Xbox 360 review: Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes

To tide fans over until the proper release of the fifth numbered entry in the Metal Gear Solid series, Konami released Ground Zeroes in both physical and digital formats. Intended as a teaser for all that is to come in the open-world Phantom Pain, Ground Zeroes runs on the Fox Engine, and even on the now-last generation Xbox 360, the graphics are damn impressive. The rainstorm that shrouds Big Boss’ mission excels at highlighting raindrops streaming down textures and assets like tarps flapping in the wind in highly realistic fashion. While Kiefer Sutherland’s takeover as the voice of Snake does reveal a noticeable difference to what fans have come to know and love from the efforts of veteran David Hayter, the experience is not a massive upset to the familiar, as Snake/Big Boss does very little talking for the duration of Ground Zeroes.

In short, Ground Zeroes does not feel the part of a Metal Gear game in gameplay or spirit. The heads-up display, while simplified, is highly unspecific and does little to give players any real indication of where enemy troops are or how many of them are patrolling an area. This is something that would not be terribly difficult to keep track of, given the tiny size of the map the main mission takes place on, were it not for the fact that there are so many structures of varying heights and widths. This results not only in enemies being difficult to keep track of, but also a degree of uncertainty with how well-hidden Snake is. And the slow-down sequences when Snake is given a few brief seconds to respond to his being spotted do virtually nothing but incite panic in the player, as Snake is most frequently spotted from a distance, and firing upon foes will alert anyone nearby, putting the whole area on alert status.

Because the main story requires no more than two hours to complete, it lacks any time necessary to develop Snake, Chico, or Paz, much less give players a reason to care about the supposed ‘high-risk mission’ or the brief appearance of Skull Face, whose voice actor provides deadpan efforts that imply he has as little interest in the character as most anyone else who will play through this glorified demo. The weird and goofy factors that make a Metal Gear experience so endearing and one-of-a-kind are gone – Ground Zeroes is gritty and serious, building off the Snake Eater and Peace Walker formulas, but lacking almost any creative end. While the finale does sufficiently set the stage for The Phantom Pain, there is only one moment at the end that will prove particularly exciting, or give fans of previous Metal Gear installments any real sense of fulfillment.

There are bonus missions to take on, and collectible cassette tapes and XOF badges littered around the environment that extend the lifespan of Ground Zeroes, if only as a thinly-veiled fetch-quest. The dialogue on the cassette tapes themselves reveal far more about any of the characters than the in-game actions do, and are overall better-scripted than the couple of action-heavy cutscenes. If Ground Zeroes is a genuine taste of Phantom Pain, I for one am extremely wary, due to just how bare an experience this is, and how much it appears to be adjusted for mainstream audiences.

My rating: 4.5 (out of 10)

XBLA review: Skullgirls Encore

Fighting games have never been my specialty, which is a bit of a shame, considering how cool I find many of the character designs in series like Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat. It’s simply been the case that, much as enjoy watching others play fighting games, I’ve never been particularly skilled at the genre, save for a few oddball exceptions like Street Fighter III: Third Strike and the Smash Bros. series (the latter of which I hardly consider to be a traditional fighting game). Skullgirls was brought to my attention a couple of years back when the gang over at Two Best Friends Play talked it up as one of the most bold undertakings from a small studio – a fighting game developed for those who love fighting games, but with artwork that was entirely hand-drawn.

Skullgirls Encore fits the bill of a fighting game designed for the most hardcore fans of the genre, with character motions that are arguably some of the most fluid in its class, and a high degree of mobility for nearly all eleven of its playable fighters. While that number may not seem a particularly impressive representation for a fighting game roster, it provides the most balanced roster I’ve personally come across in the genre. Each character has varying range and offensive power in their attacks, but they also have effective means of countering each of their fellow fighters.

For example, Big Band, one of the latest additions thanks to the extra Indiegogo funding, is a massive half-man, half-band wearing a trenchcoat. He takes up an insane amount of space on the screen, and is, by default, a large target. He’s not particularly fast, but can take hits like a champ and can deal out some decent damage via hits from the trombone slides, cymbals, and timpani drums concealed beneath his coat. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Frankenstein-esque cat girl Ms. Fortune lands rapid-fire claw strikes from both the ground and air, and can launch her head from her shoulders as a projectile. She ranks among the most fast and agile of all the playable fighters, but is appropriately not the most durable.

