Play Asia currently have a fair few interesting mecha games going at a discount at the moment. First up is Treasure’s classic Bangai-O on the Dreamcast, this is also the Japanese version in case you’re wondering. Like many, we hold the Bangai-O games in very high regard and we’ve written a pretty lengthy feature on the series too (as many of the functional influences stem from from renowned anime shows). Interestingly, the Dreamcast version of the game (as there was also an N64 release before it) was one of the few games that didn’t support VGA output. The recent DS game, Bangai-O Spirits, is also still at a discount if you want to nab that too.

Next up is the classic Dreamcast port of Virtual On Oratorio Tangram. Now, what with the XBLA port of MSBS 5.66 already available why would you buy this? Despite the lovely Hajime Katoki artwork on the cover, it’s also going very cheaply and it features a very different balancing setup as the port also affords access to MSBS 5.45 and 5.2 (the latter being the first release of the game, when it was being run on Model 3 hardware). The XBLA port only has the option to play via the 5.66 setup. In addition, getting hold of Dreamcast TwinSticks is still relatively easy and inexpensive, compared to the HORI 360 effort, and more importantly the game works fine with them. The HORI sticks have a deadzone at the base of each stick, which considering the rather steep price tag is a bit unfortunate. Again, we have a rather thorough feature on the Virtual On games in case you’re at all curious about the series.

Then there’s Macross Plus Game Edition and
Real Robots Final Attack, both on the PlayStation. The Macross Plus game is an interesting attempt at dealing with the disparate modes of the various variable fighters, as it literally separates the game out via fighter and battroid focused levels. Whereas Real Robots Final Attack is a full on and quite competent Virtual On clone using a variety of classic real robot shows as a base (it’s basically the spiritual precursor to the Another Century’s Episode games in a way).

Finally, we have the Rise from the Ashes collection release on the Dreamcast; which packages both the premium disc and the original game together along with a new third person camera mode. We like this game a lot and the development team responsible for this now go by the Team White Dingo moniker that was coined by the player’s platoon in the game. In any case, there’s plenty to choose from at the moment and that’s no bad thing at all!

Over at the AmiAmi blog they’re covering the Tamashii Features event, which is basically an orgy of Robot Damashii toys all neatly arranged for the discerning mecha fan. Out of the many toys on display, the Yutaka Izubuchi designed RGM-79SP GM Sniper II caught our eye. Not only because it’s a lovely design but also due to its presence in the excellent Dreamcast game Rise from the Ashes. Thankfully, Bandai are producing both colour schemes of the mobile suit (as it originally appeared in Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket). No word on a release date as yet but the good news is that it won’t be prohibitively expensive. We’ve also included a video of the GM Sniper II in action from the Rise from the Ashes Premium Disc below…

Update: GA Graphic also have a nice report up for the Tamashii Features show.

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Over at Play-Asia they’re doing another of their bargains, with the classic Dreamcast arcade port of Choukou Senki Kikaioh (or Tech Romancer as it was known abroad). This particular version also features the online matchmaking service, though whether that works these days is anybody’s guess. Kikaioh was, in many ways, a spiritual successor to Cyberbots (as it also featured Jin Saotome’s Blodia as an unlockable). However, what made the game quite interesting was how it hired Shoji Kawamori to pen a fictional pantheon of mecha designs, spanning both the real and super spectrum (the above picture is a sketch he did of the titular Kikaioh if you’re wondering). In any case, the game also features a lovely unlockable anime opening (shown below). Make sure you also have an arcade stick for this, as you’ll really need it.

Update: Play-Asia have sold out their copies for this – which was pretty quick!

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For fans of augmented reality and Virtual On, this will be quite cool. The ARToolKit has been used to render a Virtual On type HUD with an ultrasound distance measurer. The video is quite innocuous to begin with, as it just shows how the device works but when a small “T” card appears that designates the 1/100 scale Kotobukiya model kit of HBV-502-H8 Raiden as just that – then it opens fire with its lasers (to which the cameraman wisely dodges). Admittedly this is just a tech demo of sorts but its nice to see this kind of technology used in a manner partially sympathetic to a game such as Oratan. What’s especially classy though and something not overly obvious to most people, is that the HUD used is actually the RNA variant (as in 2P). Why is this noteworthy? Well, the Raiden colour scheme of the kit is actually the DNA variant (or 1P) so the logical follow on from that would mean the cameraman would have to be an RNA player. The video is linked below and thanks to Saur for the heads up.

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Over at Play Asia, there are a bunch of lovely mecha games going at a discounted price. Some of them are also quite rare. Such as the Dreamcast Gundam Rise from the Ashes Premium Disc, this was originally sold directly to fans via a coupon from the original game and then only in Japan (if you’re curious about the full game, we’ve already reviewed it). You then have the even rarer Macross Eternal Love Song, a classic NCS strategy game on the PC Engine – so very much in the spirit of Langrisser in case you’re wondering. Finally, the more recent Emblem of Gundam and Super Robot Wars K on the Nintendo DS should also keep your strategy leanings satiated.

Back in the day, many a Gundam game had the player pilot the RX-78-2, and consequently steer the neurotic Amuro Rey, through a treacherous future of civil war and political intrigue. This stuff sold, by the bucket load. They were generally pretty abysmal games, however. Thankfully, somebody at Bandai decided to correct matters.

This epiphany in Gundam gaming came in the form of Gundam Gaiden (aka “The Blue Destiny”). There were a total of three games released for the Sega Saturn that enabled the player to control a bog standard Federation “GM” mobile suit. A far cry from the uber-powerful eponymous Gundam. In short, the player was a grunt, and had to work their way through a series of particularly tough campaigns. Each “game” was merely a chapter in the overall plot as well, and also saw the player being awarded with progressively more powerful mobile suits as they progressed. The Gundam Gaiden trilogy of games is very much respected by many a mecha gamer, so you can imagine the fervour when Bandai announced a successor for this superb series of games on the (then) new Dreamcast console.

Despite the obvious graphical improvements, the biggest modification to the series was how you could directly control the actions of your wingmen. Admittedly the game’s focus was predominantly action based, but the real time tactics element added a whole new dimension to the, already very solid, gameplay.