hile it has been around for a while in Japan, this is the first Custom Robo game to make it to the States. I have a feeling it will also be the last, as it seems unlikely to find much of a fan base here. At a distance, it looks like an RPG, but it’s really just a robot-themed Power Stone with some weak story elements in between battles.

As a Robo Commander, you battle other ‘bots in bland, isometric arenas with hopes of winning new parts. The variety of pieces you can obtain does make for a huge number of robot combinations, but combat never evolves past button mashing. Between rounds, you have to slog through pages and pages of dialogue and visit different locations to advance the story. The trouble is that there is no freedom of exploration. You must visit certain locations at certain times, and you must talk to specific individuals. The locations and story elements do nothing other than fill time in between the short, simple matches. Multiplayer is available, but it needs to be unlocked in story mode, and battles can be completed in a minute or two. If anyone really needs a Pokémon-influenced robot title for their GameCube, the very similar MedaBots: Infinity was released a few months ago. It’s not great either, but easily better than this.  

MATTHEW KATO   5.75 This game is held back by its refusal to further explore possible RPG aspects, as it holds strong to its fun multiplayer roots. I wish the arenas were a little bigger, but you’ll dig the different parts for your robot and the writing is even funny. I’d love to take this baby for a spin online, but Nintendo’s not that kind of girl.