Stages such as a dimly-lit research lab, a calm neighborhood street, and an eerie chapel will be revisited a number of times over the course of each character’s story mode. And while none of the stories last particularly long, each of the cast members is provided ample time to develop into someone interesting and given a reasonable motive for either seeking out the Skull Heart for their own ends or attempting to destroy it. As they all converge toward this one key artifact, the characters of the Skullgirls universe will cross paths with mobsters, mad scientists, and – most importantly – one another. The endgame is surprisingly deep for such a game, however, and with three more playable characters on the way, there are no doubt many more surprises in store for this one-of-kind world.

In truth, the art style does wonders for Skullgirls. It not only sets the game apart from the competition, it reinforces a degree of dedication to shaping the overall quality of the game rarely seen from studios these days. While larger studios map their launch plans around paid DLC release schedules, Skullgirls has opted to offer these first two new fighters free of charge, and they feel like they have had just as much time in playtesting as all the rest – in short, they feel like they were designed as part of the core cast from the outset, despite the fact that this was obviously not the case. The bright cartoony visages of Cerebella, Squigly, and Valentine are a breath of fresh air in the modern era of video gaming, and the soundtrack being heavy on America jazz influences doesn’t hurt either.

Skullgirls is a game that is equal parts form and function, and it excels at both. It is one of the most polished fighting games I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing, while also proving easy to access for those not long-since devoted to the genre, thanks to its intuitive control scheme and intelligently laid-out tutorial mode. The degrees of difficulty maintain a very natural progression, while the classic horror film-inspired characters squaring off in art deco environments proves an utterly bizarre but entirely welcome hybrid. Skullgirls Encore plays fast, plays smooth, and does surprisingly well in outshining giants of its field in more ways than one.

My rating: 9.25 (out of 10)

XBLA review: The Wolf Among Us

Following up on their success with The Walking Dead video game, Telltale has chosen to tackle another comic book property in the form of a precursor to Fables. Titled The Wolf Among Us, the game is built upon the same engine used for The Walking Dead, and thus requires players make time-sensitive decisions and responses that will alter the way the citizens of Fabletown react to them. The story is centered on Bigby Wolf, sheriff to the magical folk now living in hiding among the commoners (or ‘mundies’, as they are referred to in-game) of New York. What begins as a visit to the Woodsman’s apartment to break up a domestic disturbance quickly leads to something much larger – murder, hired thugs, and magical artifacts simultaneously detract and aid Bigby’s mission to seek out the truth behind what is really going on in the shadows of Fabletown.

The true nature of the story is, intelligently, left somewhat ambiguous until the final two episodes. While the ultimate payoff is not the most shocking or creative spin on a detective tale, the journey there is certainly worth the trouble. What makes The Wolf Among Us so noticeably different from The Walking Dead is that it is, first and foremost, a detective story, and as such, Bigby will spend most of his time digging through desk drawers and basements for evidence, as well as gathering clues from Fables like Ichabod Crane, Beauty, and her lover Beast. However, there is plenty of action to be found, and when Bigby find himself in a scuffle with a drunk and belligerent Woodsman or chasing Tweedledee and Tweedledum through back alleys, acute attention to button prompts may provide Bigby with a means to more quickly gain the upper hand on a situation.

The art style is similarly cel-shaded as The Walking Dead, with pale color palettes filling in the background, and thick outlines around most characters and objects. Yet, it isn’t overbearing. Rather, the art style is perhaps even better suited for the likes of mythical beasts in a contemporary urban setting than small groups of survivors attempting to outlast the undead. The soundtrack is less extravagant, opting for soft, eerie chords during investigative sequences, and saving the boisterous action themes for – well – the aforementioned fights and chases.

If there is one noteworthy downside to the presentation factor, it is that the individual episodes have a tendency to lag at odd points, sometimes messing up your ability to quickly react to button prompts – a tad strange, considering it is a single-player experience released in episodic format. One would hope that these occurrences would become less frequent/nonexistent in later chapters, but alas, they remain a small blemish even in episode five. A pity, considering how much these hiccups distract the immersion otherwise perpetuated by the strong balance of fantasy lore and modern jargon in the writing and voice acting.

