I'd known about Megaton Musashi since its ORIGINAL announcement trailer of being a Switch title under the standard name of "Megaton Musashi". For the longest time I didn't expect it to release on PC, so when it was announced as Megaton Musashi: Wired for Steam, I was ECSTATIC. Until now I've never truly been much of a Super Robot fan, but this game is just OOZING with Super Robot style to the point that I gotta say I'm kind of a fan of at least the stuff in this game.

Almost everything about Megaton Musashi: Wired is fantastic. From the music, to the sound effects of the mechs and their bombastic moves, to the designs and customization, it's all wonderful. Even the story is pretty great and had me hooked aside from some glaring plotholes which were important. For anyone looking for a new mecha game I highly recommend this, as it's just a fantastic time. One thing I would like to make clear though is to not be fooled by the fact the game has co-op, as the storyline cannot be co-op'ed, even though they could have made it so. While the co-op inclusion IS nice and there are some interesting aspects to it, I found my co-op experience to be pretty meh most of the time.



The Good

Super Robot Style - As mentioned above, this game is just DRIPPING with Super Robot Style. Everything about the game is just cool, and every time they introduce something new it had me excited. There's so many little details and homages to other Super Robot media, as well as some collaboration units and potential plans for more.

The Gameplay - I'm not sure I've ever played a game which made me feel like I was playing out a badass anime, but Megaton Musashi: Wired is probably the closest I've ever experienced. Certain experiences in the game feel insurmountable, only for the game to throw something new at you to turn the tide of battle. Co-op missions AT TIMES can also feel like you're part of a three man squad facing off against something truly unbeatable, only for your group to squeeze by just barely, which is a pretty awesome feeling.

Character development - I don't think there's a single character in this game that I dislike. Initially there were several, but each individual character gets their own form of development which makes them all great characters in the end. I didn't initially expect much from a pseudo-3D sidescrolling based overworld with characters, but I was pleasantly surprised.

The soundtrack and general audio - Megaton Musashi: Wired features an AWESOME soundtrack which fits amazingly into the game, and making the fights feel so much more impactful. I've actually recently been listening to some of the sounds whilst driving out about (specifically Mountain District) which is rare. On top of this, the general audio for the game including the mechs, weapons, and everything is phenomenal, and there's so many minute audio details that it's kind of crazy when they truly didn't have to put them into the game.

Mech Customization - Initially I didn't think I'd be able to make anything I particularly wanted to use, but I found that I just kept coming up with ideas for mech designs even if there's only four parts that can be changed. There's so many options that you keep finding throughout the story so it truly felt as though I wasn't struggling to find options to mix and match customization options.


The Ok

Co-op and how it's implemented - There is no story co-op to speak of, and the only co-op that's within the game is purely just side missions and two other mission types that you unlock whilst playing through singleplayer. Occasionally there are cool experiences within the co-op, but for the most part it just feels like you're doing the same thing over and over again with such little variation that it can get a little boring at times. Dreadnought Missions are one of the co-op things which feels unique, but at higher difficulties they're balanced very poorly to the point most people take to using cheese builds to complete them. If co-op had unique side missions which weren't available in Singleplayer the experience would be much better.

The Story - Whilst the games story did have me initially interested, as it goes on there are multiple plot points and just some things which are completely skipped over. Late into the story there's just a very large gap in a very important part of the story that is just skipped over and filled in with a side mission that has no cutscenes or anything. Very confusing, but I also didn't hate it and had they addressed the problems I would've loved it.


The Bad

Lategame Balancing - Balancing once you get past like level 70 becomes kind of insane. The game becomes less about you building a mech which can take hits and learning to guard, to becoming more about dodging every single hit from every enemy because you die in one-hit from almost everything even when guarding, unless it's the lowest tier mooks attacking you. On top of this, actually grinding and becoming capable of playing missions which are the final unlockable difficulty feels initially insurmountable unless someone is there to carry you so you can acquire gear. Only way I've found otherwise is to build your kit around super cheesy range builds which trivialize bosses regardless of the difficulty, and that is TRULY mind-numbingly boring.

PvP - PvP in this game is truly horrendous, with terrible balancing which seemingly is decided based off of criteria such as what member you are in a squad. On top of this, if you're doing too well at the PvP the game actively punishes you by giving the enemy team "Chance Time" which makes it to where they're almost capable of one-shotting your team. It's actually easier to let the enemy team win to the point that your team gets Chance Time and then steamrolling them for an instant victory than it is to actually fight a full on brawl. Truly disappointing.

The fact the Deluxe Edition Upgrade costs $5 more than if you buy it outright when purchasing the game. Feels like being punished for buying something a bit later.

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Final Verdict:

Overall Score: 9/10.

Worth $49.99? Honestly if you're looking for a mecha game to sink dozens of hours into whilst waiting for Gundam Breaker 4, I'd say yes. There is a pretty steady co-op community for the side missions if you want to treat them entirely as if they're co-op only, and there's a LOT to unlock. I've still not fully unlocked every Mech regardless of my current playtime, so if you like collectathons this is likely for you.

