Mobile Suit Gundam: Silver Phantom – Quest 3 Review

0 0
Read Time:4 Minute, 31 Second

Today I’m diving into Mobile Suit Gundam: Silver Phantom. Developed by Bandai Namco Filmwork, Atlas V and Albyon, Published by Astrea, it released earlier this month on the Meta Store. Retailing at £13.99 the game promises to be a ground-breaking VR experience. But does it deliver on this promise?

Gameplay

So what exactly is Mobile Suit Gundam: Silver Phantom? Put simply it is an interactive and cinematic anime movie, set in the original anime Gundam timeline 3 years after Char’s counterattack in the year 0096 Universal Century. This is definitely a game for Gundam fans as some prior knowledge in order to appreciate the story is needed.

The main character Ryuu Minamo is a young pilot with a tragic past. Whilst living a quiet life on a neutral colony, his life takes a dramatic turn when he stumbles upon the Silver Phantom during a skirmish between rebels forces and the earth government. The Silver Phantom seems to choose Ryuu as its pilot bonding with him in a way that feels organic. Reluctant at first Ryuu eventually take up the mantle of the Silver Phantom pilot. This is where you jump in and the adventure begins.

Story Mode

This mode is the bulk of the gameplay of Mobile Suit Gundam: Silver Phantom. As you watch the movie the camera is in middle of the scene, giving you a 360 degree view of everything.

Through many parts of the game you are pulled into first person mode with limited movement. For example in some parts the most you can do is pull your left lever to raise your shield. If you’re lucky you can use your right lever to swing your sword whilst using your head (set) to aim at enemies. Its sounds basic but as this was less gameplay and more an interactive story, it felt just enough to keep my interest. Saying that I do wish there was more for us players to control.

A screenshot from Mobile Suit Gundam: Silver Phantom showing a view of asteroids floating towards us
In this scene you point your head at each asteroid, pull different levers for weapons to blast the asteroids so you can pass without taking damage.

Gallery Mode

Explore a wide variety of life sized Mobile Suits and discover the sheer size and beauty as if you were seeing it right in front of you. This is something all Gundam fans such as myself growing up watching all the Gundam tv series will fully appreciate. You are limited to certain points in the hangar which limits your views of each Gundam which can be irritating. But getting the chance to see these mechs up close, even in VR is incredible.

A screenshot from Mobile Suit Gundam: Silver Phantom VR showing a Gundam standing tall in a hanger
This photo does not give the size of this Gundam justice

Battle Mode

This is the bread and butter mode of the whole game and where this game truly shines. Grab a Gundam from throughout the movie and jump in MR mode. You have to use your controller to dodge, shoot and slash through hordes of enemies across multiple levels. This is where all the replayability comes in. The need and want to keep coming back for more giant robots fighting in your living room! The only problem I had was with the auto shoot. Aim correctly at each enemy and flick the thumb stick to slash your sword. Each slash then has a cool down so you can not spam with your sword.
Screenshot from Mobile Suit Gundam: Silver Phantom showing various mechs fighting
Slashing enemies with your sword is so much fun especially 2 at the same time

Graphics & Audio

The mobile suits are detailed and sleek with the Silver Phantom itself standing out due to its ghostly design. Mobile Suit Gundam: Silver Phantom utilising the anime 3D cell style is perfect and visually the game looks gorgeous. But this does not overcome the one big issue I had with the game i.e. the amount of loading screens. A loading screen when entering story mode. A loading screen between movie mode. A loading screen whenever you take control of the character. Whilst they look pretty initially, there are so many I felt my gameplay immersion slipping away with every one. Until eventually they became an eyesore. They were also a contributing factor to a sporadic jumpy frame rate.

I don’t have much to say about the audio of  Mobile Suit Gundam: Silver Phantom. The voice acting itself was good. And is just what you would expect having watched the anime.

Final Thoughts

So is this a ground-breaking VR experience? While it may not completely revolutionize the Gundam formula, Silver Phantom does deliver a unique experience with some highs and lows. As a big Gundam fan I did enjoy this game. Had I not already been a fan, I’m not sure this would have captured me in the same way. If they choose to make more Gundam games, I hope the developers use this game as a stepping stone. I wish I could award this game a gold but I can’t given the issues I ran across. However, given more polish I would definitely up my review score.

For now I award Mobile Suit Gundam: Silver Phantom the Thumb Culture Silver Award

Disclaimer: A code was received in order to write this review.

Thumb Culture

YouTube | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Discord | Podcast

 

About Author

Average Rating

5 Star
0%
4 Star
0%
3 Star
0%
2 Star
0%
1 Star
0%

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *