Welcome to Gundam Battle Nexus Online. Here in this VRMMO, Gunpla Builders from
around the world can connect on a whole different level. From friendly competitions to intense matches
on battlefields across the entire Gundam pantheon, for childhood friends and
life long Gundam fans Riku and Yukio, this game is a dream come true. But things get a lot more interesting when
Riku meets a mysterious girl named Sarah, who isn’t just your average girl
hanging out in the most popular video game of all time. The mystery of Sarah’s identity and the
chance to meet some of the top Gunpla Builders on the planet propel Riku and
Yuko into an unexpected adventure that will change their lives and the whole of
GBM forever.
I got into Gundam at the age of 12 when Mobile Suit
Gundam Wing first debuted on Toonami in Spring 2000.
It wasn’t the first Anime I’d seen outside of
Dragon Ball Z or Pokemon but it was an Anime that felt different from anything
I’d ever seen before.
It was more
intense, more adult and the designs of the Gundams changed the way I looked at
Giant Robots forever.
I became a Gundam
fan almost overnight, watching Gundam Wing whenever I could and buying as much
merch as I could.
Then I discovered the
larger Gundam multiverse and 23 years later, I have an Anime blog named after
my favorite Anime franchise.
I’m
starting out this new series premiere review this way because the first five
episodes (or 4.5) of Gundam Build Divers perfectly encapsulates the feeling of
being a 12-13 year old discovering this franchise for the first time and being
in totally awe over it and that’s before even getting to the Gunpla centric
stuff.
If the rest of this series is
gonna be like this intro set of episodes, I’m in for a very, very fun ride
that, like Gundam Build Fighters, perfectly appeals to the inner kid in me that
fell in love with Gundam back in 2000.
Welcome Dear Readers to the first half of our Extended Summer Series
Review, Gundam Build Divers.
Really, this show had me from the short Episode 0 ONA
alone.
The animation looks quite
colorful and the energy fits in with that of a show for younger audiences,
which Build Divers is supposed to appeal to first and foremost.
But this is still a Gundam show, which means
the mecha battles are still gonna be grand, epic and incredibly awesome.
The duel between Kyoya and Rommel is an
intense and fun battle filled with passion and mutual respect, showcasing just
how into Gunpla Battle players can get and how it can bring out their very best
personalities.
In a way, it’s a lot like
G Gundam, watching players get fired up the more they throw themselves into the
fight.
By the end of Episode 0, you’re
left breathless and if this 15 minute doesn’t get you hyped for what’s to come,
then you’re better off sticking to the more adult and usual Gundam fare.
Much like any other Gundam series, Build Divers lays out
the rules of this MMO right away and builds (no pun intended) on the basics
with each subsequent episode.
The
dialogue does come off too much like a video game tutorial when characters like
Magee are explaining the various systems and rules and regs.
Heck even Yuki sounds like he should be the
voice of a notification screen if the option to look it up is presented.
On the one hand I get it, it’s a video
game.
But this is what you’d have an
actual AI for, to be the guide.
Instead
we get Magee, a very flamboyantly designed character who feels like they belong
in Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure than Gundam.
As a guide, he’s ok, but others are better.
Not to mention he kind of comes off as a
super creepy guy befriending a bunch of grade school kids looking to get into
an Online Video Game and…yeah, as I said, creepy.
Past that though, the premiere does a good job of
establishing how GBN works and only adds more and more opportunitities and
activities with each episode.
The game
is a social hub with tons to do like recreate towns and cities from various
shows like Gundam Wing’s Sanc Kingdom or Moralia from Gundam 00, or just chill
out in a gorgeous looking field and relax with your friends while having a
picnic.
Most of the attention is geared
towards the action side of GBN but a little variety doesn’t hurt when it comes
to a game of this size and scale.
But
yeah, there’s plenty of focus on Mobile Suit combat because come on, it’s
Gundam.
I already talked about that
extensive 15min battle sequence in the Episode 0 Prologue.
While no other fight seems to reach that
scale, the first combat sorties with Riku and Yuki are fine for beginners
stages (the EP0 battle was between two long time GBN Vets).
The pair do a good job holding their own but
it’s seeing the more advanced players with more customizable Gunpla like Kyoya
and Tigerwolf that are a good appetizer for just how crazy and awesome GBN
battles can truly be when you reach a high enough level of skill.
