Courtesy of our good friends at HobbyLink Japan we’ve been sent the Riobot Blodia as seen in the classic game Cyberbots. In addition, we’ve also included some game footage of the mecha in action at the end of the review.

The Blodia, whilst an important variant armor in Cyberbots has actually had quite a long life. Originally appearing in Armored Warriors, a direct precursor to Cyberbots, it featured many of the same attributes although sporting a different colour scheme. It also surfaced in Choukousenki Kikaioh as a secret unit as well, though this was the Blodia II to be fair but the mecha was pretty much identical to the original. The Blodia has also appeared, albeit indirectly and briefly, in both the Marvel vs Capcom and Tatsunoko vs Capcom games.

The other important aspect of both Armored Warriors and Cyberbots was the fact the mecha were somewhat customisable. You could choose different types of loadouts to the core mecha (somewhat similar to Wolf Fang), so this would mean the Blodia could have multiple variants that all played differently. In Cyberbots this produced a very vibrant versus game, as the variety in opponents and attacks was quite nuanced due to this customisation.

Moving onto this Riobot figure, there are also going to be multiple variants but we wanted to cover the main version. Now there haven’t really been many physical incarnations of the Blodia over the years, bar some garage kits and a few gashapon. So to have a beautifully sculpted, crazily articulated figure such as this definitely falls into the big deal category.

Toy: Riobot Blodia
Price: 9,800 yen
Size/Weight: 21.9 x 18.0 x 10.5 cm / 570g

The figure uses a good amount of diecast, most noticeably on the shoulders and knees as well as in the joints. There are also some additional pieces of diecast used for detailing, such as the spikes on the left arm. The articulation is fantastic too, with the feet able to rotate and bevel very nicely indeed. Though the most impressive aspect of the figure’s articulation are the individually poseable fingers on the hands. You also have a separate set of closed fists available but the articulated hands are just great. The shield also has a very nifty attachment on the right arm that extracts and slides around. This means you can position the shield very freely but also retract the attachment when you’re not using it. The paint job and sculpt are amazing as well, with a few scuff marks present as well to make the Blodia look somewhat battle ready. The head can also be raised up to allow more degrees of moevement. Bar all this, the figure isn’t exactly gimmick ridden. It’s meant to be a definitive and wonderfully presentable toy of the figure and in that regard it succeeds magnificently.

Overall then this Riobot Blodia is very impressive. Whilst it’s quite pricey and only about the same size as most Robot damashii figures, the sculpt, articulation and tons of diecast make the price tag seem actually quite sensible. With each release in the Riobot line the figures are getting noticeably better and they weren’t exactly bad to begin with. Even if you’re not a fan of Cyberbots, as a toy the Riobot Blodia is really great figure and possibly the nicest incarnation we’ll ever get to see of the design. As such it comes very recommended!

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