As a whole, the series is paced very well, with each episode clocking in at roughly an hour-and-a-half. Sure, the introductory episode serves primarily to set the stage for all that is to come, but it too has its fair share of intrigue and intense standoffs. Admittedly, the finale, while technically about the same length as the other episodes, feels as if it is cut a bit short, and another half-hour could have easily been added on to better cushion the endgame as well as provide greater closure for a couple of characters. Still, the series does well to close its final chapter on a note that both seals the current story and opens up enough possibilities for future seasons.

My rating 7.5 (out of 10)

3DS eShop review: Shovel Knight

While early looks at Shovel Knight led fans to draw correlations to the Mega Man franchise due to the title’s 8-bit charm and emphasis on fighting through enemy-infested stages in order to reach wacky stylized boss battles, the final product proves much more than an homage to the blue bomber. At the most basic level, Shovel Knight is Yacht Club Games paying tribute to NES-era titles and franchises that have largely shifted to 3D planes since. But inspirations drawn from Mega Man, The Legend of Zelda, the original Final Fantasy, Castlevania, and more are what allows this light-hearted fantasy platformer to work so well while simultaneously crafting an identity all its own.

The story is that of Shovel Knight, long-since separated from his old partner Shield Knight, questing forth to challenge the evil Enchantress and her Order of No Quarter, comprised of eight key members, each of whom has a unique sprite design and battle tactic specific to their stage. Mole Knight digs into the walls and floor of his stage, springing forth to attack Shovel Knight with quick strikes. Specter Knight flings his rotating scythe around his arena of combat, Treasure Knight shoots his anchor cannon in an underwater environment, and so on.

While a few of these boss encounters add environmental challenges to the mix, the matter of which fight will prove the toughest is largely a matter of what items players have on-hand. Within each major stage lies a new weapon or tool to be added to Shovel Knight’s arsenal, though these are often hidden in rooms that are a little ways off the beaten path. So while the only immediate reward for besting one of the bosses is progression to the next area of the overworld, should you miss any one of these items during your initial run through a stage, a gentleman named Chester who resides in the first town Shovel Knight visits will be willing to part with the Dust Knuckles, Flare Wand, Propeller Dagger, Throwing Anchor, and so on for a decent sum of treasure.

Collectible music sheets can be sold to a bard in the same town, and then can be heard any time from then on. Upgrades can be purchased to boost both Shovel Knight’s health and magic meters, and a few shovel attacks can be added to his skill set as well. Around the midway point of the game, a handful of alternate armor sets will become available, each with its own unique properties, such as less treasure dropped upon dying, an emphasis on conserving magic in exchange for less damage protection, etc. This grants players a greater degree of freedom with how they wish to tackle the late-game challenges, as well as a higher degree of involvement and carefulness in decision-making going forward.

Food items such as turkey and apples can be used to restore Shovel Knight’s health within a stage, but as these become less frequent in later stages, the two chalices available for purchase may prove more desirable additions to the inventory. The chalices are effectively the same as the bottles in The Legend of Zelda games – Shovel Knight need only purchase the chalices for a reasonable sum, then visit the Trouple King (a trout-apple hybrid creature who resides in a forest pond not far from the earliest stages) to fill the containers with one of three different healing/defense-oriented concoctions. Should Shovel Knight lose all his health in a stage, fall off a cliff, or run into spiked flooring, the game will simply place the hero back at the last checkpoint and take away a small sum of treasure. This lost treasure can be retrieved, though depending on where in the stage Shovel Knight last perished, this may prove more of a gamble than some may feel is worth the trouble.

Shovel Knight is not an easy game, per se, and it heavily emphasizes a trial-and-error routine. However, its responsiveness is quite fine-tuned, and the game deals out success and failure in a fair manner. Only at a few junctures do the hurdles feel significantly more so challenging, and even then, most can be more easily overcome with the proper equipment at one’s disposal. Beyond the core routine of tackling major stages and facing down the Order of No Quarter, Shovel Knight can take on extra challenges that emphasize treasure retrieval or square off against player-recorded ghosts in the Streetpass arena. A few wandering individuals, such as The Baz and Reize, offer extra battles that are fast-paced and intense, and may need to be overcome in order to reach the next portion of the overworld map.

