It’s good to see companies taking risks. The games industry has been so inundated with sequels and shooters that games can start to look the same. The team over at Namco/Bandai want to change that with Rise of Incarnates.
Based on the Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme Vs. series Namco/Bandai wants to bring the popular 3D arcade fighter to the U.S. It plans to release the game later this year as free-to-play on Steam.
A demo version on display at E3 last week included four mythical characters set in a post-apocalyptic New York. The gameplay was pretty simple to pick-up and play, but clearly there additional nuances to the fighting mechanics. The game is played in teams, two-on-two, and players must defeat opponents a certain number of times to win the match. Matches are relatively quick, not lasting more than a few of minutes.
The player views their onscreen character from a third person view, as they lock on, traverse, and attack opposing enemies with light, heavy, and special moves. The concept was pretty fun and it’s little wonder it’s such a hit overseas. It’s also easy to see the game becoming a great party game, similar to Super Smash Bros.
The developers decided to revamp the game for a western audience out of concern that gamers would be reluctant to pick up a Gundam game (popular in Japan). By releasing the game on Steam and bringing in a new set of characters, it’s more likely that players will give the game a try.
While right now it’s only available for PC, the game could be a lot more fun with friends around the same television screen. Namco/Bandai does hope that the game gets popular enough to warrant a full console launch, but until then it plans to use Steam as a testbed.
Expect the game to launch on Steam later this year.
Screengrab via NamcoBandaiGames/YouTube
