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If any name is becoming synomonous with Playstation quality entertainment, it has to be Sony Music Entertainment. Although each team has its own identity and functions seemingly independently of each other, one notices that each title has a common thread - they deliver great customer satisfaction. They have so far released Gran Turismo, Tenchu, Super Motor Toon GP, IQ, Dam Dam Stompland (great title!), Ghost in the Shell, oh well, you get the point.
Their latest release is Speed Power Gunbike. Simply put, its awesome. A mech fanatic's delight. This title features several great original mechanical designs. Any one of the designs would be very suitable to drop in a new release manga or OAV with virtually no changes. The characters and voice acting provide an excellent mood and are constant throughout the title. I can't read japanese so I couldn't get the details of the story, but its fairly easy to follow by the excellent cinematics and gameplay events. You can also read the Speed Power Gunbike preview for a few of the story's details. The PSX is shaping up to be the reference standard of mech action warfare.
First, the FMV. Well its all in realtime. Very anime oriented. We're talking straight action here with gunbikes skidding out of smoke from gigantor tank threads and city landscapes getting levelled. Its the stuff dreams were made of. Some of them are even interactive - but I don't want to spoil anything for you.
The in-game graphics are phenomenal. Animation is very detailed. Mechanical transformation from bike to rally to robot rival the best in the genre. There are three playable characteers all with unique mechanical designs and animation. The enemies range from trains to combiner mechs each equipped with a large variety of firepower. The level graphics remind me of Ghost In The Shell, but a bit more colorful in some areas. No mech action game would be complete with out awesome special effects - and SPG's effects are off the hook.
The gameplay is a rewarding experience. Everything is based on time. In this game - the clock is your life meter. You race down highways, tunnels, corridors, etc. (preferably in bike mode) as fast as possible encountering enemies and suitably busting through them or avoiding them. All the while your timer is steadily ticking down. There are strategically placed power ups and time extendors to help you in getting to end of the level before the time runs out. Some of your enemy's damage to you deduct from the clock. Their are many tradeoffs to the robot's different configurations. In bike mode you can be knocked off the bike at great distances and you have to run back and mount the bike. This is undesirable as it can take a significant amount of time (avg. 5-8 secs) to get back to your bike. You have a compass that helps you find your way around the levels which are large but have landmarks that also help as visual cues. Let me warn you that this title has some tough bosses. Some of them will make you quite ill. You will have to find a new strategy for every new boss you encounter. I think this is a good thing as the battles are quite exciting and demand much bonding between you & your mech to fall the mechanical hell that lays in your wake.
Control is gonna disturb some. I found the control superb. It is very robot like. The mech while in bike mode controls like a bike. You have to lean into turns and yes tight turns are close to impossible to neqotiate at high speeds. There is a brake and hyper turn capability built in the bike system to allow for this. If you want to the best speed and control - go for rally mode. You have a great turn radius with drift capability, good armor, and speed that rivals the bike. Contrary to some of my friends opinion - I found the robot mode to be the most satisfying of all. This is the year 2097 and mech's haven't quite got to the task of running around at 230kph. You stomp around with great authority and when necessary dash with tiger speed. Dashing expends energy very fast, so its meant to be used sparingly as you power down leaving you vulnerable. The best way to get to grips with control is practice the excellent training mode. There are many approaches and hybrids of play mechanics possible in the world of Speed Power Gunbike.
The music is a solid excursion through different themes that fit the tone of the battle well. The sound effects dominate in this title. The bike's whirring motor provides a mechanical ectasy which gives you a savage feeling all over, getting louder and higher pitched as you go faster. All the explosions, character's screaming, gatling gun fire truly immerse you. Again the voice acting is probably the most fantastic. Among all the inhuman violence there exists an atmospheric human touch.
The game is short compared to Z-Gundam. The difficulty of the boss levels will take you just as long to complete. I haven't found much in the replay incentives like time release characters, game completion bonuses, etc. although I will continue to replay the title to complete the game with all three characters. I'll also replay the title due to the sheer enjoyment of controlling the mech, perfecting level time, and the holy training mode. Perhaps there are some cheats that allow for playing alternative colors or some of the enemy mechs/train mech.
Oh I forgot to mention: I love this title! For all mech fanatics out there, especially those of Gundam ilk - buy this title. This one is a cult classic. For other gamers casually interested in action games that offer exciting and a rewarding play experience try it out as well. I must confess it is a little on the hard core side.
Demerits: There's no versus mode in the game. This truly sucks. I haven't found a way to play individual levels once completed. It would have been nice to give the player soemthing for completing the game like mechanical design specifications, character art, anyuthing...
So in closing, finally a title has arrived that delivers the adrenaline tranformation based mech fantasy action that so many of us fell in love with in the beginning of mecha animation. I can't wait for the models to come out.