Retro Review: Gundam: Federation versus Zeon (PS2)

I have to keep reminding myself that the millennium was two decades ago. I think that's just part of getting older, or maybe just the a desire to escape 2020, but I find my nostalgia bracket creeping forward to that time. That time when anime was big, and expanding, but before certain distasteful trends became mainstream, and before I burnt out. FvZ dates from around that period, part of Bandai's big push to make Gundam a thing in the West. Huge back home, it however ended up as an obscure bargain-bin title in the UK, which I took advantage of. More recently, I reacquired the game, because of been in a Gundam phase lately, and TBH, it was quite influential on me. When it comes to the original Gundam story, it was actually a bit of nuisance to watch back then, as you have a choice between sub-only film versions that are quite long, or dub-only TV episodes you had to import. As a result the game was MUCH more approachable. Things are of course easier now that Bandai does that free YouTube channel, but you took what you could get back then. Incidentally, this isn't the first iteration of the game, either. This is actually the deluxe version with 0G space combat.

The thing about this game is that it's faithful to a fault, but it's based on something no bugger had heard of. So you start off with a serious sounding prologue mirroring the anime, and then run head-first into its cheesey 70's soundscape. The title screen announces itself with a loud "chu!", with this overly loud and baffling noise forming part of the menu interface. You navigate past this, into the game proper, and maybe start to enjoy the music, and then the English language track hits. There's a lot of repeated battle chatter, and your mileage may vary on how irritating it is. No, you can't switch to Japanese, for some level of separation. This is a downer.

 

So, once you've pushed past auditory issues, what's underneath? Well, a 3rd person shooter with a strong arcade feel. Which makes sense, as it was an arcade game originally. Rather than the strategic or simulation style that mecha games tend to be, FvZ has a deliberately simple interface and gameplay. You get one button to jump, one for shooting, one for melee, and one to lock the camera on target, with the shoulder buttons handling lesser used functions. This makes the game extremely easy to get into, and some effort has been made in ensuring mobile suits feel different. The animation and sound effects help, with something like the Dom gliding over the battlefield with a big gun, while a Guntank handles exactly like you'd expect. Something easily overlooked is the absence of hitscan weapons, with projectiles being visibly modelled and even destructible in some cases. This means you aren't sure of a hit even when locked on, it's a skill you have to learn. Game balance comes from a battle gauge bar for each faction, which acts as something like a points limit. You don't necessarily mind when something like a GM detonates, as it will be replaced from the bar without issue, but the loss of a Gelgoog is like loosing the game. Battles can get quite intense, although you do have rely on AI for your squad mates, and I can't decide if its functional, or if I'm just too busy to micro-manage it. I'm also less than keen on the zero gravity Missions. That said two player split screen is also availible, and given the general accessibility of FvZ, this certainly isn't a bad game to introduce a mate to.

It's not an especially deep game, mechanically, but there is progression and unlocks if you want to put in the time. More esoteric weapons like the G-Bull and Elmeth can eventually be used in multiplayer, but the campaign mode had greater appeal to me. Here you get a map screen and some initially repetitive scenarios as you encounter the famous battles of the One Year War. Here the strategy comes from selecting the Missions and trying to keep your mecha in good nick. A Gundam will happily slaughter all it sees, but it's not quickly repaired. There's no shortage of raw content there, and it does get engaging, although you might be disappointed to learn you can't change history as such.

Nerd complaints? Well, there's an unavoidable imbalance of variety between the forces. Zeon put out new designs every 10 minutes, and so has endless choice, but the Federation is much more limited. There has been an attempt to address this by adding in units from my personal fave, 08th MS Team, which is welcome, but there are issues later in the campaign as those can't be used in space. It would have been nice to see a few more GM variants, or at least a machine gun for the regular GM, so you had options. You'll also find the occasional oddity where a MS and its weapons don't sit well with control scheme.

Overall? FvZ is a functional if shallow game that does exactly what it set out to do. It doesn't have any real depth of mechanics or breadth of appeal, but it is fun and quite accessible. Enjoy in breif doses, ideally with another human.

Battlefleet Gothic: Brute versus Grunt

So, I had this idea to write a series of tactical analysis articles about a dead game I've hardly played, and am not likely to play for the foreseeable future. Why? Well, its something to do. I'm building some Ork Ships, so why not use the creative energy that's there?

