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SD Gundam Capsule Fighter

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online, SDGO for short, is a third-person MMO shooter based on the popular Gundam franchise. The game features unique cel-shaded cartoony graphics with 300+ customizable Gundams.

Publisher: OGPlanet
Playerbase: Low
Type: MMO
Release Date: Dec 1, 2011 (NA/EU)
Shut Down Date: July 27, 2015
Pros: +Huge variety of Gundams (Over 300). +Fun skill-based combat.
Cons: -Cash shop Gundams too powerful. -Toy-theme may deter some hardcore Gundam fans.

Overview

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online Overview

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter is 3D third-person action MMO from Softmax, based on the popular Gundam anime franchise. The game's cel-shaded cartoony graphics won't appeal to everyone, but its huge variety of characters more than makes up for it. SDGO is packed with over 300 customizable units, which players can engage with in either co-op missions or PvP. Shoot, fly, dash, and cut in massive Gundam battles! The game shut down in July, 2015.

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Key Features:

  • Wide Variety of Gundams – with over three hundred Gundams available, what's not to love?
  • Customize Your Suit with variations of each Gundam design, along with different available weapons and options, it's easy to customize the suits to your style.
  • Let's Fight! – fun, skill-based combat that keeps the battles interesting and entertaining.
  • Various Game Modes – pick and choose from Deathmatches, co-op missions, or even Tag.

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online Screenshots

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online Featured Video

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter - Official Gameplay Trailer

Full Review

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online Review

By Marc Marasigan

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter, a.k.a. SDGO, is a 3D third-person action MMO shooter developed and published by Softmax in South Korea, 9You in China and Honk Kong, CJ Internet in Japan, Wasabii in Taiwan, Goldensoft in Thailand, OGPlanet in North America, and Cherry Credits in Australia and South-East Asia. The game was launched in the summer of 2007 in South Korea, and on December 1, 2011 in North America. SDGO features all Gundam eras, including (but not limited to) Universal Century, Anno Domini, and Future Century.

Tiny Giant Mechs

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter takes place in the Gundam universe. Being unfamiliar with the story myself, I found that I was thrust into this world with little introduction. However, I’m sure that fans of the series will be immediately familiar with the setting and characters. There is one big difference though: instead of giant mechs, the mobile suits are tiny toy-like versions of the famous Gundams. The graphics in SDGO closely resemble another mech-based third person shooter - CosmicBreak.

The game starts off with a tutorial, which is a little bit shoddy, especially in the voice-acting department. Nevertheless, it does what it’s supposed to do: teach players the basics. You use the WASD keys to move, the number keys to switch weapons, Space to jump, left-click to shoot and right-click to lock on targets. You can also dash by double tapping any direction key and you can activate your jetpack by double tapping the Spacebar.

Once the tutorial is over, players will be sent to the capsule screen where they will buy their first Gundam. The first mobile suit, like most of them for that matter, is randomized. After that, you are thrust into the game lobby with little to no explanations given. The game could’ve benefited from a small tutorial on this section of the game. Nevertheless, through a little bit of trial and error, players will figure out what’s going on.

Gundam!

Before we talk about the lobby some more, let’s look at the most essential aspect of the game: the mobile suits themselves. Mobile suits can be obtained by purchasing capsules (which contain random suits), renting them, completing certain quests, mixing, and through the Research Laboratory. Mixing is a process in which a Gundam is built using (1) a Blueprint; (2) a fully upgraded mobile suit, and (3) several mobile suits which will be dismantled for parts and discarded. The Research Laboratory is another way to craft units, which trades cost for time consumption. A suit from a Research Laboratory is relatively inexpensive, but can take up to several weeks to build.

Mobile suits also have rankings. The most common suits are ranked C, followed by B, A, and S rank suits. There are also rare variants and mixing variants, which are represented by CR, BR, AR, SR, and CS, BS, AS and SS, respectively. Ranks also have a specific number of lives during Death PvP matches, with C-rank having 4, B having 3, and A and S having 2. S rank suits can have unique equipment, such as healing tools. Suits can also be either melee, mid-range or long-range fighters. Melee units are strong against mid-range units, which are strong against long-range units, which in turn, overpower melee units, in a Rock-Paper-Scissor-like system.

