Gundam Evolution offers a lot of gameplay experiences inspired by former titles that pioneered the hero shooter genre, but one of the most discussed Mobile Suits available to play in-game bears the likeness of a certain Team Fortress 2 mercenary. Gundam Evolution offered 14 Mobile Suits during its network tests offering fine-tuned gunplay and abilities. However, one suit in particular caught the attention, and ire in most cases, of many players: Gundam Barbatos. Although the visual distinction between TF2's French expert of subterfuge and the star of Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans is clear to see, their gameplay functions share striking similarities.
Similar to another popular hero shooter, Overwatch, Gundam Evolution focuses on team versus team skirmishes with varied objectives usually related to control points. Gundam Barbatos is one of two melee-oriented Mobile Suits, but unlike its counterpart, Gundam Exia, Barbatos is able to instantly shut down nearly every Mobile Suit in the game by combining two powerful melee stuns. These abilities combined with Barbatos' generous boost gauge allowing it to easily close the distance drew a lot of fan frustration at how the Mobile Suit was able to run up to opponents and instantly destroy them, then in most cases run away to recharge health and abilities. Counter play was discovered later in the network test to bait the Barbatos' first stun with a well-timed dash, leaving the melee unit bereft of its instant kill and vulnerable in the face of the enemy team.
Aside from Team Fortress 2's own bot-on-bot extermination, the most surprising resemblance between it and Gundam Evolution is in the roles Gundam Barbatos and Valve's Spy share in gameplay: agile, tricky, instant-kill melee assassins that crumble under team awareness. While their approach towards getting in proximity may differ - Barbatos boosting his way into fights with his extra boost charges while spy cloaks and disguises - both are exceptional at eliminating one or two complacent enemies. Spy can quickly backstab an enemy for an instant kill and Barbatos combines two powerful melee abilities to deal an overwhelming amount of damage all but one mobile suit cannot endure. They are also both equipped to escape encounters and their fresh kills and wait for their abilities to recharge, and better opportunities to present themselves.
Gundam Evolution's Barbatos Fills The Same Niche Role As TF2's Spy
Gundam Barbatos and Team Fortress 2's spy both sound unstoppable on paper, but they also share the same weaknesses. Gundam Barbatos is loud and visible during the approach, since the suit's boost makes a distinct sound and the mace's charge attack (the first stun in the combo) also has an ambient charging noise. Spy has to uncloak before stabbing, which makes a very distinct sound, and his disguises are usually far from inconspicuous. A quick dash away as Barbatos swings its mace down and a quick inspection of a teammate acting odd in Team Fortress 2 all but nullifies the threat of these melee assassins. However, there are times when such awareness is between impractical and impossible, such as during large team fights, and it's here where these assassins thrive.
Gundam Evolution is usually inspected against Overwatch's and its sequel's best heroes, with more than one direct character analogue between the team shooters, but it's important to remember the genre has had its share of influential titles. Plenty of ideas can be traced decades in the past, even to the prior millennium. Gundam Evolution is set to offer a diverse and varied roster of interesting interactions between these numerous character functions when it arrives late September 2022 for PC and at the end of November 2022 for console.