The order that events need to be tackled in Shovel Knight is only so concrete - while the main stages cannot be tackled in whatever fashion players see fit ala Mega Man, there is a certain degree of freedom that becomes greater the further along players progress. The soundtrack does well to evoke a classic fantasy adventure sound with peppy and upbeat tunes that harken back to the 8-bit era as much as the brightly-colored pixelated graphics do. Shovel Knight is a rare breed – a game that knows its roots and takes plenty of inspiration from them, without identifying too closely with one or another. The game also does well to pace itself, keeping things interesting by offering up plenty of new challenges with each stage, but never extending itself to unnecessary lengths.

My rating: 8.75 (out of 10)

Wii U review: LEGO Marvel Superheroes

It’s crazy to think that it has been almost ten years since the first licensed property LEGO game, LEGO Star Wars, hit store shelves to the skepticism of more than a few gamers. Sure, there had been LEGO games on the PC in the past, but most of these were limited to simpler themes like racing or mining. Fast-forward to 2014 and we now have full-fledged LEGO games for Indiana Jones, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Batman, and most recently, Marvel comics. And boy, has the series changed dramatically from what it began as.

It’s true that the core mechanics of building objects and solving ability-specific puzzles within each level remains largely unchanged, though the sheer variety is impressive. Psychic characters like Jean Grey can lift or alter portions of the environment, Electro and Arnim Zola can charge generators, the Human Torch can melt golden bricks, Hulk and Colossus can tear down barriers marked with green handles, Magneto can manipulate metallic switches, Captain America’s shield can be thrown at rotating locks, anyone with a Spider-Sense can reveal secrets hidden within the immediate surrounding area, Wolverine can dig up treasure – and these are just their abilities for overcoming in-level obstacles. As far as combat goes, each character’s offensive capabilities ring quite true to their comic book origins, though it is effectively a repetitive process of mashing the same few buttons to take down goons – nothing too complicated, given the intended age range for LEGO games.

While puns and inside jokes referencing the films and comic book realms (even some pop culture reference aimed at older gamers) are all fine and dandy, the real reason this LEGO title trumps many other Marvel video games is the insane number of characters that can be unlocked – over one hundred in total, from the obvious headliners like Iron Man, Spider-man, Hulk, Thor, and Captain America, to old-school villains like the members of the Sinister Six and Red Skull, to the more obscure Black Bolt, Leader, Silver Samurai, and Squirrel Girl. The overall presentation treads a fine line between classic comic book plotlines and the polished, real-world character and environment designs of the more recent Marvel Studios films, which makes for a smart marriage that kids and adults will similarly appreciate.

The story is largely focused on Dr. Doom and Loki as the two main villains – Doom wishing to utilize Cosmic Bricks as an energy source for a new ray weapon, and Loki being his usual mischievous self while simultaneously helping to recruit and set loose other villains on the Marvel heroes. Each stage highlights a different set of heroes, none of which are guaranteed to be from a previously identified ‘canon’ team. True, a couple of missions put you in control of the Fantastic Four and the X-Men respectively, but others, such as a trip to Asgard, see Thor team up with Captain America, Wolverine, and the Human Torch.

All around this LEGO rendition of New York City, players can participate in races, square off against heavy foes like the Sentinels, take pictures for J. Jonah Jameson, collect studs aplenty, and complete other challenges to unlock both gold bricks and extra characters. Meeting a certain number of golden bricks will open up more of Deadpool’s bonus mission, which see the merc with a mouth narrating his own action-packed tales featuring quick but enjoyable scenarios with Spider-man and Iron Man halting Electro and Shocker’s latest attempt to rob a bank and Captain America and Daredevil going toe-to-toe with Kingpin. Deadpool’s humor has been toned down for a younger audience, but his signature style still holds true, thanks to the voice talents of Nolan North.

In fact, the voice acting throughout does a solid job at providing each character with his or her own unique identity. While other veterans return to reprise their roles, including Steve Blum as Wolverine, the only voice actor from the films who chimes in is Clark Gregg as Phil Coulson. That said, the voice actors who lend their talents for Nick Fury, Tony Stark, Thor, and so on, provide convincing performances that clearly pay tribute to their movie-verse counterparts while also adding a dash of their own take on these iconic heroes. The soundtrack, meanwhile, pays painstakingly obvious tribute to tunes heard in the Avengers film, and graphically the game looks about as polished as anyone could hope for a game built entirely by digitally-rendered LEGO bricks. The glossy textures and bright lighting effects play off one another well, while bright colors of superhero costumes stand out against the backdrop of nearly every environment.