Appearing in the original BFG rulebook, the Brute Ramship was possibly the one thing people actually liked about the Ork Pirate Fleet. Why? We'll get into that shortly, but one reason was that it was simply a unique ship that lent itself well to minmaxing. Over time, new ships where created and things improved, but the Brute remained popular. Advance to the 2010 compendium, these end up being the basis of another ship, the Grunt. Its just matter of plopping a Brute onto a battleship base, and you're done. But is the Grunt any good? Is the Brute also any good? Why might either be good or bad? For my ill-informed answer to these and similar questions, read on.

 

 

The Brute Ramship and the Art of the Head-on Collision

Now seems a good time to talk about ramming actions in general, before going onto the merits of the Brute. Ramming is usually a matter of three things, lining up, going on All Ahead Full, and then passing a leadership test to connect. Hull type and armour is important, as both ships inflict damage based on their maximum hull points, with the rammer taking the impact on the prow, and the ramee on the facing being dented. Another layer of complication comes from the size and orientation of the target, as its easier to hit a big ship with a small one, and “t-boning” results in the most reward for the least risk. Finally, ramming will always result in your ship moving its maximum distance, so its tricky to go from a ram into a boarding action on the the same target. Orks are pretty good at all this, due to THE BIG RED BUTTON, 6+ Prows, lots of hull points, and most weapons being front facing. An Ork ship can be confident of being in a position to attempt this, do it well, and then suddenly find in the middle of one of those fancy Imperial formations where it can have fun. Brutes are all about that. As escorts, these will almost never fail to hit their target, then inflict 4 dice worth of damage as their defining feature. These somehow ended up as the closest Ork thing to a regular escort too, having 90 degree turns and a reasonable pace of 25cm. Its most directly comparable to the Chaos Iconoclast class,while still having a 6+ front and all the other ork traits. Its the best of both worlds, and while its multidirectional gunz are weedy, it is very cheap at 25 points each. That said, a lot of people get rather excited by the Brute, not unreasonably, but let's not oversell it. As a weapon platform, its significantly outperformed by the admittedly inconsistent Onslaught. Sure, its relatively agile, but it's not got too much dakka. Also, by nature of its job description, it's got a life expectancy of about 20 minutes. It only takes one hit in a ram to destroy a Brute, and while you can chance that with a 6+ Prow, trying to headbutt a battleship is asking for a comedic end. 

 

The Grunt Assault Ship and the Art of “Inspiration”

Designed for boarding Actions with a secondary ram function, the Grunt is similar to the Brute, but dakka is proportionately less, and handling is much worse. The 45 degree turns and inability to Come To New Heading means it can't do the agile stuff. The larger base obviously makes it a bigger target for ordnance too, although it does have two turrets to compensate. As for its primary function? Boarding Actions are much easier overall to connect with than rams, as you only need to touch the target with that bigger base, but present a greater amount of risk. As escorts have only a single Hull Point, can be destroyed by a Critical Hit, with the latter maybe happening even if you win, you have to be prepared for these to die. Against other escorts, the odds are likely in your favour, but you probably need to gang up on something. This is less than ideal, as boarding results get applied to all ships, so whole squadrons can disappear if they pile-on and loose. Your bigger Kroozers don't have this concern, as while boarding is still chancy for them, they have a lot of Hull Points and other bonuses to make them good at it. Meanwhile, the Grunt has half the Ramming ability of the Brute, but the turning radius and larger base muddies the space waters. Grunts have a harder time aiming, but don't need to be as precise. However, these ships can buy the Klaws upgrade and become significantly more compelling. The possibility to inflict 2 damage before boarding commences largely compensates for the concerns above, and presents the amusing possibility of latching on. As Klaws damage on a 4+, they also offer a Lance substitute, and compensate for the reduced raw ramming damage. All things considered, with or without Klaws, a Grunt feels like an Orky answer to Tyranid escorts. That was probably the idea. However, this means that you have to be right on top of the enemy to do anything though, and the cost comes to 35 points each with grabbers.

Conclusion: Apples & Oranges

I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting the Grunt to have a such a clear distinction from the Brute, but neither being overtly superior to the other. It goes like this. The Brute is great at ramming, good as a conventional escort, and rather cheap. The Grunt is good/great at boarding, OK/good at ramming, but costs more and handles like a shopping cart. There is overlap, as both are based on high risk ploys that involve touching the enemy, but has its own unique selling point. That's a stark contrast to Ork Gunships, which tend to have only one function, as they have one defining weapon, and so are easily chosen. I feel actual playtesting is needed to decide a winner, but neither strikes me as a bad choice.

