Mech-Tech: Dynasty Warriors Gundam 2

Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 2 for the PS3, and Xbox 360. Developer: Omega Force, Publisher: Namco/Koei

The Dynasty Warriors series in one of the most interesting anomalies in gaming. Annually, the series launches permutations of titles featuring familiar Chinese historical figures, samurai, and now Gundam robots. Whereas most other series’ offer players a negligible amount of modification in their yearly updates, the Dynasty games grudgingly deviate little from their established formula, yet still sell well enough to warrant additional sequels. Clearly, there’s something exceptional in the Dynasty formula. 

Many mistakenly label the Dynasty Warrior series a brawler, when it is essentially more of a real-time management sim. Players must constantly supervise hotspots on the game map, eliminating enemies in an attempt to control and dominate the zone by allied forces. Players must exercise diligence when storming into contested areas blindly, as defeat can come swiftly. While the gamer does press sequences of the two attack buttons to initiate offensive combos, calculating when to release a ‘special’ (or SP) is the recipe for success in the games. This approach remains for developer Omega Force’s latest work- Dynasty Warriors Gundam 2.

DWG2’s greatest asset is the amount of content included on the disk; there’s sixty-two mechs and forty different pilots that each have a unique storyline. Each character can choose to play through the Original mode, which follows the intricate narrative that runs throughout the Gundam universe, or the Mission mode. The latter option contains nearly a hundred missions for each character; although after playing through a handful, they start to seem a bit indistinguishable. Players monitor a global map showing where combat is erupting; using a speed boost to navigate to the next pocket of adversaries.

Most missions have the players slicing and shooting through swarms to enemy mechs, who put up little resistance. This part of the game is oddly relaxing but incongruous with the game’s one major new feature- boss battles. Unlike the hordes of conventional antagonists who will occasional poke at the player, the larger mechs aggressively assault gamers with a series of brawny attacks. After dominating several conventional levels, our first skirmish with a giant enemy mech ended in six straight ‘game over’s, while playing on the easy level. Losing a game due to the death of an A.I. assistant was exceedingly frustrating; we hope they adjust the boss difficulty in the inevitable Gundam 3. 

Although Gundam 2’s zone-conquering formula has evolved little from the original 1997 Dynasty Warriors title, the title has matured graphically with each subsequent hardware generation. Character art is clean, and the games models show enough detail to make any red-blood mech enthusiast smile with delight. The series’ one defining aesthetic is being able to display dozens of foes on-screen at once; Gundam 2 does this admirably with nary a hitch in framerate. Although space levels offer an alternative visual backdrop, they oddly play like ground-based missions.

The games local and online multiplayer options are effective, if somewhat pedestrian. War mode challenges players to race to a thousand point finish, while sudden death mode offers a time limit on the proceedings. Hunting mode has combatants alternating between the aggressor and defender. A cooperative mission mode would have made us exceedingly pleased.

Gundam fans and Dynasty Warriors aficionados take note: this title offers a wealth of content and the same gameplay that has fueled Koei’s series for the last twelve years. Fans of either will likely be pleased with the game, while devotes of both will likely be unwilling to leave the house for the next few months. Everyone else may be left wondering why the series remains so popular; Dynasty Warrior Gundam 2’s mechanics are unabashedly repetitive, and are embarrassing resistant to change.

About Robert Allen

Since being a toddler, Robert Allen has been immersed in video games, anime, and tokusatsu. Currently, his days are spent teaching at two southern California colleges. But his evenings and weekends are filled with STGs, RPGs, and action titles and well at writing for Tech-Gaming since 2007.

35 comments

  1. I played the first one and wanted to claw my eyes out it was so ugly and repetive.

  2. Congrat this is one of the better Gundam reviews I’ve read. Most people are just hating on the game, but I like the DW series.

  3. Sounds good, I’m interested, but I have to wait for a price drop. $60 is too much for this game.

  4. Nice review. Very fair and from what I know about the series. Can I ask how long you’ve been writing? I see MANY reviews here.

  5. I haven’t played a DW games since the PS2 days, glad to see somethings haven’t changed 😉

  6. There always seems to be one really frustrating thing in the series. I always stop playing at some point in the game.

  7. Fighting mechs in a Dynasty Warriors game? Hmm, sounds kinda lame.

  8. Wow, thats a hell of a lot of missions!

  9. I heard they took out the Japanese voice tracks that were in the first game? Why?

  10. Gundan deserves better than this game

  11. Maybe they should have made in into a Lego game, or is GD not popular enough?

  12. One question- would it better in this format or in the Armored Core type of game?

  13. Nice review. I might pick this up if it ever hits the magic $20 price.

  14. I will probably get this eventually. I noticed your review is much kinder than most site. High 50’s on metacritic.

  15. Because they hate us. Maybe there wasn’t enough room on the 360 disk, and they wanted to keep the versions comparable.

  16. Armored core for sure.

  17. MasterofLockPicking

    $20 or bust.

  18. Everytime I see that title, I think “Goddamn”. Never really followed it.

  19. Whether or not the reviews are good, this game will sell to it’s fanbase. Like the review said, expect a third (and ninth)

  20. You guys seem to get it. So many other sites cal this game a ‘brawler’ or ‘beat-em-up’ when it’s not really about that at all.

    How come so many sites are complaining about the graphics, though?

  21. The series has lived long past it’s lifetime. They need to let the DW series evolve or die.

  22. IS there a demo of this. I have to admit I never played a Dynasty Warriors game.

  23. I’ve played since the PS1 days 😛

  24. Thats a Gundam good score for the game! LOL.

  25. Why can’t this series just die already? They’ve been making the same games for almost a decade now.

  26. never really been a fan of dynasty warriors but since this is gundam based it might appeal to me more

  27. Love the DW series, may just try it out.

  28. I was never a fan of either Gundam or Dynasty Warriors. I doubt I’d enjoy this game that much.

  29. As someone who played DW3 and 4, I’m very tired of Koei getting away with the “Only change a little so we can release another version in 6 weeks” concept of game design. DWG1 was dull and uninspired, Samurai Warriors was dull and uninspired. I could go on and on. Unless Koei sees fit to add Online Co-op, or they decide to stop being lazy money mongerers and reinvent the game they won’t get anything from me.

  30. I had always been a Warriors fan but as of lately, I just don’t see the reason to keep buying the same game as I own 8 already.

  31. Man, I’m torn between the relatively mediocre (at best) reviews this game has been getting, and my love of the concept (i.e. fighting robots). Might have to relegate this one to a definite bargain-bin pick up.

  32. great review, but i’ll pass on this one.

  33. More of the same is a good thing in some cases, although I’d say Koei has gone a bit overboard with all these DW games.

  34. I’ve always been a Dynasty Warriors fan, but the repitition has worn thin. I will probably pick this one up if I can find it for ~$20