I'd known about Megaton Musashi since its ORIGINAL announcement trailer of being a Switch title under the standard name of "Megaton Musashi". For the longest time I didn't expect it to release on PC, so when it was announced as Megaton Musashi: Wired for Steam, I was ECSTATIC. Until now I've never truly been much of a Super Robot fan, but this game is just OOZING with Super Robot style to the point that I gotta say I'm kind of a fan of at least the stuff in this game. Almost everything about Megaton Musashi: Wired is fantastic. From the music, to the sound effects of the mechs and their bombastic moves, to the designs and customization, it's all wonderful. Even the story is pretty great and had me hooked aside from some glaring plotholes which were important. For anyone looking for a new mecha game I highly recommend this, as it's just a fantastic time. One thing I would like to make clear though is to not be fooled by the fact the game has co-op, as the storyline cannot be co-op'ed, even though they could have made it so. While the co-op inclusion IS nice and there are some interesting aspects to it, I found my co-op experience to be pretty meh most of the time. [code]If you like this review, feel free to check out my personal Steam Curator page by [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/36761101-Miphnificent]*Clicking Here*[/url] for other long-form reviews.[/code] [b]The Good[/b] Super Robot Style - As mentioned above, this game is just DRIPPING with Super Robot Style. Everything about the game is just cool, and every time they introduce something new it had me excited. There's so many little details and homages to other Super Robot media, as well as some collaboration units and potential plans for more. The Gameplay - I'm not sure I've ever played a game which made me feel like I was playing out a badass anime, but Megaton Musashi: Wired is probably the closest I've ever experienced. Certain experiences in the game feel insurmountable, only for the game to throw something new at you to turn the tide of battle. Co-op missions AT TIMES can also feel like you're part of a three man squad facing off against something truly unbeatable, only for your group to squeeze by just barely, which is a pretty awesome feeling. Character development - I don't think there's a single character in this game that I dislike. Initially there were several, but each individual character gets their own form of development which makes them all great characters in the end. I didn't initially expect much from a pseudo-3D sidescrolling based overworld with characters, but I was pleasantly surprised. The soundtrack and general audio - Megaton Musashi: Wired features an AWESOME soundtrack which fits amazingly into the game, and making the fights feel so much more impactful. I've actually recently been listening to some of the sounds whilst driving out about (specifically Mountain District) which is rare. On top of this, the general audio for the game including the mechs, weapons, and everything is phenomenal, and there's so many minute audio details that it's kind of crazy when they truly didn't have to put them into the game. Mech Customization - Initially I didn't think I'd be able to make anything I particularly wanted to use, but I found that I just kept coming up with ideas for mech designs even if there's only four parts that can be changed. There's so many options that you keep finding throughout the story so it truly felt as though I wasn't struggling to find options to mix and match customization options. [b]The Ok[/b] Co-op and how it's implemented - There is no story co-op to speak of, and the only co-op that's within the game is purely just side missions and two other mission types that you unlock whilst playing through singleplayer. Occasionally there are cool experiences within the co-op, but for the most part it just feels like you're doing the same thing over and over again with such little variation that it can get a little boring at times. Dreadnought Missions are one of the co-op things which feels unique, but at higher difficulties they're balanced very poorly to the point most people take to using cheese builds to complete them. If co-op had unique side missions which weren't available in Singleplayer the experience would be much better. The Story - Whilst the games story did have me initially interested, as it goes on there are multiple plot points and just some things which are completely skipped over. Late into the story there's just a very large gap in a very important part of the story that is just skipped over and filled in with a side mission that has no cutscenes or anything. Very confusing, but I also didn't hate it and had they addressed the problems I would've loved it. [b]The Bad[/b] Lategame Balancing - Balancing once you get past like level 70 becomes kind of insane. The game becomes less about you building a mech which can take hits and learning to guard, to becoming more about dodging every single hit from every enemy because you die in one-hit from almost everything even when guarding, unless it's the lowest tier mooks attacking you. On top of this, actually grinding and becoming capable of playing missions which are the final unlockable difficulty feels initially insurmountable unless someone is there to carry you so you can acquire gear. Only way I've found otherwise is to build your kit around super cheesy range builds which trivialize bosses regardless of the difficulty, and that is TRULY mind-numbingly boring. PvP - PvP in this game is truly horrendous, with terrible balancing which seemingly is decided based off of criteria such as what member you are in a squad. On top of this, if you're doing too well at the PvP the game actively punishes you by giving the enemy team "Chance Time" which makes it to where they're almost capable of one-shotting your team. It's actually easier to let the enemy team win to the point that your team gets Chance Time and then steamrolling them for an instant victory than it is to actually fight a full on brawl. Truly disappointing. The fact the Deluxe Edition Upgrade costs $5 more than if you buy it outright when purchasing the game. Feels like being punished for buying something a bit later. - [b]Final Verdict[/b]: Overall Score: 9/10. Worth $49.99? Honestly if you're looking for a mecha game to sink dozens of hours into whilst waiting for Gundam Breaker 4, I'd say yes. There is a pretty steady co-op community for the side missions if you want to treat them entirely as if they're co-op only, and there's a LOT to unlock. I've still not fully unlocked every Mech regardless of my current playtime, so if you like collectathons this is likely for you.