 

Gunpla: The MobileHaro (Haropla)

The Gundam franchise is for the most part a series of war dramas, but from day 1 it had elements of cute. Built by original protagonist Amuro Ray, Haro was essentially comic relief and kid appeal. It was an adorable pet, rather than a R2D2. Verbal, but not treated as having agency. Haro is of course ignored whenever people have "serious" discussions about Gundam, but Bandai rarely leaves a marketable concept alone for long, so Haro returned and multiplied. And became the Sunrise studio mascot. The most recent of these is the Haropla, a line of nonscale kits designed to be simple, attractive, and hugely collectable. Today's subject, for reasons which should be self-evident, is my first dalliance with the line.

As a build project, its a kit of two halves. The first is the globular Haro itself, which features a stand. This is simple to the point where actual tools may not be required, but the plastic and colours are almost perfect. Notably, the stand features storage for the optional limb parts, a nice touch. There's also a number of concealed ports for other bits, playing into a theme of customisation which I'll shortly becoming back to. If you ever wanted a Haro in plastic form, this is pretty good, bar some hollow bits. So, scaling for cost, I'm pleasantly surprised by the actual Haro.

Now for the actual reason I got this: the Mobile Suit bit. This is a large body for the Haro to sit in, which is similarly adorable, but in a super robot kinda way. It's got maybe a bit of the Boss Borat about it, with a big cylindrical body, stubby limbs, but an impressive rocket pack. Its great. And I'm pleased to report no real omissions with respects to articulation either, as it moves as well as something shaped like this could, with the arms being a highlight. Shame about the hollow bits again, notably in the feet. I had some difficulty getting the chest modules to go together. Still, not a bad way to spend a couple of hours.

 

The MobileHaro lacks accessories, it's hands being closed, but the instructions make reference to compatibility with other kits. This can be achieved via hand swaps, one example being with the GM/GM, which I had purchased at the same time by pure coincidence. Also the many small ports are compatible with Bandai option parts, such as from the 30 Minute Missions. You could properly tool this little dude up, although he poses well enough by himself. 

 

 

In sort: this was fun. Enough to make me consider doing more.

State of the blog post

OK, it's been roughly a year since I started doing gunpla as therapy, and blogging about it. I suppose some sort of retrospective is needed.

I'll admit that this blog is fundamentally a self-absorbed exercise. Many are, I suppose, but it's a realisation I only had recently. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy making things, and then writing about it, but I've begun to question why. Social media feedback was part of it, but I've found myself viewing it less of a treatment for stress so much as part of the issue. Even before I had to self-isolate, I found myself both a month ahead, more gunpla than I ever expected, and a return to ork-related projects like the Battlefleet Gothic stuff. And wondered whom/what it was for? Mainly for me, I think, I doubt I will ever be a "content creator" as such. Acknowledging that 2020 sucked balls, and any distraction was welcome, I suspect that there's an autistic component to this I wasn't fully conscious of previously. I'm starting wonder how much of my hobbies are things I actually enjoy for their own sake, or simply manifestations of the condition. Either that, or my tastes are merely fluctuating with the passage of time, and it wouldn't be the first time I ran headlong into a new hobby. I clearly have things to think about...

Anyways, while I intend to keep the blog going as a creative outlet, there's going to have to be variation and a clearing of a backlog. At time of writing, there's 11 weeks of articles pending, so I'll drop in several as bonus posts over the holiday period. Here's a brief list of what's in the pipeline.

Some more "remembering" of cartoons and anime.

A couple of video game mini-reviews.

Some articles on long-finished Gunpla.

More ork-adjacent BFG blogs.

Some Mecha Hack Stuff, as I backed the recent expansion on kickstarter.

Please check on Monday, for the first of the bonus articles.

Remembering She-Ra & The Princesses of Power (Netflix, Dreamworks)

OK, I'll be honest, I didn't think through what I'd have to do if She-ra actually won. This is gonna get personal, so bear with me.

