What with the announcement of a new Gundam RTS, Mokuba no Kiseki, there has been some curious assumptions and feedback from fans it seems. This is because much of the PR seems to counter arguments and concerns that indicate some level of disquiet amongst the Gundam faithful. From statements like it is not a “new genre” or that you won’t need to constantly micro-manage units, makes us think that a Gundam RTS is a step too far for Japanese gamers. To be fair, the RTS genre isn’t that well known amongst mainstream gamers (compared to Korea’s unbridled enthusiasm let’s say), so this reaction is an interesting one. 4Gamer has some nice new shots of the game though and there will be a game system breakdown in the near future. However, it does seem that there are varied “battle modes” with one giving a more holistic view of the battlefield. Overall this is a relatively small release but one we’re very interested in, as the last mecha RTS-esque game we played was Scramble Commander the 2nd and we loved that (though much of that was down to Dunbine being able to literally high-five Dancouga). What with Armored Core V out on the same day, January can’t come soon enough!

Over at 4Gamer they have an interesting update about Level 5’s Gundam AGE RPG. Despite the somewhat insanely large screenshots, the game looks to have a more rigid battle system compared to something like Danball Senki. The big selling point is that fact that the narrative will cover multiple generations, which will in turn help to frame the TV series’ plot. We’re still not sure about the series to be honest but we are looking forward to Level 5’s gaming output. The game is still set for a release next year.

The latest Blu-Ray release of Macross Frontier Sayonara no Tsubasa, which also comes packaged with a PS3 game called Macross Last Frontier (made by the same team behind the awesome PSP games), has topped the Japanese charts by selling 142,607 copies in its first week of sale. After the first hybrid pack, which we covered on its release, this new version has more of a complete game with a proper save system. It’s clear that there may be some more standalone Macross games on the way for the PS3 too, especially considering the strong response in sales for this recent effort. We’ll also be reviewing this latest hybrid pack shortly as well, so keep an eye out for that.

In the latest edition of Famitsu a sequel to Lord of Elemental has been announced. This is the first sequel in this branch of the SRW canon since 1996, when the first game was released on the SNES. Clearly the recent DS port sold well enough to warrant a sequel but interestingly it will be released on the PSP this time around. In addition to the core game a limited edition set will include the first and second games, with the first being remastered for the PSP. The game will be released in January next year, with the standard set costing 6,280 yen and the limited edition (two game) set costing 10,480yen.

Update: Famitsu now has a nice update with some screenshots of the game.

A few days ago we tweeted that the Hi-Nu Gundam might be included in the upcoming PS3 port of Gundam Extreme Versus. Well in a new update over at Famitsu it seems that this unlockable will in fact be a pre-order bonus. Whilst it’s still not been openly stated that the silhouette is the Hi-Nu Gundam, it’s pretty obvious that it will be that mobile suit as it was recently featured in Another Century’s Episode R among other things (so Bandai obviously have access to at least a current high poly model). However, whether it will be the original Hi-Nu blue and white colouring from Beltorchika’s Children or the newer version seen in Gunpla Builders remains to be seen.

Famitsu has a nice update about a rather interesting genre crossover game. Titled Lost Heroes, it features the likes of Ultraman, Kamen Rider and…Gundam. Notably that of the RX-93 ν Gundam, which is a bit of an odd choice as you’d think the original RX-78-2 would be more fitting in a setup such as this. Not that we’re complaining though, as the RX-93 is one of our favourite mobile suits in the UC timeline. In terms of the game itself, it looks to be a pretty standard turn based strategy affair. No details on a price as yet but the release is expected sometime next year.

At the recent Level 5 World 2011 event a new entry into the Danball Senki series was announced, that of Danball Senki Boost. Still on the PSP it looks to be more of the same and continuing the narrative around the mysterious LBX mecha. From pretty extensive LBX customisation to some nice battling action, the first game was pretty damn decent and this looks to continue that. 4Gamer has some nice new screenshots of the game and a new promo video (shown below) was released recently too. Weirdly it’s set for a pretty quick release, on November 23rd, so Level 5 are pretty confident it won’t get buried in terms of competing PR. You’ll also be able to either buy the game in UMD format for 4,980 yen or download it at 4,480 yen.

As we mentioned a while back, Shoji Kawamori had been hired to design a new plane for Ace Combat Assault Horizon. Well, 4Gamer now has a piece on the plane and has a fair few nice shots of it in game. Now called the ASF-X, the DLC will be available on the 26th October for either 960 yen (PSN) or 640 MSP (XBLA). As we said previously, this plane doesn’t transform into anything (unfortunately). For those that have played the game, then this DLC will be somewhat of a futile gesture. Whilst it has sold initially well, the reaction by gamers has been pretty scathing. Much of this ire is aimed at the DFM mode that effectively removes any form of skill from the game and instead tries to appeal to supposed “humans” that have the cognitive capacity of a brain damaged newt. At least Kawamori’s plane looks pretty cool, which is at least something I suppose.

After a good few years of, well, nothing about the much anticipated MechWarrior reboot (courtesy of Piranha Games) it appears that the game hasn’t died after all. From the somewhat oddly emphatic tweet from Bryan Ekman that there has been “no legal battle” over the usage of the Unseen designs to the slightly cringe-worthy viral twitter feed for the game itself. Either way, we’re just happy the game is still being made and that maybe one day we’ll get to play it.

A new Gundam based RTS has been announced for the PSP. Developed by GameArts it will be called Mokuba no Kiseki (or “Path of the Wooden Horse”) and track the story from the original Gundam, the reference to the horse being the nickname the White Base was given during the original series and movies. Interestingly the player will act out the role of Bright Noa and command the crew of the White Base. Considering that Bright’s voice actor has recently been re-cast for his appearance in Gundam Unicorn, as the original actor Hirotaka Suzuoki died in 2006, the focus of the game on the character is somewhat bitter-sweet for us. The game is scheduled for release on January 26th, which to the observant of you is the same day as Armored Core V’s release.

Update: Famitsu has a nice update about the game with some screenshots too.