Megaton Musashiis a Mecha RPG that has been available in Japan since late 2021, but publisher Level-5 is now launching the game worldwide. This new definitive edition, calledMegaton Musashi W: Wired, adds a new story mode, new loot rarities, cross-play/cross-save, and much more. It’s a huge expansion of the core game, butLevel-5is not content to stop there.
After Megaton Musashi W: Wired, Level-5 intends to release all future titles worldwide on day one. Level 5 still has a couple of games coming this year, includingFantasy Liveand a beta testing period forInazuma Eleven: Victory Road. The company is also working onProfessor Layton and the New World of Steam, set to release in 2025. Of course, Megaton Musashi W: Wired is the current focus with its release on April 25. Game Rant was recently invited to check out the game ahead of the launch, as well as participate in the Megaton Musashi World Cup representing Team USA.
What is Megaton Musashi W: Wired?
Megaton Musashi W: Wiredallows players to customize and improve their Mechas, known as Rogues, with a plethora of visual customizations and weapon modifications. This includes a variety of special abilities via Motherboards, customizable chest, arms, and leg parts, and much more. Anyone who enjoysmecha games for their customization optionswill enjoyMegaton Musashi W: Wired,as its customization from a gameplay perspective is second to none. To unlock new parts, players have to complete missions and pick them up as loot, with some missions designed for players to repeatedly grind for better gear.
Story-wise,Megaton Musashihas always had the post-apocalyptic premise that an alien race known as Draktors has all but completely made humanity extinct. The few survivors seek to fight back with their Rogues, while the Draktors attempt to terraform Earth into something more fitting for them. Fans have seen elements of this story in theMegaton Musashianime, but now can see it come full circle in the game.
Megaton Musashi W: Wired Gameplay Preview
Ahead of the Megaton Musashi World Cup, we had a few hours to check out solo play for the game and were also paired with our team for some practice PvP matches. We began with a few select story missions in order to get accustomed to the control scheme and learn the basics. What small glimpses we saw hooked us immediately, withMegaton Musashi W: Wiredgoing headlong into itspost-apocalyptic approach. We were moved from section to section, facing off with a variety of Draktors, being introduced to their weird fusions, and constantly having to shift our strategy. We also completed a few side missions, and what stood out to us was the environmental and enemy variety.
At one point, we were fighting on a ravaged portion of Earth, filled with destroyed cities that we dwarfed in our Rogue. At another point, we were surrounded by plenty of greenery and fighting off the Draktors as they sought to terraform the area. And then at one point, we were located far in the sky, fighting enemies off in the air. Draktors, although similar in their general alien aesthetic, were as varied. While we did see the same enemy or two a few times, it felt like we were constantly being faced with new enemies, and nowhere was this more obvious than in the Dreadnought Class Missions.
Dreadnought Class Missions ratcheted up the difficulty, forcing us to rely on every trick we had learned and then some. These missions really tested us, despite thinking we had a pretty firm grasp on the game after the other missions. These missions see players face off with powerful and/or gigantic Draktors, including a speedy trio with devastating combos, a giant T-Rex creature, and a giant Terraforming-like alien stationary. We really enjoyed the challenge of these missions, and two things reinforce their replay value. The first is that players can increase the difficulty and challenge of each individual mission, and this leads to more rewards. As a developer explained, these missions are meant to be replayed and grinded, so players can unlock more and more weapons and mech parts. The key element of anyvideo game grindis that it is continuously fun, and as we moved from Dreadnought Class Mission to Dreadnought Class Mission, it was very clear how fast the mission type had hooked us.
In each of these missions, we were accompanied by two NPCs who were in their own Rogues. Not only was the dialogue amusing, but it allowed us to see more than one way a mech could work. The possibilities genuinely seem endless. There is also a second benefit here. NPCs are obviously different from human teammates, but the 3-man squad translates well to thePVP component. It did well to prepare us, at least for the in-game element, of the upcoming World Cup.
After some solo play, we met up with our teammates and began to decide what we’d do build-wise and strategy-wise. The PvP missions we did at this time were not part of the World Cup, but they helped make sure everyone, who would be amateurs, had some experience before delving in. It’s very clear thatMegaton Musashi W: Wiredis an easy game to pick up PvE and PvP-wise, but one that takes time to master. There are many elements to consider when delving into a PvP battle in the game.
Megaton Musashi World Cup
The tournament began after a lunch break, where each team would draw random numbers to determine their spot in the bracket. There were eight countries: USA (represented by Game Rant), UK (represented by TheGamer), Japan (represented by Famitsu), China (represented by Gamersky), France (represented by Jeuxvideo), Germany (represented by Webedia Gaming Network), Spain (represented by 3DJuegos), and Italy (represented by Everyeye). We were all paired off, with our first opponents being Italy. The UK would face Spain, Japan would face France, and China would face Germany. The second round would be the semi-finals, and the third round would then be the finals.
Team USA and Our Strategy
Game Rant’s partners on Team USA included Alexander Reton (left) and Stazi (right).
Since we did not have a lot of time to decide on an in-depth strategy, we simply coordinated our abilities and equipment. Game Rant would use knuckles for melee combat as we enjoyed their general speed, while we each used machine guns at a distance. These guns seemed to be the most effective for long-distance damage when poking enemies, either in attempts to divert their course or to give them a little spook. Machine guns were also effective in getting the advantage early if we found ourselves heading into 2v1 or 1v1 scenarios, as opposed to closer-ranged weapons like shotguns. We all selected the same special abilities as well, which when used in succession against an opponent, was a great way to stunlock enemies, while other members of our team piled damage on with ranged weapons. It seemed like a sound strategy, but just like anysolid multiplayer game, we found ourselves constantly adjusting our in-game strategy on the fly.
Round 1: USA vs. Italy
In the first round, we faced off with Italy. The match would end up going to the time limit, with Team USA barely getting the win. The early match was a bit of a feeling-out period, with both teams getting kills back and forth. However, it started looking bad for Team USA when Italy became more aggressive, pushing into our spawn area. We managed to fight out of this bad situation and send them all back to their spawn, taking the majority of the bar, with about 15 seconds remaining in the match. Instead of pushing in those final moments, risking our win, we decided to fall back to the far side of our spawn and wait out the time. We won the match as they peaked the nearby hills. It wasn’t the most decisive victory, but a W is a W.
What we learned as a team is that we needed to not just coordinate our builds, but coordinate better in the match. We were not the most unified at the start of the match, which worked fine until Italy rallied and became more aggressive. It was partially only because we had no choice but to coordinate within the spawn location that we fought them back, utilizing nearby drops as well to survive. The final minute of the match could perhaps be best defined as Team USA trying to survive, and we understood that moving further in the tournament would require more strategy on our part.
The best way to experience any video game is to always play it, but the prevalence ofesportsindicates how important it is that it’s exciting to watch as well. That’s exactly what Megaton Musashi W: Wired does; it’s a great game to watch as well as play. Between our matches, we were able to see how the other teams played, and each win, momentum shift, and fight in-game was palpable as a viewer as well.
Round 1: Germany vs. China
Alongside us, the UK, China, and Japan would move on to the Semi-finals, defeating Spain, Germany, and France, respectively. We would be paired up against the UK, while China and Japan would appear on the other side of the bracket, for the semi-finals. Interested fans should stay tuned over the next few days for the results of the semi-finals and finals to learn who brought home the Megaton Musashi World Cup.
Megaton Musashi World Cup - Round 1 Complete Video
Megaton Musashi W: Wiredreleases worldwide on April 25 for PC, PS4, PS5, and Switch.
