After waiting for what felt like ages, Famitsu has featured new gameplay mechanics and an updated roster from the recent Gundam Versus closed alpha test. In terms of gameplay, here are some of the following key additions from the article: Boost Dive, Striker System, and Awakening System.

The Boost Dive allows you to fall to the ground very quickly and is activated by cancelling all of your actions.In the previous EXVS series, some units could fast fall via certain cancel routes known in the community as “amekyans.” Considering the verticality of the VS series and how useful amekyans were in terms of mobility and safety for many units, adding a universal fast fall adds a nice new dynamic to the Gundam VS metagame.

The Striker System allows you to choose units like Balls and GMs to be called upon during matches as assists. In order to use a Striker, you will activate a Striker gauge that fills during the match. It will be interesting to see if the Striker units may perhaps go beyond the fodder type or will use different amounts of Striker gauges depending on the assist.

The Awakening System appears to be another evolution of a staple VS mechanic where players could select either the “Blaze” or “Lightning” Gear. The Blaze Gear is an instantaneous-type awakening that improves your melee tracking. The Lightning Gear is a continuous-type awakening that increases your lock-on ability. What’s interesting are the types of awakenings “instantaneous” and “continuous.” First, it sounds like there will be more Gears within these groupings. Second, the naming peaks curiosity into how the boosts will be granted when they’re activated. Are instantaneous Gears short-lived buffs with higher potency whereas continuous Gears provide more measured increases over a longer period of time?

In terms of new units, the following have entered the fray: Tallgeese, Kyrios, Gouf, Guncannon, and Sinanju. This brings the current total roster to 12 joining RX-78-02, Unicorn, Full Armor Gundam (Thunderbolt), Barbatos, Wing Zero, and Nu Gundam. As the article will go on sale on December 15, we hope to learn a lot more about the game’s mechanics on top of how they plan to cater the game more towards a global audience.

For those of you looking for more Iron Blooded Orphans action, look no further as the Gundam Kimaris Trooper is the next mobile suit to join the Maxi Boost On roster! As a 2000 cost machine, the Kimaris Trooper looks to be a highly mobile unit focusing on melee attacks (as most IBO units appear to be from the show). You’ll also have a gatling as your main projectile and an evasion attack that can set up some beefy combos. Check out the teaser trailer below!

With the Full Armor Gundam from Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt already in the Maxi Boost On roster, it wasn’t going to be too long until the titular Zeon antagonist unit was added as well. The Psycho Zaku joins the EXVS series in all its obscene glory as a very mobile long range 2500 cost unit. Aside from the expected menagerie of artillery attacks due to its given arsenal, it has a nice array of lateral movement options when using its secondary weapons and melee attacks to always keep you on the move similar to Full Armor Unicorn’s side bazookas. While an official teaser vid hasn’t been released, you can check out a fair amount of gameplay via NicoNico here.

Next up, the Astray Red Frame has been given a brand new burst attack thanks to the upcoming release of a new Metal Build Astray Red Frame Powered Red version with the ridiculous 150 Gerbera Straight cannon. It’s always good to see older units get an upgrade when a game initially releases, so seeing something like this appear well into Maxi Boost On’s lifespan is interesting. I suppose this does make more sense as we will probably not see another home version of the EXVS series released with the new Gundam Versus PS4 taking the reigns in its stead.

Bandai Namco Entertainment Asia have recently announced that an English version of the newly revealed Gundam Versus will be headed to South East Asian territories. To be more specific, the game will have the original Japanese VAs but use English subtitles, similar to localized version of Gundam EXVS Force for the Vita. As we know the latest title eventually was western-bound, this news does solidify the hope that the newest PS4 title will also head to Western territories. No other details were shared, but hopefully we hear more about the closed alpha test Bandai Namco mentioned during TGS 2016. Until then, we’ll keep you posted when further news hits!

During the TGS 2016 Gundam Games 15th Anniversary panel, Gundam Versus producer Ryuichiro Baba announced the upcoming PS4 title will be getting a closed alpha test soon. They will be releasing more information about how to participate  in the near future through their official twitter page. What we do know is that it will be a local-only affair, so we’re going to have to wait a bit longer to get our online battling on. Whether or not the alpha is limited to just JP PSN accounts is another unknown as well.

