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Super Robot Wars is one of those series that I love even if the actual stages aren’t great and line-ups aren’t ideal. I love the interactions and potential for silliness when all these series are dumped into the same pot. (It’s one of the reasons why games like Project X Zone are so much fun too!) Thankfully, Super Robot Wars Y isn’t an installment carried by the notion that “Hey, isn’t it funny when Bandai Namco forced Gauma from SSSS.Dynazenon to interact with Getter Robo Arc characters like Takuma and Baku?” While we are seeing some reused assets and I wish the UI was clearer, it features silly situations and some genuinely difficult stages.
Super Robot Wars Y seems to begin with another conflict on the verge of happening. It looks like the Earthnoids, under Lelouch vi Britannia (Code Geass: Lelouch of the Re;surrection), might be pressured into another fight with Spacenoids potentially uniting under Char Aznable (Gundam: Char’s Counterattack). Except on the day Lelouch is going to be inaugurated as First Emperor of Earth, all of the crossover folks watch as he’s assassinated. Everyone basically decides, “Okay, that’s enough.” The New Earth Federation acknowledged the space colonies, and things seem okay. Seem being the keyword. On her fourteenth birthday, Echika Y Franburnett gets one of the player avatar NINJAs as her new bodyguard and learns that Yagami City, which her father founded, and Ayanashi City are actually part of the A. Advent emigration fleet ship. It’s being targeted by foes like Logos, and it becomes our mission to once again fight back against enemies alongside characters from many, many different anime mech series.
Progression in Super Robot Wars Y is identical to past entries. We go through a mission, which usually involves wiping out all enemies. We can select Spirits abilities to assist and enhance our characters. Depending on things like proximity, ammo, and energy, different attacks at different ranges and strengths are possible. The Assist Link feature involves additional Assist Crew characters to offer active and passive effects. Units are deployed and move on a grid. All of our units move. When our turn ends, the enemy turn begins. When a foe initiates a fight, we can choose the response method. There are also various options to speed things up to keep things moving at a lively pace. After a battle is done, we can adjust equipment, shop, adjust assists, build up characters, go through the skill tree to apply enhancements to our squad, and see story-based segments.
It’s the sort of situation where if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it. Things work well, and battles move at a good clip. While I would say the overall story is generally fine, the interactions between characters from different series remains fantastic and fun. It’s great to watch people interact, and I also loved the introductions to characters from series I wasn’t familiar with in the game. They’re handled really well, and I think I am going to end up watching SSSS. Dynazenon because of this title. There can be some fun moments, and I felt like it was more challenging than Super Robot Wars 30 at times. However, it definitely does pull ideas and concepts from that installment, with some assets looking like they came from there, the auto-battle option, us getting to select our next missions, and the DLC series.
Speaking of series, I’m generally pretty pleased with the choices Bandai Namco made for Super Robot Wars Y. I do miss Magic Knight Rayearth, since I’m a huge CLAMP fan. SSSS.Dynazenon fits in very well. Gundam and Code Geass are always great, though I’m disappointed only The Witch from Mercury season one is represented. Godzilla Singular Point is an absolute thrill, and I’m excited by the prospect of DLC series like The Big O and Fuuto PI: The Portrait of Kamen Rider Skull.
But what I’m not pleased by is the UI. It’s so bad that it almost feels a bit lazy. The main menus look like something I’d see in a mobile game I’m playing. When you get into the Customization section or start looking up characters, there are so many details crammed into each page in some areas that it can be difficult to parse until you get accustomed to things. It doesn’t look good and, in some ways, isn’t user-friendly, which is a bad combination!
While I wish it looked better at times, Super Robot Wars Y gets a lot of things right and can offer a substantial challenge. There are some stages that will involve actually thinking about unit placement to ensure you handle all those foes and keep from being wiped out. It can look dated sometimes though, as some assets look familiar, and the UI is pretty bad. I’m also personally sad that Magic Knight Rayearth didn’t return and that we don’t see all of Gundam: The Witch from Mercury represented. While I did like some elements of Super Robot Wars 30 a little more, this is definitely another enjoyable entry in the series.
Super Robot Wars Y is available for the Switch, PS5, and PC.
Super Robot Wars Y
While I wish it looked better at times, Super Robot Wars Y gets a lot of things right and can offer a substantial challenge.