LEGO Marvel Superheroes is a bit on the easy side, which is only to be expected, given the family-friendly appeal of the game. But no one would argue there is a lack of things to do, as completing the roster alone will require plenty of extra time collecting the necessary studs. Players can revisit stages in Free Play mode to tackle challenges and explore new areas that were otherwise unaccessible with the default characters. Every second of the game provides something amusing, from silly dialogue of pedestrians to the flash and flair of the good vs. evil narrative. The LEGO games have held a pretty consistent track record in terms of their quality and appeal since they first debuted, but this may very well be one of the most polished Marvel games to date.

My rating: 8.25 (out of 10)

Wii U review: Mario Kart 8

Following up on the new underwater and flying elements introduced in the 3DS release of Mario Kart 7, the Wii U’s Mario Kart 8 adds a new kart transformation into gravity-defying hovercraft. Now racers can ride along walls and up steep inclines, while riding right up alongside a rival racer will grant a mutual speed boost, thanks to the horizontal position of the wheels. Each of the sixteen new tracks incorporates all four of these race styles quite evenly throughout, while reimaginings of tracks from Mario Karts of yesteryear tend to focus on implementing one or two of these newer features. The 3DS tracks see the least change, as that was the title that first properly introduced these kart transformations, but the DS Wario Stadium sees a brief wall-climbing section added to the familiar dune hops, and the simple act of widening the paths on tracks from Mario Kart 64 benefits the experience greatly.

New items include the Piranha Plant, which behaves in a vaguely similar fashion as the Chain Chomp previously did, though this potted monstrosity will provide a few gradual speed boosts as it nips at rival racers and reaches for coins that are just out of its user’s reach. The boomerang grants players three tosses, while a new horn item – despite being a rare pick of the bunch – ends the legacy of the blue shell being the end-all be-all solution of taking out the racer in first place. All in all, these new items fit well with the classic shells and banana peels, and the item blocks tend to respawn faster than in previous Mario Kart titles. Also sped up is the recovery time from falling off the track. This, combined with the less extreme ‘rubber band effect’ of the AI suddenly catching up to player-controlled racers at the front of the pack, makes for a more enjoyable experience overall. At the end of the day, it really is about racing skill and item management more than the CPUs getting lucky at the last possible second and stealing first place.

That’s not to say that the tracks are a cake walk (or Sunday drive, as is perhaps the more appropriate metaphor) – there are plenty of cool design features implemented, such as wavy walls in a Boo-infested mansion, and rolling stone wheels within a temple that takes more than a bit of inspiration from Indiana Jones. There are times that Mario and friends will be upside-down, and paying attention to how fast you’re headed around that next turn is crucial. Graphically, the game is a sight to behold, with lighting effects that cascade over metal track portions as convincingly as they do through snow-covered pine trees. The soundtrack, while still classic Mario Kart fanfare, takes a notably more jazzy approach this time around.

The aforementioned coins do nothing to benefit players in the midst of a race, but rather are the means for unlocking new vehicle option parts, including bike and kart frames, wheels of varying sizes, and colorful gliders for the flying portions. Earning gold in the three Grand Prix difficulty settings will reward players with new characters. Admittedly, a decent portion of the roster is represented by the Koopalings, and while they have been brought back into the limelight in recent Mario titles, including half of them in Mario Kart 8 would have sufficed. There are a couple of surprising additions to the roster, but for the most part, it’s the usual suspects – though there certainly isn’t any shortage of weight classes and racer styles to choose from.

This Wii U Mario Kart allows players to use literally any controller setup they so desire, from the Gamepad, to the Wiimote (with or without the nunchuck), to the Classic Controller and Pro Controller. It’s a pretty ingenious strategy Nintendo has adopted with the Wii U, and allows players the freedom to control this new Mario Kart in a fashion either more akin to the previous Wii title or even older Gamecube and N64 incarnations. The battle mode is, truth be told, rather weak when compared to just about any other version of Mario Kart. The fundamentals remain intact, but there are no battle mode-specific stages in Mario Kart 8. Instead, the game has you and your friends duking it out with CPU characters on the regular race tracks, and while the three balloon life system works just as well as before, the insanely large areas of these tracks robs the battle mode of much of its strategy and fun factor.

