GUNDAM VERSUS - PS4

After a wave of releases on the PlayStation 2, the Gundam series more or less stopped coming westward back in 2010. Serious fans could still get the various arcade-to-PS3 ports on import, but for a mainstream audience this is effectively the first Western release (aside from a PSVita release) in over half a decade.

The premise - giant mech suits piloted by humans to protect the Earth - suggests a third-person shooter, but that isn't quite what we've got here. Rather, Gundam Versus is an arena combat game that mixes up ranged shooting with close-up melee action. Featuring everything from classic Gundam to the brand-new Iron-Blooded Orphans and Gundam Thunderbolt, the game offers a huge range of mecha to take into combat that's sure to have any fan of the various long-running anime and manga stories geeking out.

Combat isn't exactly what you'd expect from an arena brawler. The controls are straightforward, designed as they are for the arcades, meaning that the emphasis is on movement and positioning over long combos. How you customise your character then manage your weapons to control space will dictate how well you do. Whether you're playing in one of the single-player modes or in online multiplayer, it's often not the player who can attack most furiously who wins - it's the one who can move fast but manage their resources.

Gundam Versus has been a long time coming, but it's sure to reward players looking for something a bit different in a combat game. more