 

 

Expressing all this is difficult. My initial reason for watching the Netflix She-ra was a mix of boredom and spite. Hey, don't judge me harshly. I'm an adult male whom collects toys and builds robot models, I don't claim to be especially mature. I'd just got Netflix for the first time, as I was on holiday. The show was on my radar as it seemed to be pissing off exactly the kind of person I dislike, so why not? I had no skin in the game, no attachment to the original, and not much to do. I was therefore gratified to find a well-written kids cartoon.

She-ra, when you get down to it, wasn't for me. I am not it's target audience any more than the haters were. I mean, look at those colours. It's a show for children, mainly girls, and as time went on, the LGBQT community. This is a separate matter from its objective quality, and ultimately why it attracted bile from some quarters. It is not pandering to 80's nostalgia, and it wasn't trying for adult geeks like say Steven Universe did. What the creatives did was retool the concept from the ground up, everything being a more interesting or smarter version of its source, until the merit became undeniable. But as She-ra found an audience far wider than anyone expected, it also got bolder with the LGBQT themes until it was shouting them. Cheering them. She-ra looks like a show about a girl empowered by destiny and a magic sword to fight off an alien invasion. But She-ra is actually a love story about two abused child soldiers finding themselves on opposite sides, doing the Mulder/Scully thing for 5 seasons, before literally saving the universe with a kiss. And they both happen to be women living on a world where such a relationship would be a total non-issue. And it is here where I regret my limitations as a writer. This was a show that did one of those "big first" moments, and thus will mean a lot to a lot of people. So much so, that I feel that there are better and more necessary voices than me whom should address these themes before myself. The show belongs to them and mine would be a well-meaning, earnest, but clumsy voice with little new to add. Let me just say that I'm very happy with how it turned out.

OK, I suppose I should go in a different direction, then, hadn't I? Something I do feel I can talk about adequately and with some degree of novelty. Oh. Crap. It has to be that, doesn't it?

Recently, around the time the series first streamed, I was diagnosed with Autistic Spectrum Disorder, and I didn't especially want to be. It was something of a bittersweet realisation, coming as it did in my late 30's, and I'd imagine it would be like discovering that you're adopted. It's not a bad thing, but a fundamental assumption of your life has changed. I find myself questioning and revisiting past interactions and habits. Its an entirely new strata of self-doubt if I'm honest, but maybe I know myself better now? Its questions like: oh, is that why I behaved like that? Is that part/some/most of the reason why I have difficulty connecting with people? Is that why I like this thing obsessively? Is that character Neurodivergent? Is this meant to be like me? There's certainly a lot of scifi I've watched with that question over it now. And then, this realisation: Ah yes, Entrapta. Oh. Well, there's also Rick & Morty, but I'll take the less toxic option, thanks. So , I'm gonna talk about Entrapta for a bit, before I curve back around and tell you that the show is good, once more.

Princess Entrapta is the primary technological expert of the series, whom ends up switching sides twice due to circumstance and not really having a moral compass in the conventional sense. Usually cheerful and eager to please, Entrapta is entirely about the science, building robots as friends, and fangirling about the fabled First Ones technology she comes across. Wider problems like there being a war on, and that she's maybe making weapons for the bad guys, do not register unless its really apocalyptic. For her, social norms and subtext is something that mainly happens to other people, although that's not to say she's indifferent to them. Entrapta's personality made her easily manipulated into working for The Evil Horde, but that meant she encountered the dictator Hordak, forming an unexpectedly adorable relationship. Lots of stuff to unpack with that, most of it involving said dictator, but lets keep it simple and say they both bonded as outsiders with techy interests. Following a betrayal, she ends up banished to the notably unpleasant and insanity-inducing Beast Island, and it barely slows her down. On rescue, Entrapta rejoins the Princess Alliance once a few misunderstandings are cleared up, but there are still consequences to be faced, ones she was largely oblivious to. But, as much as anyone other than the titular She-ra, Entrapta helps saves the day, firmly on the side of good when it really mattered. She also, at the last possible moment, ends up being what prompts Hordak to turn against the ultimate villain of the show.

