Let's Play with Hotblooded Anime! (Super Robot Wars J)

[Nerd-o-rama]

Let's Play Super Robot Wars J!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-lDgq-xyTk
(Not mine, OVA by eriazu666)

Game: Super Robot Wars J (aka Super Robot Taisen J)
System: Nintendo Game Boy Advance
Genre: Strategy RPG/Science Fiction
Developer: Banpresto
Released: 2005

The Super Robot Wars franchise is a freakishly popular Strategy RPG series in the vein of Fire Emblem or Final Fantasy Tactics with a unique premise: it's a crossover of numerous Humongous Mecha-themed anime, taking the plots and premises of numerous shows and throwing them in a blender, creating a smoothie-like confection of Awesome and Fun. Super Robot Wars J was the last of these released for the Game Boy Advance, and the next thing on my "to-play" list, so, inspired by the other LPs on this board, I thought I'd share it with you.

There's a bit of a problem, however. Outside of two game featuring only Banpresto's original characters, as opposed to being TV crossovers, none of the Super Robot Wars games has been released in English, mainly because it would be too much effort to deal with the licensing of such a thing outside of Japan (where Bandai owns everything anyway). So! While I'm posting this LP, I'll be endeavoring to guess at a rough translation/summary of the story and dialog based on what I know of the series used in it and what I can pick up from GameFAQs. That's gotta be a great idea, right?

For people who don't enjoy anime or giant robots; stick around, it's still a fun little SRPG, and I promise I'll try to keep it accessible. I don't even have a bloody clue what the plot is, so I'll be making up the non-gameplay stuff as I go along.

My ground rules:
1) I'll be using GameFAQs in a limited fashion, mainly because I don't know enough Japanese to read things like mission objectives, and because I'm a completion whore who can't stand not knowing how to get the (impossible to find) secret units. This is a playthrough for fun, not a challenge run.
2) My goal is one mission per update (52 stages total), using the shorter beginning missions to get the hang of LPing.
3) The LP will be a mix of screencaps, video clips, and text commentary.
4) After each mission, I'll ask the audience to vote on what units to upgrade and prioritize for the next mission, as well as any route splits or other plot choices I need to make. I'll run the actual battles and try to grab the Skill Points (optional objectives) myself, as well as any secret units or the like that fit into path splits.

Used in this LP: Virtual Boy Advance emulator (don't worry, I have a GBA and a hardcopy of the game from play-asia.com), AVIEdit freeware video editor, photobucket.com, youtube.com, gamefaqs.com, and 10000 hours in MSPaint.

First up: pre-game choices.

Spoiler

Show

Here we have our lovely title screen.

Our first option is a choice of main character. These are characters original to the game (as opposed to being drawn from TV shows) who will be pilots we use in almost every level, as well as being the focus of the game's meta-plot. We choose one:


First up is Touya. He's your average everyday Japanese high school student who winds up with a giant robot for no good reason. Judging by the look on his face, he's going to angst about how much war sucks. A lot.


Calvina is our other choice. Exotically beautiful woman with a figure to make Studio Gainax proud. Probably emotionally fragile due to a tragic backstory...okay, I cheated and looked that one up on TVTropes.

Next up, we have a choice of three brand-new original giant robots for one of these heroes to pilot. This will be our main unit in the game, and will probably get an upgrade of some kind right around the middle, because that's how anime works. It's useful here to describe some terms Super Robot Wars is fond of:

Super Robot: Mecha that don't even pretend to follow the laws of physics. In game terms, they're usually bulky and tend to alternate between melee weaponry like swords or drills and torso-mounted laser beams. Super Robot series that were/are popular in America include G Gundam, the shows that became Voltron, and Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann.
Real Robot: Mecha designed on a more "hard" science fiction basis. In game terms, they're usually fast, agile, and more likely to use modular ranged weapons than a big-ass sword. Real Robot series well-known to America include most Mobile Suit Gundam series, the shows that became Robotech, and Code Geass.