Speaking of advanced players and beginners, the cast.
Riku and Yuki are basically how I was at the
age I first got into Gundam.
They live
and breathe this stuff, though Yuki seems to be a lot more knowledgeable of the
franchise, acting as a walking Wikipedia for Riku and Momoka.
Riku’s kind of a generic “I wanna be the very
best” protagonist but he’s a good kid and his friendship with Yuki is rock
solid.
Then there’s Momoka, who spends
half of this set trying to get Riku and Yuki to join the Soccer team before
giving up on that and joining them in their online Gunpla adventures.
So far she seems to be here for the viewers
who aren’t really Gundam fans and are stepping into this world for the first
time.
While she eventually adopts a Cat
Girl avatar, I love that for Momoka’s first day in the game, her Guest Avatar
was a Pink Haro.
Finally, there’s
Sarah.
She’s your mysterious girl who
fits the mold of an ethereal Newtype love interest: she feels a connection to
all Gunpla, she guides Riku to his first model and gets ill when the Mass
Divers use their illegal tech on the battlefield.
Clearly, Sarah isn’t a normal girl and an
immediate theory is that she’s from another world like Reiji from Gundam Build
Fighters.
Only problem is that I’m not
sure the worlds of Build Fighters and Build Divers are the same.
Still, there’s an instant connection between
her and Riku so one thing I’m sure of is, romantic love interest for sure.
The veteran players steal the show more often than
not.
I love that we have a Char Clone
(sort of) in Kyoya and he isn’t a total jerk (it’s actually refreshing since as
of writing this review I’m well into The Witch from Mercury and Prosepera
Mercury is making life a living hell for everyone).
Plus he’s piloting a custom version of the
AGE-2 from Gundam AGE and it’s Pirate themed counterpart, aka the best Gundams
in Gundam AGE.
Then there’s Tigerwolf,
who acts like a Morpheus like teacher to Riku and Yuki.
His episode is a ton of fun as he’s basically
showing the pair how to bend the game to their playstyles and grow stronger as
players by remembering this is VR, not real life.
Also he shows that embracing those skills
allow him to kick the mess out of a Mobile Suit with your bare hands.
Tigerwolf is basically an embodiment of the
fun that is G Gundam and he has a Gunpla to match: a variation of Gundam Wing’s
Altron Gundam but with Tiger Heads.
If
you ever wanted Voltron to have Dragon limbs, this guy has answered your
prayers.
Also there’s Rommel, Kyoya’s
friendly rival who duels him in Episode 0.
His Avatar is Stoat, which kind of looks like a weasel…and apparently
he’s very cuddly since Kyoya cant let go of his paw after they shake hands,
that’s adorable.
I’m probably not going to do this with every review
because it would take up way to many pages but there are A TON of references
and easter eggs littered throughout the first few episodes.
I already talked about how players can
recreate famous settings from different series.
There’s also familiar favorites who appear as Avatars like my man
Patrick Colassaur from Gundam 00.
Point
is, being an eagle eyed fan and being able to point out all the nods and hidden
surprises is kind of half of the fun of watching Build Divers (it was the same
for Build Fighters as well).
I instantly
went wide eyed as I watched Riku wander down rows upon rows of shelved Gunpla,
seeing them separated by series and trying to identify what models I
could.
And while Riku does pick a basic
build as his first choice (he goes with the 00 Gundam but tbh, it just feels
incomplete without the 0 Raiser to make it the Gundam 00 Raiser), I’m excited
to see how he customizes it going forward.
After all, much like GBN, Gunpla building is full of endless
possibiltiies when you wanna Frankenstein together your perfect mecha.
Gundam Build Divers is off to an excellent and very fun
start.
The world is a Gundam fans
perfect paradise with tons to do and lots to explore.
The various veterans offer a glimpse to the
potential of what can be done in this game and our main characters are an
instantly likeable group, if a little generic but maybe they’ll grow out of
it.
There is a conflict in the works
with the Mass Divers and their Break Labels messing up the game but I can talk
more about that in later reviews when it becomes more of a direct focus.
Right now though, my inner Gundam fan is
grinning ear to ear and wants to see more of this digital realm and what
adventures await.
Get comfy cause we’re
spending two whole shows with Gundam Battle Nexus Online This July.
See ya Wednesday for more Gundam Build Divers
right here at the Gundam Anime Corner.
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