Developer: Banpresto Publisher: Banpresto Release: 12/22/95 Genre: Action
The Great Battle V is an import that I have been interested in for a long time. I love Wild Guns and the few scant screenshots that exist for the game make it seem like a super robot take on that fantastic third person formula. Imagine my surprise to find that it is instead a combination action platformer and third person shooter. In all honesty it should come as no surprise: each title in this obscure yet long running series has bounced around to different genres so this should be no different. While that has worked wonders in the past The Great Battle V suffers a bit for being unfocused in its design.
The story in the Great Battle V casts the Compati Heroes as characters in a western world. On the planet Garcia settlers from across the galaxy come to mine Galvestones. The native Garcians try to resist but are overcome by the forces of a man named Dada. Fighter Roar of the Battle Force is sent to Garcia to investigate.
The Great Battle V splits its time between side scrolling action a la Mega Man X and shooting like the aforementioned Wild Guns. Fighter Roar is the main character and unlike the previous title that allowed you to switch characters on the fly here you choose one partner at the start. Throughout the course of the adventure you will get to partner up with everyone at some point to use their unique abilities. Each buddy has their own path through the game as well which adds to its replay value which is really cool.
The third person action is the first you will encounter and it is pretty simple. Like Natsume’s title you can move your character around a limited area of the screen. You must stop to move the cursor and aim but the game takes that into account in a few ways. Each character has a defensive maneuver to dodge attacks, be it a roll, dash or short range teleport. The nuances of each make certain ones overpowered within the context of the game. Their guns differ as well. Fighter Roar has a rapid fire cannon that is weak while Ultraman has a slower but more powerful shot. Sadly outside of coins to boost your weapon level there are no other power-ups which sucks as the game could use them.
Wild Guns succeeded in its gameplay by providing plenty of variety. The environment were destructible, enemies would get in close and personal and you had a number of tools at your disposal between the different guns, lasso, and melee hammer. The Great Battle V has almost none of this. You only have your basic attack and most of these levels are simple boss battles. There is nothing wrong with that but in practice they are a slog. The bosses have too much health forcing you to through the same repetitive motions for minutes at a time. There were times I began to question whether I was hitting the appropriate target because they took so long. What should have been an exciting addition to the game instead is an interesting at best diversion.
The side scrolling portion of the game fares better. These stages make up the majority of the game and are very similar to the Great Battle IV. Everyone has a unique weapon and special moves. Fighter Roar has a short range boomerang; Gundam essentially has a mega buster, Ultraman produces a wave attack and Kamen Rider has a whip. Everyone can dash and tackle enemies and objects and has a charge attack. Aside from attacking they can also help navigate the environment to find secrets. Collecting coins will raise your weapon level three times and the difference can be dramatic.
I like the level design overall but it can be inconsistent. During its best moments as you navigate complex platforms and deal with enemies it is fun. But at its worst you can struggle to follow the path to the exit or the game will ask something of you it is barely able to handle mechanically. There are fun scenarios abounds but the limited controls often ruin them. Certain areas feel as though they were designed around particular characters but you are saddled with someone else. Depending on the partner you choose at the start your route through the game changes. This is not a short game however that is also because you retread certain stages twice. Sure it is with a different character but it reeks of padding. I suppose it adds replay value but one trip through the game is more than enough.
In Closing
I like the Great Battle V overall. However I feel it would have been an even better title if the focus were on one genre rather than two. What is here is good and bordering on great. But the lack of focus means it is a bit simple in terms of gameplay and suffers for it. The Great Battle’s highs are high but its lows bring it down. It is still worth your time regardless in my opinion as its high points are rank with the best on the system.
