On the official website, executive producer Kazuya Maruyama said, “It is with great sadness that we are announcing the conclusion of Gundam Evolution. We wanted to create a title that brought first-person shooter fans and Gundam fans together. We challenged ourselves to create an authentic Gundam first-person shooter game that could be played globally. Unfortunately, we have determined that it is no longer possible for us to provide a service that satisfies our players.”

The sale of EVO Coins, EC Pod Limited and updates to EC Pods, CAP Pods and Ticket Pods ends on July 26th, 6 PM PT. Any remaining EVO Coins can be used until the service ends, though there won’t be any refunds on the currency or other items and services. To unlock new upcoming units, players can earn Capital Points by logging in, participating in events and more.

There won’t be any new items purchasable with EVO Coins. On August 23rd, Season 6 goes live and adds a new unit and two new maps. Season 7 is the final one and adds another new unit and map. It starts on October 25th, and while Ranked matches will continue till the end of service, you can’t earn titles in Season 7.

Along with a Beam Submachine Gun, the Hyperion Gundam has a shield on its left hand that it can use to block damage. Its G Maneuver and Skill is the “Armure Lumiere,” which creates a 360-degree light wave barrier. It can cover allies while moving, providing strong defensive capabilities. Hyperion can also deploy energy drills and rush at the enemy to deal massive damage.

Season 3: Defencer will be available on February 1st after server maintenance, scheduled for 4:30 to 9 PM PST. Players won’t be able to matchmake for Casual or Ranked matches a half hour before the maintenance period, so keep that in mind. For more details on Gundam Evolution, check out our review here.

I myself am not an avid watcher of Gundam. I do, however, love all things giant fighting robots, so I am familiar with the characters, and more importantly, the mecha designs. Despite my minimal knowledge of the series, I found Gundam Evolution to be incredibly welcoming, and I think it’s been smartly designed to not rely on prior knowledge to get players engaged.

"I myself am not an avid watcher of Gundam. I do, however, love all things giant fighting robots, so I am familiar with the characters, and more importantly, the mecha designs. Despite my minimal knowledge of the series, I found Gundam Evolution to be incredibly welcoming, and I think it’s been smartly designed to not rely on prior knowledge to get players engaged."

In fact, the game doesn’t really waste any time at all. I was never more than just over a minute away from jumping into a match from the PS5’s home screen. That might have something to do with the PS5’s blisteringly-fast SSD, but once you get to the game screen for Gundam Evolution, you just need a single button press to get going in a match, and that’s fantastic.

Something I found particularly interesting in playing Gundam Evolution was just how nimble each mecha was. From what I’ve seen of the series, I understand that the Mobile Suits fly and move rather smoothly. But being in the cockpit of one, I was expecting something closer to Daemon X Machina or Armored Core in terms of movement, where there is a reassuring “Ka-chunk” with every footstep to let you know that you’re piloting a 10-ton death machine.

Instead, each of the game’s 12 free characters (the ones I tried) move and attack with a swiftness that makes most of them feel like human characters. This is where the similarities to Overwatch begin, I feel. Bandai Namco took the iconic mecha from the series and made an impressive, fully-functioning hero shooter out of their differences in design and attack style.

But, did they hew a little too closely to Overwatch for comfort? The layout of the UI is chin-scratchingly similar, with the special abilities and ammo counter on the bottom right, the health bar on the bottom left, and the circular “special” meter right in between them. Things get even more suspicious when you’ve played more than a few of the mecha. The all-rounder Pale Rider plays a lot like Soldier 76, and Gundam Barbatos feels suspiciously similar to Reinhardt with each swing of its melee weapon.

The similarities are pretty overt, but they didn’t detract from the game for me after I noticed them. The game is clearly inspired, but it uses that inspiration to create an excellent experience with characters that have been beloved for decades, and it does all of this while refining the gameplay Overwatch introduced all those years ago.

"Each of the game’s 12 free characters move and attack with a swiftness that makes most of them feel like human characters. This is where the similarities to Overwatch begin, I feel. Bandai Namco took the iconic mecha from the series and made an impressive, fully-functioning hero shooter out of their differences in design and attack style."

