Banpresto and From Software come together to make an SRTesque action cross-over. And it is a good first try.
Another Century's Episode(ACE) is a departure for Banpresto. Upon the success of their Super Robot Taisen(SRT) franchise, and the success of From Software's Armored Core(AC) franchise, these two companies decided to pool their resources and make a third person action cross-over. ACE games share the same basic formula, real robots(and in one case Super Robots) from the TV series and movies of the time, with all of their appropriate attacks and abilities, put together in one third person action game with a loose story tying them together. So if you are familiar with SRT, and if you have played some third person action games, then you should be able to adapt to ACE pretty easily. In ACE, you choose the unit you wish to pilot, as well as the units that will support you for a given mission, and go about utilizing your unit's weapons and abilities to make all of the game's enemy units into rapidly expanding fireballs. All missions take place on a full 3D map, whether in space or in an atmosphere, and involve a number of objectives. The objective types are all pretty standard, from simple mop ups of enemies and boss fights, to rapid escapes and escort missions. Through the course of the game you gain ace points that you then apply to upgrading the stats and weapons of the robots you like, making them stronger in preparation for the end game. If you would like to learn more about ACE and the various robots and characters included in this and other games in the series, go to this link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Another_Century's_Episode
ACE is the first outing for this franchise, so it is not without its issues. Banpresto brings its myriad of licensed anime content, and a passion for cross-over games, and From Software brings their Armored Core software engine and expertise in the third person action genre. This has the makings of a truly epic partnership. And it is successful, just not quite as epic as it could have been.
The roster choices here are good for when this game was made, but many non-Japanese gamers who do not keep up with the majority of Japanese robot anime will probably not be familiar with some of the units. However, the inclusion of Gundam Wing in the roster will give most of these players a familiar place to start, (and incidentally, the Tallgeese is arguably the best unit in the game anyway). Note that there are no Supers in ACE, the roster is composed of exclusively Real type mecha.
The gameplay in ACE is similar to, but different than, most other third person action games. With regards to control, the difference is because you control your unit in a full 3D environment, and the controls are slightly different in an atmosphere than in space. For instance, the right analogue stick in an atmosphere gives you the ability to look around in any direction while maintaining the direction your unit is facing, while in space the same stick changes the direction your unit is facing to facilitate full 3D movement. This takes a little getting used to, but once it is mastered you will be dashing in between enemies, and dodging attacks with ease. Speaking of dashing and dodging, in ACE you have a boost gauge, ala AC, which is depleted when you use your boosters to dash, or boost dodge an attack. To engage your targets, you can lock onto the nearest enemy with the press of a button, and cycle through the available enemies with continued presses. Your weapons are mapped to various buttons, and your melee attacks happens automatically when you are close to an enemy and press the button to fire your primary weapon. All this adds up to a control scheme that takes a little time to master, but is intuitive enough to not be too much of a problem to get used to. With regards to weapons, they each also have a set damage and recharge rate which you have to take into consideration. No one likes to have a nice juicy enemy in your sights only to realize that your weapons are dry. These two stats for each of your unit's weapons, as well as all of the stats of your mech can be upgraded. However the upgrade system involves a give and take mechanic, once again ala AC, so when you raise one stat another is slightly lessened. This can be a bit confusing, and seems a little out of character for Banpresto's MO, SRT players will probably be putt off by this a bit, but it is not that big of an issue.The one gripe that is leveled against this game on a regular basis is that it is a bit slow, once again ala AC. And it is true that the pace of the action does not always mirror the action you are used to seeing in the anime source material. This does put a damper on the experience and drags down the score a bit, but this is the first try for the developers so some slack can be cut. In summary, the gameplay gripes basically boil down to "Too much AC, not enough SRT."
The graphics for ACE are very good by the standards of the time. The environments are kind of bland, but this is due to the developers needing to make them as big as possible. The unit models on the other hand are very detailed. There is no cel-shading as you might expect from an anime inspired or SRT game, but the units, weapon effects, and UI are very pleasing. Overall quite good.
The sound is also very good. All the anime accurate themes and effects are present, as well as the original voice actors adding their voices to the appropriate characters.
The value of ACE is not at the level of some of the SRT franchise games, but it is good. The campaign is 45 missions long, which is quite a bit of bang for your buck. And after you beat the game you retain your ace points and upgrades, and gain access to a free mission mode where you can retry any mission in the game to get a higher skill rating and unlock more units. This replay system is adequate, and will appeal to those who are familiar with the unlockable units. But even if you don't want to unlock every unit in the game, the length of the campaign makes ACE a pretty good value.
ACE is the first try for the team of Banpresto and From Software, and it is a good try. SRT fans who want to pilot their favorite Reals instead of command them in a strategy RPG, would not make a bad decision by picking up ACE. However, there are some minor gripes which drag down the score. So if you are looking for the best mecha action game on PS2, or the best game in this franchise, look elsewhere. But if you are a collector like me, or if you are looking for a very good mecha action game, ACE would not be a bad choice.