A new Kirby game was released on 3DS recently, called Kirby: Planet Robobot.  In this game, Kirby can pilot a robot mech to smash enemies and solve puzzles.  So that got me to thinking about other mech games that I like, so here’s a blog about them!

OK, once you see my list, you may say, “Hey Cary, these aren’t TRUE mech games!”  Yeah, I know.  They’re more like ‘games that you can ride around in a mech sometimes.’  But that would’ve been too long of a title.  I do know what a TRUE mech game is.  I’ve seen and played many.  I remember back in the 90s, there was a computer game that some of my family was into and even my dad tried it for a little bit called Mechwarrior.  But personally I thought it was more of a fancy tank simulator.  Years later when I was writing for The Dallas Morning News, I actually reviewed the original Armored Core game on the PSOne.  I consider that to be a TRUE mech game.  I guess you could even say that Xenogears is a mech game even though it’s an RPG, as all the characters have giant mechs they can climb in to battle.  But all the games on this list are ones I actually LIKE, so you’ll just have to deal with my weirdness.  Oh, and this list isn’t in any particular order.  So let’s begin!

Mega Man X (SNES)

While I think the Mega Man X games are missing a lot of the charm the original series had, I think the very first MMX game was exactly what the series needed at the time.  Mega Man already had six games on the NES and while they were all fun, they were getting to be kind of same-y.  When they made the jump to 16-bit, the series really needed something that would stand out more, and I think they succeeded.  One of the things you could do in Mega Man X was hop inside rideable mechs and tromp around and wallop enemies.  It was loads of fun and very cool at the time.  I’m glad they kept the mechs in the X sequels.  I especially liked it in X4 when you could take one of the mechs in to beat one of the bosses!

Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime (DS)

In this DQ spinoff game, you play as a heroic Slime in a 2-D top-down viewed adventure.  One of the things you can do in this game is have giant mech battles.  Actually the game calls them ‘tanks,’ but some of them look like giant mechs, so I put it on the list.  When in these battles, you still control your slime in top-down fashion as you pick up objects and load them into cannons, and you can even exit your mech and sabotage the opponent’s vehicle!  It’s so much fun, and my favorite Dragon Quest game.  I’m sad we never go the 3DS sequel.  In that game, you had similar battles, but they were on pirate ships!

Steambot Chronicles (PS2)

This game is so awesome and sadly, hardly anyone has heard of it.  The game is set in an alternate 1900’s universe around the time of the Industrial Revolution.  But instead of people driving around in Model T’s, they ride in primitive bipedal mechs.  Like Model T’s, just with legs instead of wheels.  There is so much you can do in this 3-D adventure.  You can follow the story and make some choices here and there.  You can customize your mech and even enter it in battles.  Earn money with odd jobs and you can even play music on a street corner for pocket change or play pool!  With money you can rent several apartments in different cities and decorate them with all sorts of furniture.  It’s almost like Japan’s answer to Grand Theft Auto!  There were a couple of spinoff games on the PSP (one based on the battles and a Blokus game), and both came out over here.  There was going to be a PS3 sequel (in Japan the games are called Bumpy Trot), but the maker of Steambot Chronicles, Irem, sadly went out of business. 

Tail Concerto (PSOne)

This was such a charming cartoony 3-D adventure on the original PlayStation, and another one that nobody’s heard of.  In the game you play as Waffle, an anthropomorphic police dog who lives in a world full of other cats and dogs.  His world is made up of floating islands, and he pilots a comical mech that allows you to capture naughty kittens and battle a likeable cat pirate gang. The cutscenes are fully animated and it’s almost like an interactive cutesy anime.  I wish they’d make more games like this now.

What’s really cool is that Tail Concerto actually got a sequel, and it was even brought to the US!  The game is called Solatorobo, and it’s on the DS.  You don’t play as Waffle, but a new character instead.  But you still pilot a mech.  The game itself is a little darker than Tail Concerto, but characters from the first game do show up in side missions sometimes.  Sadly, I think both games are pretty rare and hard to find.  I’m glad I still have ‘em!

The Misadventures of Tron Bonne (PSOne)

I loved the Mega Man Legends games back in the day, but I’m afraid to play them again because I don’t think they’ve aged as well.  One of the reoccurring villains in those games got her own spinoff title because she was so likable.  You might even remember seeing Tron Bonne and her loyal cute little Servebots in other games like Marvel vs. Capcom 2, Project X Zone, or even referenced in titles like Dead Rising.  In Tron’s own game, you piloted her mech in action stages and even puzzle levels!  It was such a weird mash-up of game genres but I loved it!  I’m still sad we never got Mega Man Legends 3 on the 3DS because I would’ve loved to see more antics of the Bonne family!

Final Fantasy 6 (SNES)

FF6 is one of my top five favorite games of all time.  One of the cool things about this game is that at the beginning, you pilot mechs called Magitek Armor.  They are ridable robots infused with magic and I thought they were so cool in the game.  You use them to unfairly storm a snowy mining town.  But sadly, you only use Magitek Armor two other times in the game and for only very briefly.  I wish you could use them more, but even so, they really helped separate this game from other titles in the series. 

Kirby: Planet Robobot (3DS)

This game was recently released, and is very similar to past main Kirby 2-D platformers like Kirby Triple Deluxe and Kirby’s Return to Dream Land.  Except in this one, you can pilot a rideable mech around that can scan and absorb abilities just like Kirby!  While this feature is just an extension of the Hypernova ability from Triple Deluxe, and the Super Abilities from Return to Dream Land, the mech still makes for some fun gameplay and puzzle solving.  Similar to the hidden keychains you could find in Triple Deluxe, here you can find sticker decals that you can place on your mech arms for a bit of customization.  The stickers make references to past Kirby games, too!  In the story, robots have taken over Kirby’s homeworld, and he sets out to stop them.  Usually in past Kirby titles, the stages are very organic.  Green plains, sandy beaches, etc.  But in Planet Robobot, since it’s being taken over by machines, the plains areas are filled with metal and pipes, the ocean stage doesn’t have sand and islands, but oil rigs instead.  So the game has a slightly grittier feel to it.  Sure there are still silly stages like a giant casino and an ice cream factory, but it’s definitely a different look from previous titles!

And those are my favorite mech games!  At least the ones I can think of, anyway!  In the comments section, let me know what your favorite mech games are!  Later!  –Cary

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