Our choices are:


Bellezut: a traditional Real Robot focused on ranged sniping. Great for beginners, since it can attack a good number of enemies from outside the range of their weapons, and has a MAP attack (one that can hit multiple squares of the battlefield instead of a single target.)


Coustwell: another dodge-tastic Real Robot, this one concentrating on a close-quarters combat and mobility. Rather advanced, given that it has low HP and relies solely on dodging enemy counterattacks, which can be risky. On the plus side, Real Men Wear Pink.


Granteed: A Super Robot of the old school, using thick armor, high HP, and RIP AND TEAR attacks. Probably the most popular unit among J's fandom.

Finally, after choosing these, we get to select our "favorite series".


These are all the shows that have units appearing in this game. We select three to be our favorites, granting certain bonuses, mainly the ability to upgrade units from these shows well past their normal limit (more on upgrading in a later update). The shows that appear in this game are:

Blue Comet SPT Layzner
Brain Power'd
Choudenji Robo Combattler V
Choudenji Machine Voltes V
Full Metal Panic! (and Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu, the second season)
Mobile Fighter G Gundam
Mobile Suit Gundam SEED
Hades Project Zeorymer
Martian Successor Nadesico
Mazinkaiser (and Mazinkaiser vs. The Great General of Darkness)
Space Knight Tekkaman Blade
Super Beast Machine God Dancougar

Sorry if the selection's limited; SRWJ has a very odd array of shows used, completely missing the original Gundam timeline (though SEED's pretty much the same story with different characters), the core Mazinger shows, and the entirety of Getter Robo, normally mainstays of the franchise.

I'll leave that for a couple days while I do some schoolwork and ask you to vote on:
1. Main Character (Touya or Calvina)
2. Main Robot (Bellezute, Coustwell, or Granteed)
3. Your three favorite series in the list above (top 3 will be chosen).

Ready? Go!

[Ascension]

I'll say...

1.) Calvina: Touya probably has the potential to be funnier, but... I pretty much always go with the girl when presented with male and female options for main-character selection. Why break tradition now?

2.) Bellezute: Because as Soviet Russia taught us, girls are supposed to be snipers. Or something like that. And because I prefer dodging and staying out of range to taking hits in SRW. And because the licensed series give us plenty of super robotty goodness.

3.) -G-Gundam: Hotblooded awesomeness.
-Nadesico: For obvious reasons.
-Mazinkaiser: To make up for not choosing Granteed.

[KnightDisciple]

1.) MAN ANGST!!!
2.)RIP AND TEAR!!!
3.) a.)GEKKIGENGER PUNCH! (Nadesico)
b.) Full Metal Panic!
c.) THIS HAND OF MINE IS BURNING RED! ITS LOUD CRY TELLS ME TO DEFEAT YOU! (G-Gundam)

[Dispozition]

1. Calvina. Do it for the lulz. I predict that something incredibly awkward will come out of it as well...

2. Granteed. Hack'n'Slash ftw. Mow through the enemies with your crazy drill hand things!

3. 1. FMP (only one I've watched)
2. Nandesico (has an anime in an naime)
3. Gundam Seed ('cause it's the only other one I know...)

[hanzo66]

Angsty pretty boy or Angsty pretty girl? I'd choose the boy because it's funnier.


Bellezut, because I've always been more a Shooty type.


G Gundam, FMP and Nadesico. Why? Because these are the only series I'm vaguely familiar with.

[Fri]

GASP! Hard choice this fast in the beginning? How could you nerdo, how could you!?

But after much inner conflict, I choose:

1.Average student who stumbled into giant robot for no reason! You couldn't go wrong with average student who stumbled into giant robot for no reason.
2.RIP AND TEAR
3.-FMP. You couldn't go wrong with sagara and bonta kun
-Uhm... Voltes V? we need crazy classic combining mech, and It was POPULAR around here.
-G Gundam. For the lulz.

[Moonshadow]

No, Combattler V pwns Voltes V!

If this game has Dancougar, use that. Its epic wtfpwn. So is Raideen, if you can stand the theme music.

And definatly use Mazinkaiser/Mazinger Z. Kouji Kabuto = w1n!


