Based on the Japanese animated show of the same name, those familiar with UFO Robot Grendizer are obviously going to get the most out of The Feast of the Wolves. Covering the events of the show, however, it is also accessible to newcomers. And while it has its issues, it does offer some fun for fans of outrageous action and mechs.
UFO Robot Grendizer: The Feast of the Wolves begins with a day that should be joyous – the joining of the people of Fleed and Vega via the marriage of Prince Duke Fleed and Princess Rubina. But instead there’s tragedy, as the event is used by Vega to launch a surprise attack. With his home world being destroyed before his very eyes, the Prince has only one option to save it: unearth Grendizer, a giant robot of immense power that has laid dormant for years, in order to fight back. Though despite his best efforts, it’s not enough.
This is only the start of UFO Robot Grendizer: The Feast of the Wolves, with the action quickly changing location to planet Earth some years later. And it’s here that the game really finds its flow. This is a third person action game at its core, with you taking control of Grendizer in numerous open environments, completing missions while engaging in battle with other giant robots. But along the way there are also shoot ’em up sections in a similar vein to games like Afterburner, as well as some more traditional horizontal shoot ’em up moments, too.
As Grendizer, you have a variety of melee attacks at your disposal. You can attack with your fists, a powerful weapon called the Double Harken, and more. The Double Harken can even be used to attack enemies at range, it splitting in two and homing in on enemies before returning to Grendizer like a boomerang. With more abilities to unlock throughout the course of the game by collecting materials, including counter attacks which can be activated by skillfully dodging enemy attacks, combat is enjoyable, though not really original. The only thing a little out of the ordinary here is the need to use certain abilities to make enemies vulnerable to your standard attacks. Icons often appear above enemies’ heads informing you that you need to use your fists, Double Harken or a nifty skill called Anti-Gravity Storm to butter them up, for example.
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What is important to note is that many of these attacks require energy to be used, so you can sometimes find yourself unable to do damage to certain enemies until you either wait for it to recharge naturally, or get some standard attacks in just to expedite the process. This energy is also used to heal, a process which requires you to stand still and essentially meditate for a period of time. Effective management of your energy is key here, then.
Over the course of the story presented by UFO Robot Grendizer: The Feast of the Wolves, you’ll visit a variety of locations, and while it’s hard to describe it as an open world game, it certainly does have open world elements. In each area you’re free to explore and complete the available missions in the order you see fit. There are also things like meditation points to find, and caches containing valuable materials for upgrading your abilities. Along with a number of challenging boss fights to overcome and the frequent shoot ’em sections, you’re kept on your toes.
It’s just a shame that your time spent as Grendizer, which forms the bulk of the game, isn’t more polished. Like in lots of third-person action games, the camera can be a pain at times, especially if you don’t make use of the lock-on function in combat. Fighting near cliffs and other objects can be a pain, too, with enemies suddenly finding themselves on top of them, limiting your ability to attack as well as looking quite jarring. Playing UFO Robot Grendizer: The Feast of the Wolves on PS5 for review, though, it’s the occasional performance and technical issues that are most disappointing. And that’s despite the game not exactly being all that impressive graphically.
UFO Robot Grendizer: The Feast of the Wolves isn’t a bad game – not at all. But it doesn’t do anything that genuinely impresses. It’s a bog-standard action game for the most part, buoyed by some pretty fun shoot ’em sections that add some nice variety. And it’s further hampered by some technical issues that will hopefully be ironed out post-launch. In any case, fans of the show should get some kicks out of it, and newcomers might have some fun unraveling its story in an interactive fashion.
UFO Robot Grendizer: The Feast of the Wolves Review – GameSpew’s Score