 

I suppose Entrapta is one of those characters that is treated in-universe as being strange, but I'd not viewed it as meaning anything beyond just her being herself. I took her as a mad scientist archetype, eccentric certainly, but not someone I gave any thought to as being different with a capital D. Maybe that was because its a kids TV show at the end of the day and there's much more eye-catching stuff on display. Maybe my attention was on more important characters. Or maybe I just didn't recognise her as different from me, because she wasn't. I didn't realise this at first; Entrapta manifests many of the mannerisms and thought processes I didn't recognise as Autistic traits until very recently. Mainly the happier ones, as befits the show, but also the social awkwardness, naivety, and isolation. Things I personally still struggle with. And this is deliberate. Its not the only thing about the character, but it was the intent of a very inclusive creative team to have someone on the spectrum. And they did it just as I needed it, before I even knew that I needed it. Thank you. Thanks for having a nuanced autistic character on screen, and one whom seems to be at ease with herself.  And, of course, she went and said this:

 

Imperfection is what makes scientific experimentation possible. Imperfection is beautiful!... At least to me.

Expressing all this is difficult. I'm still learning what it means to be on the spectrum, and its not been an easy road. But I'll take what help I can get, and if that's a supporting character in a quality kids show, so be it. And that character is far from the only worthwhile thing in the cartoon. I'm gonna stop writing this one.  You go watch it.

Plamo: The 30 Minute Missions Alto (Ground Type, Olive Drab)

Its been far too long since I talked about one of these, and I'm currently having to self-isolate, so here's a bonus post!

The ground type represents a relatively straightforward variation on the Alto, although one that edges a bit close to Frame Arms territory should you opt for tank heelies. Seriously, see here. Most of the new parts are there to provide new lower legs plus feet, and a set of modular tank treads. As a project its as much fun as as any 30MM kit, but using these proved to be a touch less elegant than I would have liked, as it's hard to use all the components at once. The new feet can't ride the treads directly, you'd have to use the adaptors from the arm shields, which is an inconvenience. There's also a wee bit of a visual disconnect between the chonky-boy leg bits and the otherwise skinny frame, but nothing major. These kits are all about customisation, after-all, and one hopes for these gubbins to be separated out for a future re-release. Meanwhile, you get an absolutely gorgeous bazooka as armament, which overshadowed any nitpick I had. And if you are wondering, yes, you could build this as a stock Alto, although this kit omits the usual backpack and weapons. Here's a quick picture of the straight build.

What I ended up doing was simply replacing the feet with the treads, which meant removing the balljoints, but I think it works well. You could drill in new sockets for the polycaps, but that's the kind of delicate and precise work I'd want a spare set for. I decided to break up the olive drab a little with shoulder segments left over from an earlier project, and gave it a spare blaster as a secondary weapon. I found myself was working towards a Dom Tropen sorta vibe with this; its great to have a massive bazooka, but that's a liability up close.

This also ended up as something of an experiment in panel lines. I used a grey Gundammarker for the majority, which came out nice and subtle, if hard to photograph. The guns were done in a unipin fine line black, which helped the details pop. I think each played to the strengths of the plastic, and you'll see more like this in future blog posts.

 

 

While probably the least involved 30MM project I've done in a while, I'm rather proud of this one.

Plamo: Grot Tank (Warhammer 40K, World War Toons)

Baby tank, doo doo doo doo doo doo 

Baby tank, doo doo doo doo doo doo

Baby tank, doo doo doo doo doo doo 

Baby tank!

Sorry.

 

During the last moments of Orktober, I chanced upon an absolutely wonderful orky tank diorama, and eventually decided to have a go myself. This project was not completed until late November, and is still technically unfinished as I have yet to complete a crewman for the turret. I'm having a bad time with orky skin just now, and not liking the results from two different techniques. But as the majority is done, and that which is done is good, here we are.

The main kit is a Meng KV-2, as part of their "World War Toons" line. Meng isa fairly serious name in scale modelling, but this appears to be merchandise from a cutesygame. This means the tank has exaggerated proportions, but the kit didn't feel dumbed down. The only complaint I'd make are the rubber tracks, but that's a common weakness of tank kits. I'll probably come back to the merits of these in a future article, but these seem rather good for a tenner. As the KV-2 is quite excessive even when depicted normally, this project immediately morphed into an Orkish enterprise once I had it in hand, as opposed to a straight build like I originally wanted. More specifically, a Grot Tank, a vehicle built by the perpetual butt monkeys of Warhammer 40k, Gretchin. A.K.A space goblins. Its not game legal, as far as I know, but I haven't bothered to check.

The tank was assembled largely as per instructions, and then dressed with any bits that fit. I also applied a packet of stick-on gems to imitate rivets, an effect that worked here, but on reflection needed more glue in places. As I had doubts about the tracks, I mounted it on a base made from a stack of old cds. Jobs a Good 'Un.