When one thinks of giant mecha battle robots there is always one series that almost instantly comes to mind, Gundam. This year has brought about a lot of terrible news, but in the world of anime, something fantastic recently happened; a full, life-size Gundam has been built in Japan. Now, as if its real-life existence in and of itself wasn't cool enough, the bot has just taken itself a step further, literally. That's right, the real-life Gundam just took its first steps, as well as demonstrating some other movements, proving that we might not be too far away from a mecha battle filled future.
Based on the ever popular RX-78-2, this Gundam has brought the global hit franchise into current-day Japan for real. Staring in a slew of shows, mangas, and video games, not to mention the insanely deep world of Gundam model building, this specific model is instantly recognizable by fans around the world. Started back in January, the mecha stands at about sixty feet tall and is finally starting to take itself from statue to full-on functioning robot. From walking to kneeling to examining its own hands, this life-size Gundam displays an amazing amount of articulation and movement for a cartoon brought to reality, something fans have only dreamed of for decades now.
New footage shows the mecha in all its glory, shaking its head and getting down on one knee, as well as checking out its own hand, flexing its fingers, and walking a bit. The best part of all of this is that this is just the initial test. The bot has far more tricks up its sleeve, however, due to COVID-19, the full display of what this bot can do has been delayed as it is the centerpiece of Gundam Factory Yokohama, a soon to open amusement area in Tokyo.
The Gundam was set to make its debut October 1, but with how things have been this year there's no guaranteeing that date won't get pushed back. While currently, the movement is far too slow for any actual fast-paced fighting like from the series, the fact that this exists at all is mind-boggling in its own right, so any display of actual functionality, albeit not as fast as one may like, is still quite the incredible feat.
Check out some more of the absolutely bonkers video footage of the mecha in motion:
Tokyo is sure to be on the travel destination list already for most Gundam fans, but if it wasn't yet, it definitely is now.