Shogo: Mobile Armor Division

This game is awesome.  At the time that I discovered it (in a bargin bin at Wal-Mart, being sold as a twin-pack with Septerra Core, which will get its own post), I was just getting in to anime and coming off of the entire Robotech series.  The idea of stomping around inside a giant mech was fuel for fantasy, and unfortunately the games I had played dealing with mechs usually fell into the MechWarrior/Earthsiege manner of play, where mechs were basically just cumbersome, walking tanks.  Nothing like the athletic Veritech fighters in Robotech.  Shogo got it right.

Shogo has two play modes that you switch between: piloting a giant mech, and entering buildings on foot.  Both game modes are well executed.  At the start of the game you choose a mech from one of four models with their own attributes (such as overall attack power and speed).  This mech will be yours for the remainder of the game.  The game controls much the same when you are in your mech and when you are on foot, but when piloting your mech you always feel so big and powerful.  The levels are designed so that you have a sense of scale, and in addition to combating other giant mechs, you will have to contend with human soldiers as well.  Crunching your way through city streets stalking mechs between buildings while taking fire from soldiers atop the same gives you a great feeling.  You might think that going out on foot would be disappointing, but there is some great combat that takes place in these parts, and the closed quarters, the quicker movements of your character and the sweet weaponry makes both modes of play a fun experience.

The game offers a couple of points where you must make decisions.  Nothing complex, one decision may alter the narrative somewhat, but a final decision, as a twisting plot unwinds, will determine what your final mission is to be, and what you will face at the end.  There are two possible end bosses, a scenario where you must face a giant mech on foot, and one where you must a man being protected by a large alien life form.

Something that kept combat interesting is that Shogo incorporated random "critical hits" into play.  Usually found only in RPGs, at any point in time a strike against an opponent might result in a critical hit that would do significantly more damage.  The flip side to this coin is, enemies could also score critical hits on you, so you need to play with skill because having a full life bar isn't going to guarantee you come out on top if you go toe-to-toe.

Unfortunately, like many games that deserve better Shogo sold below expectations.  Two expansion packs were planned, but later canceled.