Review: Zoids Wild: Blast Unleashed

Mecha Battles

Title: Zoids Wild: Blast Unleashed
Platform: Nintendo Switch
Developer: Codeglue
Publisher: Outright Games
Release date: October 16th
tl;dr: May the best Zoid wins
Price: Â£35 / $40
Family Focus: Click here for more information.

Zoids Wild: Blast Unleashed features a brand new story in the Zoids universe where the story will pit Arashiâ€™s Team Freedom and the power-hungry Team Dark Metal, as players get in the boots of a large cast of Zoids characters with faithful visuals.

Zoids Wild: Blast Unleashed is a 3D fighter where two Zoids go head-to-head in large areas. Each Zoids have standard basic fighting games attacks; normal and strong attacks. Mixing those allows players to do basic combos. Along with the basic attacks, your Zoids can block and dodge in order to avoid taking damage. Note that you cannot block forever. If you keep blocking and absorb hits, your Aura Guard will become dark and then break, so use it wisely.

GGS Gamer's thoughts on Zoids Wild: Blast Unleashed

To make things more interesting, when using the R button it allows players to pull off special attacks that deal a bit more damage. Each special attack has a meter that has to refill over time in order to be able to re-use the attack. Hitting your enemies from behind, their weak spot, will temporarily stun them opening the door for a quick combo for additional damage.

The story mode is a complex detailed multi-path adventure that begins with Arashi and his Zoid Liger, but as you progress through the story and take down enemies, the game opens up new paths allowing you to take control of enemies previously defeated. Additionally, you can unlock additional characters for the game’s battle mode.

GGS Gamer's Zoids Wild: Blast Unleashed review

Once you’ve managed to get through the game’s exhaustive story mode, you can jump into Continous Battle where you will fight against seven enemies continuously; think of it as a Survival mode. While the game is simplistic, those who want to get more out of the combat can play through Practice mode in order to learn the ins and outs. While Battle Mode lets you go at it against a friend locally or the A.I.

As you dole out damage by mixing normal and strong attacks, a special meter in the top left corner starts filling up. Once it’s full, you can unleash some additional power called Wild (Dark) Blast which can be executed by pressing L while holding down R. Once enabled, it will increase the damage output. It can be quite useful when your back is against the wall and mount a comeback. Once you’ve activated your power meter, pressing L while holding down R will unleash a devastating attack.

GGS Gamer's review of Zoids Wild: Blast Unleashed

Unlike most 3D fighters where you can juggle and pummel your enemies, Zoids Wild gives players some breathing room. If the opposing Zoids hits the ground after an attack or combo, you won’t be able to keep attacking as they lay on the ground, vulnerable.

Overall, Zoids Wild: Blast Unleashed looks great. The battlefields are unique, colourful and well designed. The Zoids are unique and faithful to the tv show. The problem is that once the camera zooms out for combat, the Zoids look slightly pixelated; which is a bit baffling given that post-battle close-ups, they look awesome. The story is told through comic book-like anime cutscenes with full voiceover work which is solidly delivered. The soundtrack is a cutesy cartoon score which is pretty forgettable.

GGS Gamer reviews Zoids Wild: Blast Unleashed

Zoids Wild: Blast Unleashed is a fun and addictive, easy to pick up and play beat ’em up. While it might lack the depth of games like the Tekken series, it makes up for it with accessibility, decent game mode variety and unlockable characters. If you’re looking for a fun and casual fighter, or something for the younger gamers, Zoids Wild: Blast Unleashed is definitely worth it.