Each suit comes with a static set of weapons, which cannot be customized. However, many mobile suits have several variations to them, making each suit more versatile. There are also 3 skills for each suit: a special attack which does a ton of damage, and two stat-boost abilities. On top of that, Gundams can be customized both in terms of performance and appearance.

Game Modes

From the lobby, players will get to choose their game modes: PvP Mode or Mission Mode. A great feature of SD Gundam is that PvP is unlocked right away. PvP matches consist of up to 12 players. There are six PvP modes: Normal, Death, Boss, Single, Tag, and Grid. Normal Mode is a simple team versus team setup. Death Mode is similar to Normal Mode, in that players are organized in teams, but instead of a winning condition that’s focused on gathering points, it’s a last-man-standing situation. Boss Mode follows the Normal rules, with the addition of a boss player, in which a random player grows larger and gets extra points for kills, but also gives the opposing team extra points when he is killed. Single Mode is a free-for-all battle. Tag and Grid are two game modes which are played on battleships that are occupied by multiple units. In Grid, players have to reduce the opposing team's score from 300 to 0 in order to win, with each death switching your suit. Tag is a Death match, in which players can switch the suits before dying. In this game mode, the battleships come into play as well, being able to attack.

Mission Mode supports up to 4 players, who must work in unison to complete certain in-game objectives. Missions offer randomized rewards, including currency, stickers, paints, mobile suits, and items. There are two types of missions: Normal and Scenarios. In Normal missions, players go through several levels completing objectives such as capture the point, get from point A to point B, or kill every enemy. Scenarios are recreations of popular events in the Gundam anime series and they reward participants with Blueprints of mobile suits from the series. Players also receive ranks at the end of each mission, grading their performance.

Cash Shop

The Cash Shop in SDGO features units, battleships, blueprints, paints, stickers, battle items, and skill parts. With that being said, no item is permanently exclusive to the cash shop, giving P2P players the advantage of expediency only. This evens the playing field a bit, but instant access to the highest ranked Gundam Suits can create an imbalanced environment.

Final Verdict – Good

SDGO is a fun game that’s crippled by a lack of direction, a small player base, and a certain lack of quality, which includes crashes and poor voice acting. I guess the addictive quality of the game kicks in when you look at the huge variety of mobile suits. As a concept, the game is interesting, but the execution leaves much lacking. Still, you can’t say it’s a bad game.

Screenshots

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online Screenshots

Videos

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online Videos

Playlist: SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online

System Requirements

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online System Requirements

Minimum Requirements:

Operating System: Windows 98 / XP / 2000 / Vista / 7 / 8
CPU: Pentium 4 1.8 GHz
Video Card: GeForce 4 Ti 4400 / ATI Radeon 9600
RAM: 512 MB
Hard Disk Space: 2 GB

Recommended Requirements:

Operating System: Windows 98 / XP / 2000 / Vista / 7 / 8
CPU: Pentium 4 2.8 GHz or better
Video Card: GeForce 7600 / ATI Radeon X1600
RAM: 1 GB
Hard Disk Space: 2 GB

Music

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online Music & Soundtrack

Additional Info

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online Additional Information

Developer: Softmax
Closed Beta Date: November 2, 2011 - November 8, 2011
Open Beta Date: December 1, 2011

Shut down date: July, 2015 (NA)

Foreign Releases:

South Korea: February, 2007
China: January 4, 2008 (9You)
Japan: March 20, 2009 (CJ Internet)
Southeast Asia: March 7, 2012 (Shanda Games)
Indonesia: May 15, 2012 (Megaxus)

Several localized versions of SD Gundam Capsule Fighter are no longer available.

Development Background

SD Gundam Capsule Fighter Online, aka SDGO, is a third-person MMO shooter developed by South Korean game studio Softmax. Development for the game began in South Korea in 2006 with the game launching in Summer, 2007. The game's success in Korea led to it being licensed in China, Japan, SEA, Indonesia, and North America. The Gundam franchise is owned by Bandai, so Softmax had to partner with them to bring SD Gundam Capsule Fighter to life.