Shin Kidō Senki Gundam Wing: Endless Duel
A Super Famicom fighting game based on Mobile Suit Gundam Wing.
Shin Kidō Senki Gundam Wing: Endless Duel is a 1996 fighting game developed by Natsume Co., Ltd. and published by Bandai for the Super Famicom. It is the first game based on the Mobile Suit Gundam Wing anime series, set in the year After Colony 195. The game was released during the fighting game boom after Street Fighter II and is regarded as one of the last titles for the Super Famicom.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Natsume Co., Ltd.
- Publisher
- Bandai
- Producer
- Norihiko Ushimura
- Designer
- Kunio Suzuki; Shunichi Taniguchi
- Programmer
- Hiromichi Komuro; Toshiyasu Miyabe
- Composer
- Haruo Ohashi; Hiroyuki Iwatsuki
- Series
- Mobile Suit Gundam Wing
- Platforms
- Super Famicom
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
Shin Kidō Senki Gundam Wing: Endless Duel is a fighting game that plays like Kidō Butōden G-Gundam and Street Fighter II, set during the After Colony year 195 of the Mobile Suit Gundam Wing anime. Players choose from ten playable characters, each piloting a mobile suit from either the Colony Liberation Organization or the Organization of the Zodiac. Every Gundam has its own set of ability ratings that match those seen in the series. The game offers three modes: Story, Versus, and Trial. In Story mode, the player fights through a series of battles that change depending on which Gundam is selected. Versus mode is a one-on-one contest between two human players; the first to win two rounds wins the match. Each round has a timer that can be adjusted or turned off in the options, and if time runs out, the fighter with more health wins the round. Trial mode lets the player pick any Gundam and face an endless series of increasingly difficult opponents until they are defeated. During a fight, players can switch between weapon and melee combat styles. Every pilot has a vulcan gun or machine cannon attack that consumes energy and targets the opponent based on distance. Beneath each health bar is an energy counter, which is used to perform stronger versions of special moves. Each pilot has one or two super special attacks that require energy and play a sound just before they start, giving the opponent a brief moment to react. Energy is recovered by blocking hits, executing special or super special moves, landing hits on an opponent, or blocking attacks. Players can dash, block in the air, air dash, and perform chain combos similar to Capcom fighting games like X-Men: Children of the Atom. A feature unique to Endless Duel is the vernier mechanic, which allows a mech to hover downward briefly after an air dash by holding down, letting it attack grounded opponents. Vernier can also be used to perform high jumps.
Development and release
Shin Kidō Senki Gundam Wing: Endless Duel arrived for the Super Famicom on March 29, 1996, and was the first video game to draw from the Mobile Suit Gundam Wing anime. It came out during the fighting game craze that followed Street Fighter II. The Tengo Project team at Natsume Co., Ltd. handled development, having previously worked on The Ninja Warriors (1994), Wild Guns, and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Fighting Edition (1995). The engine from Power Rangers: The Fighting Edition was reused for this title, though with some unique upgrades. Norihiko Ushimura led the project as producer, Shunichi Taniguchi acted as planner, and Toshiyasu Miyabe and Hiromichi Komuro shared programming duties. Taniguchi also co-designed the game with Kunio Suzuki. Haruo Ohashi and Hiroyuki Iwatsuki co-composed the music, with Iwatsuki using a PC-98, a MIDI driver called UNYA, a Roland Sound Canvas, and a Roland W-30 workstation keyboard. The intro theme is a synthesized version of "Rhythm Emotion," the second opening song from the series. The game was housed in a 16-megabit (2 MB) cartridge and was one of the last releases for the Super Famicom. It was shown to attendees at Shoshinkai 1995 before launch. Kodansha published a strategy guide in April 1996. Endless Duel never saw an official release outside Japan, but a fan-made English translation patch appeared in 2002.
Reception and legacy
Shin Kidō Senki Gundam Wing: Endless Duel was generally well received by critics who played it as an imported game, though four Famitsu reviewers gave it a less than impressive score. A public poll by Family Computer Magazine gave the title a 22.9 out of 30, showing it had a popular following. Famitsu reported first-week sales of over 34,641 copies, with lifetime sales in Japan reaching approximately 52,232 units. IGN's David Smith called the game bizarrely amusing, while The Electric Playground's James Tapia considered it a Super Famicom classic, highlighting its fast battles and familiar character lineup. José Ángel Ciudad of GamesTech praised the visuals for the Super Famicom, the audio, gameplay, and a chain combo system similar to Capcom's Versus series. Łukasz Ossowski of PSX Extreme commended the gameplay and audiovisual presentation, naming it one of the best fighting games on the console. Hardcore Gaming 101 agreed, giving positive remarks to the Capcom-style gameplay and audio design, calling it one of the platform's top fighting titles. Alberto Canen of Nintendo Blast liked the fast gameplay reminiscent of Darkstalkers and Street Fighter Alpha, the vulcan gun mechanic, and the balanced roster, regarding it as one of the best Super Famicom fighting games. Nintendo Life's Gonçalo Lopes noted the improvements Natsume made over Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Fighting Edition's engine, praising the detailed graphics, fighting system, and controls, but criticized the small playable roster and the lack of a western release. HobbyConsolas' David Martínez also lamented the absence of a western release, but commended the visuals, the ability to switch between weapon and melee fighting styles, and the improvements from Power Rangers: The Fighting Edition.
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