SD Gundam G Breaker Playtest

December 6th, 2006, 00:44 Posted By: wraggster

Via IGN

Many of the early Wii titles put the new Wiimote controller to the test. Gundam Scad Hammers (to be known as SD Gundam G Breaker internationally) goes one step further. The Bandai Namco Japanese launch title is a true test of the longevity of the strap that comes bundled, and pre-attached, to every Wiimote. When playing this game, you'll want to heed the advice that starts off every Wii game and make sure that the strap is securely fastened.

In Scad Hammers, you take control of an SD-style Gundam unit in a fight against the ZEON army. Even without the Wiimote-based controls, the game feels a bit different from the usual Gundam fare. The fighting takes place from an overhead perspective. You play through 100 plus missions set in space, on the ground and under water, facing off against screenfulls of enemy mechs, ships and gun turrets.

Instead of standard missiles and guns, your Mobile Suit is equipped with a ball and chain as its primary weapon. Enter the Wiimote. All offensive moves in Scad Hammers involve swinging the Wiimote in some way. To perform a basic hammer-style attack, you swing the controller like a hammer. To swing your ball and chain around, you slash the controller left and right.

The game requires the nunchuck attachment, which you use to move your Mobile Suit around and jump during ground levels or dash during space levels. Standard buttons on the Wiimote are also used. Holding A down makes your Mobile Suit block. You perform a screen clearing super move by holding A and B down and swinging the controller around.

Above all else, you're encouraged to swing the Wiimote around like your life depends on it. The strength of your on-screen attacks correspond to the strength of your Wiimote swings. In order to get the strongest attacks, as indicated by a "Max Impact" registering on the on-screen power meter, you'll have to put quite a bit of force into your swings.

As you clear missions, you gather new items, which can later be equipped to your Mobile Suit for added attack and defense power. You also come into possession of up to 12 new ball and chain weapons, each with its own special attack, often providing even more ways to work your arm out.

Scad Hammers is missing a few things. There's no multi player play, no voices during the frequent dialogue sequences, and the levels (as you'll see in the new videos that we've posted) often lack music. Visually, the game offers progressive output (with Tamagotchi and Crayon Shin-chan not having this feature, I was worried someone in the Bandai Namco Group had a grudge), but it suffers from bland environments and slowdown when the screen gets busy.

While the game doesn't seem to be all that accurate in registering your swings correctly, due to the abundance of life and fuel power-ups, it doesn't really matter. Bashing away at screens filled with enemies is lots of fun thanks to the Wiimote mechanics. In fact, without the new controls, Scad Hammers looks like it would be pretty mindless and repetitive.

On the one hand, playing Scad Hammers for thirty minutes got my arm so physically tired that I had to take a ten minute break. On the other hand, isn't that the recommended way to play games anyway?

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