ROCKETO PAUUUUUUNCH!

[Nerd-o-rama]

Can you pare that down to three votes?

Also, sorry for not doing Alpha like I originally planned, Yuuki. I can guess who you'd vote for there.

[Cubey]

1. Calvina. No reasons other than pure fanservice.
2. Granteed. RIP AND TEAR, RIP AND TEAR! Also, what's up with the mecha's halo?
3. Fullmetal Panic, Martian Successor Nadesico, G Gundam. I am so predictable.

EDIT: Although... this game has Zeo "total hax" rymer in it. Not that it needs even more upgrades, so I'll keep with my first selection. If I were to choose it, it'd be a purely powergaming choice.

[Moonshadow]

Can you pare that down to three votes?

Also, sorry for not doing Alpha like I originally planned, Yuuki. I can guess who you'd vote for there.

Well, Dancougar, Mazinger Z and Combattler V then >_>; Also, Calvina in the Granteed. Supers tend to be more effective than Reals in the older games, I've found.

If you were going for Alpha, I'd be plugging Cybuster, Yuuki in the G T2 and the Deathscythe <_<;

[Nerd-o-rama]

Also, what's up with the mecha's aureola?

I know you mean "aura", but I'm quoting this for posterity. And I think it has to do with the G-stone Power Getter Rays Spiral Energy whatever the green emotion-based MacGuffin energy in this game is.

EDIT: Looking closer, I'm pretty sure it fires lasers of some kind, a la Daitarn 3.

[Attilargh]

The girl, in the Super, with Domon, Sagara and the guy from Nadesico.

Also, could you shrink the images a wee bit, maybe to half or even a quarter of their size? The Xbox-sized pixels are a bit grating.

Ædit: I think he actually did mean aureola.

[Nerd-o-rama]

Not in America, he didn't.

Okay, so it's a letter off, it still sounds basically the same.

Anyhow, you're either going to get HUEG pixels or tiny pictures. The Game Boy just plain doesn't have anti-aliasing. However, I guess they would look better at 200% zoom rather than 300%. I'll run with that for the next update.

[Tengu_temp]

1. Touya. I want Nerdo to be stuck with the angsty Ryoto-lookalike (only more bishie).
2. Belezute. I want Nerdo to be stuck with the noob mech.
3. Gundam SEE... okay, I won't be that cruel. Let's go with the Tomokazu Seki-tastic setup of G Gundam, Nadesico and Full Metal Panic.

[Fri]

if you're using vba, you could use more filtering. It'll slow down some computer, but hey, someone like you who can make hard disk explodes just by staring at it won't have any problem with that, will you?

(or, you might had used a lot of filtering already.)

It's not really a problem for me though.

[Winged One]

1. *coin flip* The guy.
2. Granteed. The sniper is for noobs and the pink one will get you killed.
3. a. Full Metal Panic!
b. G Gundam
c. Gundam SEED(out of weirdness rather than sadism; I actually enjoyed the series when it wasn't doing one of the 9000 flashbacks and Jesus wasn't being so emo that I actually believed it when I read a report of Shinji goddamn Ikari smacking him for being emo in another SRW game)

[Penguinizer]

1) One vote for team gainax.
2)Granteed. It even has the head thingy.
3) a) G-Gundam, for the obvious reasons.
b) and Nadesico since it promises greatness.
c) Full Metal Panic since it's the only other one of those I've actually watched.

[obvious pun]

1) Angsty male. cause i want to see him get a bright slap
2) RIP AND TEAR
3) G Gundam, FMP, and Nadesico

[Nerd-o-rama]

1) Angsty male. cause i want to see him get a bright slap

I should probably tell you that Bright Noa does not appear in this game. Then again, between Kurz and Mao from Full Metal Panic, Ryoko from Nadesico, and everyone from the super robot shows, I think we have the PAAAAAAAANCH! factor covered.


...did any of these shows even come out in America besides G, FMP, and Nadesico? They kind of have a landslide right now. I suppose SEED did...