Despite this one significant misstep, Mario Kart 8 is an otherwise solid entry in the long-running series. It’s not groundbreaking by any means, and frankly, many of its successes are owed to the 3DS and Wii titles which preceded it. But it builds off the groundwork enough to feel the part of a worthwhile addition to the series. And it is a lot of fun, which is really what a good kart racer should be.

My rating: 8 (out of 10)

Top five video games and anime of 2014 - Spring contenders

There have certainly been years past where I posted my predictions for my end of the year ‘top five’ contenders and many of the anime and video games I mentioned therein did not make the cut, so I suppose I ought to encourage you to take the following with a grain of salt. On the video game side of things, I feel that there is still plenty of room for variation, as some of the 2014 releases I am most excited for are not yet available (Watch Dogs, Ghost Song), while others may follow in the footsteps of Killer7 as older titles that I have not yet properly experienced. As far as the anime side of things is concerned, however, I anticipate that all of the titles mentioned below will end up on the top five list, unless some truly magnificent and mind-blowing release sneaks up on me later this year.

- Video Games –

Killer7 – Weird even by Suda51 standards, Killer7 is something of an antithesis to his Wii cult classic, No More Heroes, as it deals with a dark and serious story of six assassins given corporeal form by one aged Harman Smith, and their intermediary known as Garcian, all of whom are tasked with stopping the mutated walking time bombs known as Heaven’s Smiles and getting to the bottom of a global conspiracy. It’s a game that pays an insane attention to detail as it weaves as thinking man’s story, all the while presenting an odd yet surprisingly well-designed gameplay that combines on-rails shooting with action and puzzle elements, wrapped up in a hyper-cel-shaded package.

DmC: Devil May Cry – Admittedly, this reimagining of Dante and Vergil’s story is a bit on the short side, but what it lacks in length it makes up for with a grungy modern European art style and far and away the smoothest gameplay the series has seen yet. Dante is foul-mouthed, brash and impulsive, but an entertaining anti-hero nonetheless. The boss fights are quite nicely varied, and the demon and angel weapons as creative in design as they are fun to lay a smack-down with.

Grand Theft Auto V – The series that really brought sandbox gaming into the limelight, Grand Theft Auto’s fifth installment sees two men whose glory days have long since passed team up with a young up-and-coming hustler to revisit their criminal tendencies in a gaming world that truly pushes the limits and expectations of what modern gaming is all about. There is so much to see and do in GTA V, and while the heists are intense and thoroughly enjoyable to plan and execute, it is easy to find yourself spending hours on end exploring the metro of Los Santos, stealing cars, planes, ATVs, boats, shooting up rival gang members, purchasing properties for a weekly income, biking to the tops of mountains, taking a submarine to the depths of the bay, base jumping off a skyscraper, or any of the other multitude of activities available. It’s crazy just how much content is crammed into this single game, and even harder to believe just how smoothly it all runs.

- Anime -

Puella Magi Madoka Magica – One of the last genres I expected I would ever watch with such anticipation, Madoka takes the tropes of magical girl anime and turns them on their heads. It’s a dark tale, one that dares to be bold and original, one that dares to provide a practical yet interesting explanation for each plot point, one that dares to follow in the footsteps of Neon Genesis Evangelion without identifying too closely with the pseudo-mecha classic. And while the series does introduce a couple of plot points late in the story that seem a tad out of place, the overall product is a brilliant realization of a heavily-stylized story that gradually layers its relevant information, and one that kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish.

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure – I’m a bit late to the Jojo's party, I’ll admit, as the 2012 anime provided my first proper exposure to the long-running series. Still, its combination of wacky fighting styles, somewhat darker tone, and classic rock references make for a one-of-a-kind action comedy. Whether it is the first season’s lovable Joseph Joestar that lands the first season on my end-of-the-year top five list, or Stardust Crusaders' incorporation of Stands that secures the second season the title of the superior Jojo’s tale, I can almost guarantee that one season or the other will end up near the top of the stack for 2014.

Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn – I’ve mentioned a number of times how much I appreciate the time and effort that has been put into this OVA, and while I’m sad to see it go, it has been one heck of a ride over the past couple of years, with each episode being at the quality of a theatrical release. The pacing is spot-on, the balance between mobile suit action scenes and exposition perfect. While it is true that I have yet to view the final episode before writing up a proper review on this, Unicorn Gundam would have to fall flat on its face to make me consider it anything less than one of the very best entries in the long-running franchise.