More Than Cool...it's R.A.D.!

Walking up on R.A.D. at E3, we presumed that it was just another big robot game. The popularity right now of bringing franchises like Gundam and Robotech to gaming has resulted in some less than stellar output, so I think we're justified in coming to the table with a certain degree of skepticism. But, R.A.D. (the acronym is short for Robotic Alchemic Drive) is unique in its approach and presentation, and we suspect fans of the mecha genre in anime, comics, toys and games will have a lot to love when this one hits stores in November. The ZOE sequel from Konami and Xbox's Steel Battalion present an appealing and realistic vision of mecha combat, but what R.A.D. offers that no one else has been able to bring to gaming prior to this is the experience of 'living' the mecha battles we've previously been only able to observe through movies, anime and television. The scenes that were playable showed a young boy entering a giant mech to battle a menacing enemy in the midst of a crowded city. Cutting from footage on film, news broadcast done 'live' with announcers and screen-in-screen coverage, and third person action as the boy approaches the mech, the scene begins to play out, but at no time are you pulled away from the action. When I actually got into the pilot's seat in the robot, I swear I thought the game was broken. After actually reading the instructions (doh!) I found that beyond the cool look of R.A.D., simulating the anime and film scenes we've had seared into our brains over the years, the controls are a physical analog to the visuals. You move your giant machine by pressing left and right shoulder buttons to move the corresponding legs, and when you fight in combat, you push the left and right analog sticks to swing the corresponding arms. It sounds simple, but much like the brilliant Ape Escape which used analog sticks otherwise sorely neglected, R.A.D. has accurately given us what it might feel like to pilot a huge, cumbersome robotic war machine. The complete effect playing the game at this point is outstanding, and we can't wait to play the finished product this Fall.