SD Gundam Battle Alliance

Luckily, for every moment you dread another repetitive mission, you find three where you discover a new series, find a cool new mobile suit, or find a hidden conversation to delight longtime fans. There is a competent core game and an amazing celebration of the entire Gundam series here. You just have to survive a lot of grinding, frustrating bosses, and poor AI to find it. Take our advice: this is a ride you want to take with a friend.

SD Gundam Battle Alliance has been an absolute joy to play on both Nintendo Switch and Steam Deck over the last week with friends. I was a bit concerned about the Switch port initially, but it is great as a pick up and play game with better technical performance than I expected. It does needs some better balancing for solo play though, and the repetitive nature might turn put some off.

Overall, SD Gundam Battle Alliance is a solid mecha game and one that shows how far Artdink has come since their PlayStation Portable days. It’s also a very accessible game in terms of its controls and combat, which the cute approach only helps to accentuate.

SD Gundam Battle Alliance is an entertaining crash course in the Gundam series. It’s approachable no matter your level of fandom as it offers remixed historical battles with the added context of the true matchups. There’s so much to unlock and enjoy across each mission, but the repetition can weigh on the experience. Regardless, this is an addictive action game that mobile suit fans everywhere will enjoy.

I want to emphasize that SD Gundam Battle Alliance is an entertaining title, but that it may become repetitive shortly after starting the game. After all, you just have to defeat enemies, reach the goal and beat the boss on duty. Mechanics that will stay like this for almost the entire game.

I was a little surprised by how much SD Gundam Battle Alliance grew on me as I played it. Experimenting with different Mobile Suits and replaying missions to build them up makes for a surprisingly entertaining gameplay loop. And the way in which the missions are both bite-sized and gradually more challenging gives ample opportunity to try out new configurations for yourself and your partners when things don't work out initially. The story itself is likely only going to appeal to a specific, dedicated part of the Gundam fanbase, but the gameplay can stand on its own for Gundam newcomers. If you're okay with some repetition and an inscrutable plot, Battle Alliance offers a fun action experience with lots to unlock and try out.

SD Gundam Battle Alliance is a great example of fan service and one which does a very good job at celebrating the Gundam series for its long-running fans. If this group will be delighted at the huge number of robots to unlock and enjoyable combat, those less versed are more likely to see the game's flaws with regards to repetitive missions and a rather lacklustre plot. With all things considered, SD Gundam Battle Alliance is an action RPG that mostly aims for the Gundam fans group rather than for a general audience.

Action, strategy and role-playing! While being aimed at fans of the animated series, SD Gundam Battle Alliance is probably one of the best gateways to getting started in the Mobile Suit Gundam universe.

SD Gundam Battle Alliance is a delightful love letter to the Gundam universe, but newcomers can feel isolated by the sheer and confusing context the title is derived from.

This game has several shortcomings that make it only recommendable to die-hard fans of the Gundam franchise, due to being riddled with references to the series. If you are new to the franchise, we think it is not the best introductory game to enjoy one of the most popular mecha series of Japan.

Ultimately, SD Gundam Battle Alliance feels like the sort of game that will appeal to those who haven't picked up a Gundam game in a few years, but it's not going to move the needle for anyone else. Standard and unexciting combat is combined with some strange meta-narrative decisions that make this feel like a cute spin on some of the series' most iconic moments. The RPG elements of the game are also very limited, which means arcade-style fighters like Gundam Extreme Versus Maxiboost ON offers more exciting action. SD Gundam Battle Alliance is solid and will definitely be a hit with dedicated Gundam fans, but it's definitely not a reason to dive into the property for those who haven't done so before.