Baba also mentioned that he’s looking to differentiate the console experience from what we know from previous arcade-derived titles, on top of wanting a worldwide audience to get into the 2v2 gameplay the Gundam VS series is known for. As to how the difference will be between the arcade and console experiences is still yet to be determined. Considering their last forays in bringing 2v2 gameplay to the West (Rise of Incarnates, Gundam Extreme VS Force) haven’t exactly garnered the greatest of praise from the hardcore Gundam VS fans, it will be interesting to see what they consider.

Needless to say, we won’t be seeing this game released until after the 1st half of 2017. During the panel, Amuro Ray VA Tohru Furuya tried his best to get a solid release date from Baba, but was met with a possible Autumn release for next year. This also coincides with a recent Famitsu Magazine article that mentions the game is only 30% complete and the game is using a brand new engine dubbed the “Nu Library.” This engine is being worked on by Julien Merceron, the former worldwide technology director and architect of the Fox Engine at Konami. At the very least, this game is going to look amazing.

As always, we’all keep you up to date on the closed alpha and other information on the game as it drops!

Console-only Gundam VS fans rejoice as the 5th generation of the series has been announced at the 2016 Tokyo Game Show! Named simply “Gundam Versus,” this new game makes its debut only on the Playstation 4 and is apparently a clean break from the EXVS series. You’ll still get the 2v2 team battle action the series is best known for, but not much is known outside of that currently. From a previous interview with the Gundam VS team at Bandai Namco, they’re also looking heavily into a worldwide release. As the Tokyo Game Show just started, we expect to hear more features from the title and hopefully a release date to follow. From the announcement trailer below,  you’ll see the RX-78-2, Gundam Barbatos, Full Armor Gundam (Thunderbolt), Gundam Unicorn, and Gundam Exia in action with a brand new sheen to their visuals. Check it out!

English speaking G Generation fans rejoice as the English-subtitled version of the new G Generation Genesis game is launching on November 22, 2016 in Asia. Recently announced prior to the 2016 Tokyo Game Show, this will be the next Gundam game to get the English translated treatment like the previous Gundam Extreme VS Force and Gundam Breaker 3. The one thing we don’t know is whether or not the game will be officially released on Western shores as Gundam Breaker 3 still does not have one. What we do know is that the game will feature over 650 mobile suits spawning from Gundam’s long history of animated, manga, and G Generation in-universe titles. Until we learn more, check out footage from a recent gameplay livestream by Bandai Namco below!

It appears the next version of the Gundam VS series is currently in development! Thanks to some keen redditors, a recent Famitsu article has a provided a Q&A session with series producer Ryuichiro Baba and other staff members regarding the future of the Gundam VS series. They mention their understanding of Gundam EXVS Force’s misgivings with the fans and plan to address those issues in the latest installment. They also mention console specs and infrastructures are now ripe to take advantage of connecting players, and that possibly includes a more global focus. They also mention the new VS game as the 5th generation of Gundam VS, with EXVS series being the 4th. Perhaps we’ll hear more about this in the upcoming Tokyo Game Show, but this news definitely has us salivating while we continue to wait for a Maxi Boost console version.

Hot off the recent release of Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt: December Sky comes the addition of the Full Armor Gundam in EXVS Maxi Boost ON! Described as an all-rounder unit with a penchant for ranged attacks, this 2500 cost unit is definitely no stranger to missile spam. From the video, it initially feels somewhat reminiscent of Full Armor Unicorn in its first form but with some good mobility. It also does not seem shy about getting in your face with a special melee move that blocks projectiles in front of you as you dash. We also get to see it purge its armor during the burst attack, but whether or not it remains off afterwards is another story. Once again, if you’re lucky to be living in Japan or Asia where they have Maxi Boost ON cabinets, you’ll be able to mess around with the new unit on August 16 on an early release. At the very least, check out the teaser trailer for it below!

On July 25th, the Tieren Taozi from Gundam 00 will join the Gundam EXVS Maxi Boost ON roster. This will be Soma Pieres’ first foray as a solo competitor in the series, not counting her earlier outings as a co-pilot in the Gundam Arios and Gundam Harute. As a 1500 cost unit, it appears to be your run of the mill support unit in the vein of Gun-EZ and Dual Gundam Assault Shroud with a good balance of long range attacks, melee, and a slew of assists involving other Tieren. Considering there hasn’t been a console version of this game or the previous title announced, it’s going to be a long time before players outside of Japanese and Asian arcades will be able to get a hold of this unit. As always, we’ll let you know more when we find out!