The world of Gunpla (Gundam Plastic models) is a lot like the world of Warhammer. It’s something that I’ll always look at in amazement, but due to the time and money required to fully do it, I’ve never took the plunge. Thankfully, the world of gaming has you covered on that front. I have played a number of games based on the Gundam series over the years and the latest, Gundam Breaker 4, aims to let me live my wildest Gunpla dreams.
Fourth or Fifth
First things first, for all the hardcore fans out there, we know that Gundam Breaker 4 is technically the fifth game in the series. But, if it’s got a big ‘4’ on the box then it will be called ‘4’ here.
Second thing of note is that the game has launched on PS5, PS4, PC and Switch. It’s the Switch version we’ll be reviewing here, which is the first Gundam game in a Nintendo system). It’s not going to be the smoothest and glitziest build, and there are better options if you’re a 60-fps. With that bit of house keeping out the way, let’s begin.
Breaking with Gundam Tradition
A lot of people will be newcomers to the series with Gundam Breaker 4 due to an upturn in its popularity in recent years. Gundam Breaker 4 is also a bit different from past titles. It’s all about finding ever better bits and kit, bashing together the deadliest mobile suit. And then, eventually, waging a full-on war in epic battles.
The whole game is set in a ‘fake’ MMO with none of the tale taking place in the real world, where you’ll work your way through a number of missions, each bookended by a cut scene or two. Which is often where you’ll get your story dump before heavy metal clashes and as such these often take place in the lobby between matches.
Waving Hell
Missions on the other hand are a wave-based affair, where you have a good-sized set arena and have to destroy everything that comes your way. With you facing off against a few waves before having to take on a boss to move on. Though the game does throw you a curve ball or two along the way, like a defence mission.
Which means repetition does set in a little which isn’t helped by the reused environments and the fact that you’ll face an impressive number of different enemies, it’s just that they all have a very similar move set.
Read More: Gundam Evolution review – The Freed-to-Play Model
Only the bosses really throw down a true challenge. Often these beasts features a number of phases to overcome. The odd one features cheeky one-hit move to dodge as well.
You’ll spend most of your time racing through the cannon fodder at the beginning of the mission, to get to the boss. The runs to bosses aren’t gruelling challenges, but warm-up to giviing your Gundam creation a true test. Beating the bosses will see you being able to grab new parts, which you can then bolt to yourself.
Custom Combat
And, this is where the game comes to life. The customisation size of things is vast and in-depth with over 250 unique kits. You are given a mobile suit frame and left to forge a true war machine. From heavily armed, to speed demons to snipers, you can craft almost anything you want.
Many of you will lose hours here building and refining their machines. Making your mark on it by painting it, adding decals and overall battle wear, until your Iron Man looks like epic.
Read More: Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin review – A Faction from Greatness
The amount of freedom the game gives you is impressive. You can even create most of the Gundam from across the vast series. You can probably whip up a few copyright-infringing tributes as well.
Plus, once you’re done crafting your machine, you can then spend hours creating epic dioramas. You can then snap them in the game’s photo mode, which is a robust tool that series superfans will get a lot from.
Mechanical Muddling
As good as the customisation side is, it suffers from the same issue as the enemies in the game. Most builds feel and handle the same when all is said and done. There are also a few odd choices on the button mapping front. For example, having dodge and block on the same button with only a press and hold separating them.
Same goes for jump and dash. While they are movement based, they still make the gameplay feel a bit sluggish as you have to stop to perform the move or, in the dodge/block case, the game has to think what you are going to do next.
Read More: Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 review – Worth Every Minute
The Switch build is a solid title, running like butter while the console is docked. Gundam Breaker 4 only loses a little bit of its edge in handheld on my OLED. There where a few frames dropped now and then, but nothing game breaking. Little framerate burps occurred mostly when combat really kicked in, but it was never for too long.
Loading times are mostly acceptable. Some aspects of the games feature too many instances of long loading times, especially when moving area to area. But on the whole, it’s a solid offering and decent port.
Strong Nintendo Debut
Gundam Breaker 4 looks mostly great on Nintendo Switch. From the epic boss fights to the tiny details on show, the creativity is beautiful. The audio is also well-served, rocking a intense soundtrack, however the voice acting can be grating at times.
Gundam Breaker 4 is like a digital model kit come to life. There is a tale and a campaign, but the experience is more about building cooler and stronger mobile suits, while not having to spend a fortune on plastic kits, paints and time.
If you’re new to the world of Gundam and Gunpla this offers up an interesting look at the culture, while also delivering a fun and engaging game to boot.