[Rogue 7]

1. Angsty female. If we've got to have angst, we may as well have some fanservice to go with it.
2. Bellezut- I like long-range combat, what can I say?
3. a. Fullmetal Panic. Only one I've seen recently, and Souske brings the lulz. Plus I think the mechs are cool.
b. G Gundam- Shining Finger is awesome
C. Nadesico, as it seems to be the popular choice.

[Ascension]

Brain Powerd (under the better-spelled title "Brain Powered"), the Mazinkaiser OVA, and Tekk... err... "Tenkoman" did indeed come out in America, but no, none of them are exactly mainstream.

At least in the case of Brain Powered it's probably a good thing it's not.

[SurlySeraph]

1. Angstface McAverageStudent
2. Granteed
3. G Gundam, Gundam SEED, Martian Successor Nadesico

c. Gundam SEED(out of weirdness rather than sadism; I actually enjoyed the series when it wasn't doing one of the 9000 flashbacks and Jesus wasn't being so emo that I actually believed it when I read a report of Shinji goddamn Ikari smacking him for being emo in another SRW game)

I'm pretty sure that's true. Shinji is WAY more badass in the SRW series than he ever was in Evangelion. Which is the only reason why I don't hate him anymore.

[Nerd-o-rama]

Shinji is pretty much God as far as fanfics are concerned, and Super Robot Wars is most certainly fanfic. At least SRW does it in a believable fashion. I mean, how else is he going to develop when he hangs out with Kouji Kabuto, the Getter team, Bright Noa, Quattro "I made Camille Bidan likeable" Bajina, Roy Fokker and, later on, Guy goddamn Shishio on a regular basis?

Anyway, the current tally including my personal votes and the Mystery ViewerTM have the votes at:

Touya: 7
Calvina: 8

Coustwell: 1
Bellezut: 5
Granteed: 8

Nadesico: 13
G Gundam: 14
Full Metal Panic: 12
Everything else: lolno.

I have more freetime than I thought, so I'll probably wait another couple hours then call it and get to playing.

[Drascin]

My own votes are going to go to:

1 - Calvina. I traditionally pick the girl potagonist first, so let's not break tradition, shall we?

2 - Not winning in a million years, but I'd vote Coustwell, because it's mentioned as a hard mech to use and I want to see Nerdo develop his finest strategies

3 - I'd have to vote for the only ones I know anything about. Those being FMP, Nadesico, and Gundam, and from Gundam, I'll go with G because from the quotes people pull off there, it will be a lot more entertaining

[Winged One]

Does this mean I have to watch Nadesico now?

[Ascension]

Does this mean I have to watch Nadesico now?

Yes. Yes it does. Everything means you have to watch Nadesico now. Everyone has to. The universe compels it.

[Terraoblivion]

I wanted to cast my votes earlier but ran out of time. Going to do it now instead. I vote thusly.

1. Touya. As peculiar as it sounds to those who know me, i am going by straight self-interest as i will be playing the Calvina route myself when that becomes relevant, so i want to see his route instead.

2. Bellezeute. I like reals more than supers and Coustwell is not just hard to use, it also suffers from the problem of the pilots developing ranged focused stats, skills and spirits instead of melee oriented ones. Also i like shooting more than punching.

3. I will join the legions of people saying FMP, Nadesico and G Gundam. I know and like the first two and G Gundam sounds like the most entertaining of the rest of them.

[Nerd-o-rama]

Okay, I've napped and exercised my democratic rights. In the interest of only watching one hotly contested election tonight, I'm going to conclude this and start on playing.

Character: Calvina
Robot: Granteed
Favorite series: G Gundam, Martian Successor Nadesico, Full Metal Panic!

Next update: Mission 1

[Poison_Fish]

Huzza! I'm looking forward to this.

Mostly because I could never get any SRW games working for me. ;_;.

[Nerd-o-rama]

This is rapidly turning into the longest post in the history of time.

Does anyone here think I should ditch a lengthy "how to play" explanation for the first level? Does anyone actually care to read it, even if I do make it amusing?