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Custom Robo

カスタムロボ バトルレボリューション

Developers: NoiseNintendo Publisher: Nintendo
04 March 2004
Custom Robo [カスタムロボ バトルレボリューション] - cover art
Glitchwave rating
3.41 / 5.0
0.5
5.0
 
 
66 Ratings /
#2,631 All-time
#91 for 2004
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Releases 3
Filter by: All 3 Gamecube 3
2004 Noise Nintendo  
Disc
CA 0 45496 96184 8 DL-DOL-GXCE-USA
2004 Noise Nintendo  
Disc
US 0 45496 96183 1 DL-DOL-GXCE-USA
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An absolutely bewildering mess that almost works
Custom Robo is, to put it concisely, a mech arena combat game whose fighting system is explained away in the lore to be little more than a toy that everyone plays, like how wars are settled between Yu-Gi-Oh cards in the anime. The entire game is ridiculously plot heavy and follows the same beats (and characters) of consumer-y buy-our-products style of shounen.

You are "Hero", the unassuming boy who apparently doesn't know a single thing about how the world works at all - convenient, because other characters will explain these things to you in dialogue for the rest of the game. Your dad's dying wish is for you to be a custom robo pilot, so you join a local bounty hunter group that is desperate for help. Throughout the game, you help solve petty squabbles that the cops are too busy to solve, slowly uncovering a mystery involving corruption in the police, rival bounty hunter gangs with shady intentions, a secret organization known as the Z syndicate, and even a whole other world... that you have zero reason to ever doubt exists. Along the way you will read literally thousands of lines of dialogue from such lovable characters as Harry the Poondog Womanizer, Marcia the Girl Who Is Traumatized and Suddenly Can't Fight, and Linda the Genius Scientist With Absolutely Nothing to Hide. It's generic and underwritten to the point of wrapping back around and actually being somewhat charming. However, they try to pull some annoying shit, such as literally half a dozen tournament arcs, only one of which having any plot relevance at all (and it's the first one). Additionally, the final third of the game was so batshit insane that I was laughing out loud at how silly the story gets. It's worth experiencing for yourself, if you can manage it - it's like the Penny Arcade guys got a hold of the Evangelion script.

The actual combat mechanics are... fine. You shoot at the other robots and and they die before you do; the automatic lock on and cover based mechanics making the game similar to Dissidia Final Fantasy in a way. You collect parts that allow for further customization, changing your mobility, defense, gun, bombs, and "pods" which are basically homing missiles. However, the parts you receive are completely scripted, and the storyline is directly linear, to the point where every encounter is forced, throttling your potential customization. An overwhelming majority of the parts are received in the post-story content, which is just a series of even more tournament arcs. You have to seriously love the combat systems to consider tracking down these parts, and that severely limits what the average player can get out of the base experience of the story. Why there wasn't a SINGLE optional collectible in the story mode, I'll never understand. The complete lack of optional incentives makes the game feel as on-rails as an action game possibly could be.

I can't exactly say that my time was wasted with Custom Robo, because it's clear on some base level that the developers really cared about the game - the sheer number of lines of dialogue confirm this for me. The combat is pretty simplistic but you're given just enough new toys to not get bored with your playstyle, and there's a certain level of strategy you'll have to toy with as your usual setup occasionally will meet certain mechs they find hard to take down. The story, despite all of its bullshit, at least tried to do something high-concept and long-form, even if they ended up padding it out and going way over on the dialogue. I could see a younger person, like sub-13 years old, really digging this game because of its occasionally darker tone and free reign to play as you like on the fighting end of things. As an adult, I can't help but feel like this game needed way more time in the oven.
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the_lockpick 2019-10-27T05:28:36Z
2019-10-27T05:28:36Z
2.5
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Catalog

Gibbous カスタムロボ バトルレボリューション 2024-03-06T18:04:49Z
2024-03-06T18:04:49Z
4.0
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
hevykofe Custom Robo 2024-01-05T04:46:08Z
Gamecube • US
2024-01-05T04:46:08Z
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
CrypticDingus カスタムロボ バトルレボリューション 2023-11-13T03:24:35Z
2023-11-13T03:24:35Z
4.5
1
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
BadwNames カスタムロボ バトルレボリューション 2023-10-27T04:37:09Z
2023-10-27T04:37:09Z
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
JO_Andy カスタムロボ バトルレボリューション 2023-10-26T13:37:59Z
2023-10-26T13:37:59Z
3.0
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
gabberghoul カスタムロボ バトルレボリューション 2023-10-22T16:58:42Z
2023-10-22T16:58:42Z
4.0
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
HipHopJugend カスタムロボ バトルレボリューション 2023-10-04T16:41:34Z
2023-10-04T16:41:34Z
5.0
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Kowareta99 カスタムロボ バトルレボリューション 2023-09-30T13:57:19Z
2023-09-30T13:57:19Z
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Doctor_Murdezio カスタムロボ バトルレボリューション 2023-09-12T03:02:39Z
2023-09-12T03:02:39Z
4.0
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
robert123451 カスタムロボ バトルレボリューション 2023-09-04T11:21:40Z
2023-09-04T11:21:40Z
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
nbatman カスタムロボ バトルレボリューション 2023-07-06T14:45:42Z
2023-07-06T14:45:42Z
4.0
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
nickmgarza96 カスタムロボ バトルレボリューション 2023-07-04T05:25:22Z
2023-07-04T05:25:22Z
5.0
In collection Want to buy Used to own  
Content rating
CERO: All Ages
Player modes
1-4 players
Multiplayer options
Local
Franchises
Also known as
  • Custom Robo
  • Custom Robo Battle Revolution
  • View all [2] Hide

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  • the_lockpick 2019-10-28 02:28:59.227475+00
    what an absolute clusterfuck of a game. I kind of recommend it just to see how weird it eventually gets
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  • ... 2020-10-01 17:40:31.999898+00
    Super underrated. Crazy good with friends,. Contrary to the_lockpick, thankful that you don't have to play story mode more than once for 'optional' unlockables you might have missed and genuinely enjoyed the humor and oddities of the plot.
    reply
    • the_lockpick 2020-12-01 03:49:21.79644+00
      that's a fair point. and yeah, the writing is actually charming once you get past the initial cultural whiplash of it all. it feels like an early 00s web comic
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  • Xionus 2021-05-20 19:02:24.913294+00
    One of the few games that hooked me in because of it's intro video as a kid.
    Playing it now, it's still pretty cool, although robo and weapon balance could be better imo
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