Once you get into a match in Gundam Evolution, the action is fast and frenetic. There are three game modes: Point Capture, Domination, and Destruction. Point Capture is similar to Overwatch’s Control mode, where you fight to maintain your team’s hold on an objective. Domination is a mode where each team battles to control three points simultaneously, and Destruction is really just Search and Destroy with Gundam.

All three game modes definitely inspire competition, and you’ll probably find yourself switching between Mobile Suits several times in each match to find one that works for the current scenario. Thankfully, that shouldn’t be such a tall order considering just how varied each of these units is. There are 18 in total, but 12 of them are free to use and 6 of them are premium units that you need to purchase with one of the game’s currencies (more on that later).

I’ve already mentioned Pale Rider and Gundam Barbatos, but there are also standouts like the dual-wielding, transforming Methuss, and the beam rifle-toting, overhead throwing Turn A Gundam. None of the Mobile Suits feel bad to use necessarily, the only gripe I have is with Guntank, which is the only Mobile Suit on the roster that isn’t bi-pedal. It uses tank treads to get around, and for some reason, this unit is very noticeably “slippery”. There’s a tedious disconnect between the player halting motion input and the unit actually stopping, which is so different from the other units as to be frustrating. It’s balanced out with sick dual arm cannons and its special ability that sends out an exploding flying drone.

As with any competitive online, team-based game, your level of success will largely depend on the group of people that you end up with. This would be mitigated by playing with a team composed of your friends, but I was, unfortunately, unable to test this as I played the PS5 version of the game, and my friends play it on Steam. It is also available on PS4, and those players can match up with PS5 players, but there is no cross-platform matchmaking between the Sony consoles and Steam.

"All three game modes definitely inspire competition, and you’ll probably find yourself switching between Mobile Suits several times in each match to find one that works for the current scenario."

The allure of the free-to-play model as it applies to video games is that, over time, these games tend to be more profitable as they can be a continuous source of revenue for the publisher. This model has obviously been treacherous and exploitative in some games, but Gundam Evolution does it right in my opinion.

There are two currencies in the game: EVO Coins and Capital. EVO Coins can be purchased in packs ranging from $10 to $100 from the PlayStation Store, while Capital is earned by playing the game and completing objectives. It’s not a bad system, though I shudder whenever I see a $100 add-on for a free video game (which is becoming increasingly regular).

If you really want those 6 extra Mobile Suits, you’re more than welcome to purchase EVO Coins and unlock them right away, though you can get to them eventually after you earn enough Capital, which could admittedly take quite a while.

The other part of the free-to-play model is the obligatory Premium Pass system. Both free players and Premium Pass holders can play the game and earn points that go toward the Season Pass, which unlocks cosmetic goodies like weapon and unit skins, stickers, and emblems as well as other rewards including Supply Pod (loot crate) Tickets and even EVO Coins. However, the Premium Pass holders get additional rewards and other perks, such as unlocking Ranked Matches right away even though it is locked until level 20 for free players. It’s worth noting that Premium Passes can only be purchased with EVO Coins.

"At the end of the day, Gundam Evolution’s combat feels fun and well-balanced, and the way the Mobile Suit’s abilities work in the heat of battle only add to the excitement."

At the end of the day, Gundam Evolution’s combat feels fun and well-balanced, and the way the Mobile Suit’s abilities work in the heat of battle only add to the excitement. There is some eye-rolling at the game’s monetization, and Guntank’s slipperiness should be fixed, but overall, it’s a well-made, entirely free game that doesn’t force your hand to cough up any amount of money. Considering all of this, Gundam Evolution is absolutely worth your time.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.

Along with Nu Gundam (which you can see in action below), the two-month-long season has matchmaking improvements and adjustments to Ranked mode. New customization items, Supply Pod updates, Achievements, and Spectator Mode (PC-only, for now) are also coming. In late December, new event modes and campaigns will be added as part of Season 2’s latter half.

