would hear at a rock concert. Also every time a gun fires, or something explodes, you can immediately recognize its origin. Ally and enemy fire sound remarkably different, even though the color of the rounds are the same. Thus, players are required to use their sense of hearing as well as that of sight to help them keep tabs on who is where on the battlefield. Unfortunately, gamers with surround sound systems will not be able to use their multiple speakers to assist with locating enemy combatants as you only have the standard mono or stereo selections available. This is one game that really could have benefited from Dolby adding their extra special touch to the audio.
Gungriffon Blaze makes excellent use of the DualShock 2. Players do have the limited ability to alter their controller settings to meet their personal preference via the numerous preset selections. Furthermore, you also have the ability to reverse that ever annoying Y-axis if you wish your up to be down. For those of us who are used to having one analog stick do most of the controlling, there will be some reconditioning necessary to be able to complete the missions and it took me about a half dozen runs through the training scenario before I felt comfortable enough to go out and take on my first real mission. Just about all of the buttons are utilized for one action or another, but you don’t have to worry about getting confused with overly complicated patterns to launch your weapons. Those of you who are FPS (First-Person Shooter) veterans will feel right at home and should be able to be mixing it up full force with little to no real learning necessary.
Players have six different levels to test their piloting mettle. You get to venture all over the world, doing everything from training missions, to assaulting military bases and even running interference for retreating forces. Although that might not sound like a lot, each of the six levels has an advanced version that can be unlocked via extended play. Also, every time you beat a level with a new high score, a new point plateau is reestablished for you to conquer. Furthermore, there are four separate difficulty levels that incrementally increase in challenge as you progress up the ladder. Of course, the harder the setting, the greater the reward in the form of a multiplier applied to your final point score. Thus, the replay value is there if you are really willing to put your skills to the test.
While we are talking about replay value, don’t think that you’ll have to take on the same levels over and over again using the same old mecha. As you acquire points and receive medals, new and more challenging mechs will become available. Some will be slower, unable to jump but pack a much stronger punch. Others will be on the complete flip side. Each different fighting machine will require you to modify your fighting style and flaunt the strengths, while minimizing the weaknesses, of the new mecha. This in itself brings the levels into a new light and keeps the continued playing fresh.
Another aspect that keeps your heart rate pounding is the multiple weapons and systems that the mecha can have equipped. During each mission, boxes, along with other assorted goodies, will appear once enemies or structures have been destroyed. There are three separate types of boxes that will allow the collection of new weapons, auxiliary items or models (these will be covered to a larger extent later on in the review). Weapons and auxiliary items come in three levels of strength and are so known by their color coding. However, there is a catch to actually getting these item boxes added to your inventory. Although you might gather twenty or more boxes on a level, your difficulty setting and how well you do on the assignment will determine how many boxes you get to open and keep. The only information you have is what category the box belongs in and the approximate strength of the prize within. After that, it’s strictly a grab bag. Usually it’s a good practice to take the highest level boxes first and work your way down the food chain until your number of choices expires. This way you have a better chance of getting something worthwhile for use in the harder levels. However, if you fail to complete your objective, you may only receive one choice to add to your inventory. This keeps players from running the same missions over and over again only to stock up on items without putting forth the necessary effort to win the battle every time you start one up.
However, don’t confuse the customization of your machine with those of other mecha games like Armored Core. Besides having the opportunity to choose which type of AWGS you want, you only get to pick one of the three weapon systems and two additional support items (advanced armor, advanced firepower, hyper zoom, jump regulators, etc.). You don’t have to spend hours putting your fighting machine together only to see it blown to pieces in the first few seconds of fighting. Gungriffon is all about the action, not the preliminary mishmash that some players thrive upon.
And action you will have, in fistfuls. Most battlefields are teeming with dozens of baddies just looking for a fight. From simple tanks and troop transports, to artillery placements and finally enemy mechs, your time spent in the cockpit will be fast and furious. Furthermore, reinforcements are constantly flowing from different points on the map, so you can’t expect a section to remain clear once you’ve sent all the enemy to Valhalla. Luckily, your HUD will help keep track of everything an aspiring pilot would need including proximity meters, jump regulators and ammunition counts. There also is an in-game compass displayed to help keep you heading in the correct direction along with giving you some idea where reinforcements are coming from when their presence is announced via the radio.
As mentioned earlier, players have the opportunity to select model boxes after they complete their missions. These do nothing for your gameplay, but they do unlock some rather interesting 3-D models. By going back to the original menu, gamers can select the model viewer where different groups of mecha and machines are selectable. The unique aspect is that when an item is selected, it is displayed as if it was a model kit like those found in most hobby shops. You have full control of the viewer and can get close up and personal with each and every kit. This does help in identifying enemy units on the battlefield, but does nothing else.
Unfortunately, Gungriffon Blaze only has single player support. This is one title that really would have shined being released later in the PS2 lifecycle, as we could have expected some sort of multiplayer aspect, possibly including online contests. Perhaps sometime in the future Game Arts will bring us a new version of the series that gives our online brethren something to howl about.
Gungriffon Blaze was IGN’s runner-up winner for the 2000 action game of the year (Timesplitters was the winner). Although the game came out as a launch title for the PlayStation 2, it probably was one of the most overlooked games in the entire lineup, especially since the series did not have the opportunity to create a true fanbase here in North America. This is one title definitely not for those lacking in the coordination department. Although far from being perfect, the good outweighs the bad and should keep players up late into the night as they try “just one more time” to top a previous high score or complete a mission. This was one of the first games I ever purchased for my PS2 and honestly it is the only launch title that still keeps me coming back for more.
Unfortunately, the game is no longer in print, so your only chance to get your hands wrapped around a copy will be by scouring the used game sections. However, I will guarantee that the search will be worth your time. If you happen to come across a copy, and are a fan of either mechs or first-person shooters, add it to your collection without a second thought. All others should buy at their personal discretion, although the price point should be attractive enough to give it a whirl to see if it agrees with you.
Difficulty: 9
Control: 9
Audio: 7
Visuals: 8
Replayability: 8
Overall: 8.6
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