For a beloved franchise that has spent almost 5 a long time exploring wars between people, Gundam: Rogue Orbit is taking a fairly completely different method. Bandai Namco’s new motion sport is coming to the PlayStation 5, Xbox Collection X|S and PC on 5 March 2027, however this isn’t fairly the Gundam that long-time followers might be conversant in.
As somebody who has all the time been a fan of Gundam’s Common Century timeline, I’ve combined emotions about that. Personally, I’d have favored to see Bandai Namco make a correctly story-focused sport set within the UC period, so I’m a tad upset that Rogue Orbit isn’t it. On the similar time, the thought of seeing Gundam transfer into genuinely unfamiliar territory has intrigued me.
Picture: Bandai Namco
Rogue Orbit takes place in a brand new timeline and revolves round humanity’s struggle for survival in opposition to an unknown risk referred to as the Apocalypse. That alone marks the bigget change for Gundam, whose conflicts are normally rooted in human politics, clashing ideologies and the results of warfare fairly than a typical non-human enemy. In some methods, the sport looks like what you’d count on from a Pacfic Rim sport, the place big robots struggle in opposition to kaijus.
The setting is a part of Bandai Namco’s wider RG Undertaking. On this timeline, an autonomous object from one other galaxy offers humanity a number of main technological advances earlier than producing an aggressive, self-replicating ecosystem. Humanity is finally compelled to desert Earth, and the sport takes place 45 years later.
Gamers tackle the position of ace pilot RE-X, who controls the brand new Gundam Helix with the assistance of Vii, a Haro intelligent-assistance unit. The sport additionally shares its world with the forthcoming anime Cell Go well with Gundam RG XARX-ZERO, though its unique story takes place after the anime and has been designed as an entry level for newcomers.
Picture: Bandai Namco
The opposite massive departure is how Rogue Orbit strikes. The footage proven at this 12 months’s Tokyo Sport Present thus far seems to be nearer to a quick fashionable motion sport than the heavier, extra methodical Cell Go well with fight some followers could count on. The Gundam Helix can sprint throughout massive environments and transfer between floor and aerial assaults. Gamers can even swap its weapons, frames, thrusters and Apocalypse Models, or AP-U.
There may be nonetheless lots right here that followers can recognise as a Gundam sport, together with Haro (followers actually should know and customisable Cell Fits. But by shifting away from human battle, Rogue Orbit dangers shedding among the political complexity that provides Gundam its grounded id – and that’s my most important reservation as a Gundam UC fan.
Nonetheless, being upset that this isn’t the story-focused Common Century sport I need doesn’t imply I’m writing it off. Rogue Orbit has already performed sufficient to get my consideration, and I’m going to stay up for the sport when it’s out subsequent 12 months.