The in-game store is also getting a revamp, so stay tuned for more details. Gundam Evolution launched in September with 12 different Mobile Suits and ten maps. It received several more playable Suits as part of Season 1, like Gundam Unicorn and Mahiroo, and four new maps.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rVox2X908M

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmP-xG3yryg

Each mobile suit, whether it’s the Gundam RX-78-2, Barbatos or Marasai, has unique abilities. Some excel in melee combat, while others are more suited to long-range combat. In addition to the base roster, there are five more mobile suits to unlock, including Gundam Unicorn and Mahiroo. Season 1 will also add four new maps.

New mobile suits and customization items are unlocked with Capital Points earned by playing the game or EVO Coins, which cost real money. Of course, one can unlock everything and receive four Weapon Skins, four Unit Skins and an Ornament by purchasing the DX Edition for 4180 EVO Coins.

Gundam Evolution launches on November 30th for Xbox One, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, and PS5. Stay tuned for more details and updates in the coming weeks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gY0looyN5tg

All of your favorites are here, from the iconic Gundam RX-78-2 to Gundam Exia (Mobile Suit Gundam 00) and Barbatos (Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans), and they’re quite faithful to the original designs. It’s worth noting that the models and environments in the trailer are to replicate scenes from their respective anime. The actual gameplay plays out differently, though you can still expect to use some classic abilities and weapons.

Gundam Evolution launches with 12 playable mobile suits and three modes: Domination, Destruction and Point Capture. Ten maps are also available, with four more coming in Season 1. There will also be three new Gundam – Unicorn Gundam, Zaku 2 (Melee Loadout) and Mahiroo. Stay tuned for more details in the meantime.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNmQQ9WUHSI

Seasons last two months, and the developer plans to add new units every season. It also outlined cosmetics like Unit Skins, Weapon Skins, MVP Skins, Stamps and Ornaments. These are obtainable through Season Passes and Supply Pods. However, the game will launch with over 500 items, and two more customization categories – Character Select Animation and Portraits – are coming later.

Those who want to unlock all Mobile Suits right out of the gate can purchase the DX Edition for 4180 EVO Coins. The launch bundle includes all launch Mobile Suits along with Unicorn Gundam, Gundam Exia, Marasai (UC), Zaku 2 (Melee Loadout), and Mahiroo. You also get four Weapon Skins, four Unit Skins, and an Ornament.

Gundam Evolution is out on September 21st for PC and November 30th for Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, and Xbox One in North America.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLUeowwUuJI

The 6v6 team-based shooter launches with 12 playable mobile suits, including Gundam Barbatos, Sazabi, Gundam RX-78-2, GM Sniper 2, and more. Three modes – Point Capture, Domination and Destruction – and ten maps will also be available.

Four new maps were unveiled during the briefing as part of Season 1. Harbor City and Wilderness Mining Field are Point Capture maps, with the former having out-of-bounds areas to knock enemies into. Guiana Highlands is a Domination map, while Security Terminal is a Destruction map.

Stay tuned for more details on Season 1, Season Passes, and more shortly. You can head here for more gameplay which showcases Gundam Exia and Marasai (UC) in action.

The closed network test can be registered for on the official website. Registrations will be open until June 25, and the invitations will go out between June 24 and June 26. Gundam Evolution had its PC network test back in April, and originally announced the console network test in May.

Gundam Evolution was announced back in March. It is a 6-on-6 competitive multiplayer game with a focus on objectives. Like Overwatch, players can pick their Mobile Suit of choice to allow for different strategies. Ultimates in Gundam Evolution are called G-Maneuvers, and each unit has its own unique G-Maneuver.

Gundam Evolution is set to release some time this year on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. Unfortunately, it won’t support cross-platform play.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gj6FgVx2Lvs

Starfield

Let’s get the most obvious one out of the way first. Bethesda Softworks’ upcoming Starfield is easily one of the most highly anticipated games right now. The game has recently received a lot of new details and Bethesda has done a fabulous job with its NASA-Punk designs. Starfield releases for Xbox Series X/S and PC in the first half of 2023.