Gungriffon#Gungriffon II

{{Short description|Mech simulation video game series by Game Arts}}{{italic title}}

Gungriffon is a series of video games developed by Game Arts and designed by Takeshi Miyaji.{{cite magazine|title=Silpheed designer dies aged 45|url=http://www.next-gen.biz/news/silpheed-designer-dies-aged-45|magazine=Edge|publisher=Next-Gen.biz|accessdate=3 August 2011|date=August 1, 2011|archive-date=31 December 2012|archive-url=https://archive.today/20121231093903/http://www.edge-online.com/news/silpheed-designer-dies-aged-45/|url-status=dead}} Gungriffon and Gungriffon II originally appeared for the Sega Saturn console in 1996, with more recent appearances in Gungriffon Blaze for the PlayStation 2 and Gungriffon: Allied Strike for the Xbox. The Gungriffon games are focused on piloting mecha—large, usually bipedal military vehicles. This game series refers to these machines as Armored Walking Gun Systems (AWGS).{{cite magazine|title=Iron Rain |magazine=Next Generation|issue=17|publisher=Imagine Media|date=May 1996|page=86}} With the exception of the High-MACS design, the mecha in this series have a distinctly realistic design philosophy.

''Gungriffon''

Year Game Takes Place: 2015

Platform: Sega Saturn

Release Dates:

{{vgrelease|NA|June 19, 1996{{Cite web |date=15 December 1996 |title=Gun Griffon |url=http://sega-saturn.com/saturn/software/gg.htm |access-date=31 July 2023 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19961215061639/http://sega-saturn.com/saturn/software/gg.htm |archive-date=15 December 1996 }}}}

{{vgrelease|EU|July 1996{{cite magazine|title=He'll Kill Us All |magazine=Sega Saturn Magazine|issue=10|publisher=Emap International Limited |date=August 1996|page=32}}}}

Gungriffon was developed under the working title "3D Polygon".{{cite magazine|title=Letters: Got the Wrong Page|magazine=Sega Saturn Magazine|issue=8|publisher=Emap International Limited|date=June 1996|pages=32–33}} During development, the game included a multiplayer mode with usage of the Saturn's link cable,{{cite magazine|title=Gun Griffon Gears Up for March Release!|magazine=Maximum: The Video Game Magazine|issue=4 |publisher=Emap International Limited|date=March 1996|page=115}} but this was cut before release and the final game is single player only. It was released in Japan under the title Gungriffon: The Eurasian Conflict. There were plans to release the game in North America and Europe under the title "Iron Reign",{{cite magazine|title=Experience Gun Griffon: The Eurasian Conflict!|magazine=Maximum: The Video Game Magazine|issue=6 |publisher=Emap International Limited|date=May 1996|page=34}} but ultimately Sega, the game's publisher outside Japan, reverted to using a shortened version of the original Japanese title.

According to Greg Becksted, producer of the North American version of the game, the localization team changed the game's storyline slightly to better suit the U.S. market.{{cite magazine|title=Behind the Screens |magazine=Electronic Gaming Monthly |issue=85|publisher=Ziff Davis |date=August 1996 |page=65}}

=Reception=

{{Video game reviews

| EGM = 8.25/10{{cite magazine|title=Review Crew: Gun Griffon |magazine=Electronic Gaming Monthly |issue=85|publisher=Ziff Davis |date=August 1996 |page=22}}

| GI = 8/10{{cite magazine |title=Legacy Review Archives |url=https://www.gameinformer.com/legacyreviews |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181214131120/https://www.gameinformer.com/legacyreviews |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 14, 2018 |magazine=Game Informer |access-date=3 October 2021}}

| NGen = {{rating|3|5}}

| rev1 = Maximum

| rev1Score = {{rating|4|5}}

| rev2 = Sega Saturn Magazine

| rev2Score = 88%

}}

Gungriffon received highly positive reviews, with critics hailing it as one of the best mech-based video games to date. The four reviewers of Electronic Gaming Monthly gave it their "Game of the Month" award, praising the responsive controls, sharp and realistic graphics, and exciting pace of the gameplay. Though most of them criticized the way the player mech easily gets caught on buildings, they all gave the game a strong recommendation, with Dan Hsu summarizing it as "the most exciting mech sim I've ever played, including any found on the PC." Rad Automatic of Sega Saturn Magazine called Gungriffon "one of the best giant robot games ever", citing the polished graphics and the fact that missions are widely varied not just in the usual factors of terrain and difficulty, but even in elements such as tactical concept and lighting.{{cite magazine|last=Automatic |first=Rad |title=Review: Gungriffon|magazine=Sega Saturn Magazine|issue=9|publisher=Emap International Limited|date=July 1996|pages=72–73}} Maximum's Rich Leadbetter praised the "very well pitched" difficulty, the impressive polygon models, and the variety of visuals. He criticized the lack of randomization and the fact that players do not need to start the entire game over when they fail a mission, but gave it an overall very positive assessment, calling it "what Krazy Ivan on PlayStation should have been".{{cite magazine|last=Leadbetter |first=Rich |title=Maximum Reviews: Gun Griffon|magazine=Maximum: The Video Game Magazine|issue=7 |publisher=Emap International Limited|date=June 1996|page=127}} GamePro likewise said that Gungriffon "makes Krazy Ivan and Ghen War look and feel like rusted heaps of scrap iron." The reviewer was especially pleased with the player mech's ability to hover and the "Clean, almost state-of-the-art graphics".{{cite magazine|author=Scary Larry|title=ProReview: Gungriffon|magazine=GamePro|issue=96 |publisher=IDG |date=September 1996|page=70}} Next Generation{{'}}s brief review said the game has "eclectic missions and bizarre weapons. It looks good, controls well, and would be a four-star game if not for its brevity and poor pacing."{{cite magazine |title=Every Sega Saturn Game Played, Reviewed, and Rated|magazine=Next Generation|issue=25 |publisher=Imagine Media|date=January 1997|page=64}}

''Gungriffon II''

Year Game Takes Place: 2015

Platform: Sega Saturn

Release Dates:

{{Vgrelease|JP|April 23, 1998{{cite web|first=Yutaka|last=Ohbuchi|url=http://headline.gamespot.com/news/98_01/16_gungriff/index.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20001001043504/http://headline.gamespot.com/news/98_01/16_gungriff/index.html|title=Gungriffon II Soon to Invade|website=GameSpot|archivedate=October 1, 2000|date=January 16, 1998|accessdate=September 3, 2022}}}}