Part 2: Exposition

Chapter 1: Exposition


So, let's jump into this thing!


Because "Tristan" is a terrible name. _{Thanks pyarpgurl.}


Ah, motive. Always a storytelling staple.


Oh? What does this machine do?


And of course we're blinded before whatever it is can fully be revealed.


In the meantime, meet our heroes! On the right is Cheeto, on the left is his best friend Fritz. Fritz is a dick, but we'll get to that later.


That's the name of the game, and THAT'S our very own nuclear-powered walking death machine. It's going to be a VERY good day.


And here's our first good look at our two heroes. Fritz is apparently VERY fond of the color purple and has something straight out of Dragonball Z coming out of his helmet. Cheeto is a rather effeminate-looking boy with two different colored eyes, a jacket that looks way too small, and a single black glove. Throw on a few belts and he'd fit right into Final Fantasy no problem.
: Yeah... The G-System's really something... I had no idea you could make such huge things with it!
: Does this mean we're really going after them?
: Of course! That's why we made this!
: I knew it! I'm with ya!
<The ground shakes>
: Did you feel that?
: Behind you!


Oh shit. That thing doesn't look too friendly...


Realizing they probably won't be able to bribe this monstrosity with cookies, Cheeto and Fritz resort to posing in hopes it will lose interest and go away. You know, kinda like the T-Rex in Jurassic Park. Also, this is around the point Fritz's voice acting goes from decent to downright horrible.
: Who cares? What are we <pause> gonna do?
: What are we gonna do? We're gonna fight, that's what!
: No way! We gotta get out of here! Now!
: Take it easy, Fritz!
: B-but...!
: But nothing! We've got to get through this!
I'm so glad at least one of our characters has a spine.


Like Teddy Roosevelt said: "Speak softly and carry a big stick." In this case, we've got a big robot.


"I tried pushing random buttons and now it says "Self-Destruct Sequence Activated." Is that good?"
: Me? How!?
: The manual Marie gave us? Remember? Flip through it! Come on!
: Oh, yeah!
To be fair, Amuro Ray used the same strategy of flipping through the manual in the heat of battle in Mobile Suit Gundam. Though, Amuro's mobile suit was much better. Also, he did his own manual-flipping as opposed to leaving it to some dink on the ground.


After a brief overview of the movement controls, it's time for our showdown.


: This isn't what we're after, but it'll make a nice gift for the boss. You there! Hand over that Mobile Suit!
: No way! You want my Mobile Suit? Come and get it!
: So you're a tough guy, huh? Last mistake you'll ever make, punk!
You tell 'im Cheeto! Time for battle!


: The head vulcan? Is that all I've got?
: You could also punch him, but you'd have to get in close, and you could be counterattacked!
So basically, ranged weapons are safe, but generally weaker than melee attacks. If you attack an enemy with a melee attack he'll counterattack you unless he's defending or charging up (we'll get to that later). Soon we'll get to the point where we'll have to think about when to use a gun and when to use a sword.


Right now, though, the power difference is negligible. So we're just going to use the vulcan.


baddabaddabadda...
I wanted to show off some cool melee attacks in this battle, but for some reason the Zaku refused to attack me with his axe. So, we just shot at each other until...

Kaboom.





This is the after battle screen. It's all really straightforward. EXP, money, and salvage.


"Oh man, I smoked that bitch."


You sure did, Cheeto.
: Who was that guy, anyway!? I wonder if he was one of them...?
: Woo-hoo! You did it! Are you hurt?
:No, just a bit shaken.
: That was awesome! You won your first fight!
: Yeah, well, this Mobile Suit had a lot to do with it.
: Yeah, but so did you! You're the man!
: Ha! Listen to you! Just a minute ago, you were about to wet your pants!

: We'd better talk with Marie.
: Marie the Fossil? Oh, man. Do we have to?
: If all you do is complain, I might as well leave you here.
: All right! All right! I'm coming! Hold on a sec, though. There's something I want to do first.



: Heh, surprised? It's the Mobile Suit you just beat. I fixed it up a bit, and now it works! Now I can fight with you! You can count on me, bro!
He also tells me to equip the weapons I got.


First off, here's the main menu. Again, all very basic RPG fare.


The equipment system is rather unique for a JRPG though. Basically, each Mobile Suit has a different amount of room for equipment. I'm going to give the new weapons to Fritz, because Cheeto's head vulcan and punch will do him just fine until we get some more weapons.


We simply go to our inventory and place equipment in the slots.


Hooray! Fritz is now not useless!


These are the game's save points. They refill our Mobile Suits' HP, but not the pilots' TP (technique points). As such, I'll be using them later on for grinding levels.


And it's not long before our first random battle! I'm showing this transition scene because I think it's cool.


Also, after the first dungeon or two we'll never see them again.


Everything in this game explodes. Everything. I guess that's what happens in a world where everything runs on nuclear generators.


And so, our two heroes step out of the cave in their brand new Mobile Suits, ready to seize the day.


: I know...
: We may be in the middle of nowhere now, but it's only a matter of time before Mobile Suits start showing up in the rest of the world.
: Yeah, I know...
: Are you sure you want to do this?
: You know I don't want to fight. Still, I'm going to make them pay for what they did to Miss Natalie and the other kids!
: Fritz... All right. We'll do this together! We have a long road ahead of us, but so long as we stick together, there's nothing we can't do!


: Marie's place... Agh!
This is where Fritz being a dick comes in. He just keeps on ragging on Marie (who we'll meet in the next update) and she hasn't done anything but help us. She never even instigated it. Dick.


Their next destination decided on, Cheeto and Fritz journey off to begin their most sacred of quests. With this new Mobile Suit we've got, nothing'll stop us. We could enslave the entire world if we wanted to!


Oh...

Next time: That black Mobile Suit we've heard so much about!

BONUS CONTENT!
The intro movie. - Contains very minor spoilers, like future characters, Mobile Suits, and vehicles we'll run into on our journey.
The opening cutscene. - Listen for the sharp decline in Fritz's voice acting quality!

MSopedia
Here is where I'm going to be putting information on the various Mobile Suits we obtain. I downloaded the pictures from mahq.net:


RGM-79 GM
Mobile Suit Gundam - E.F.S.F.
The Earth Federation Space Force's first mass-produced Mobile Suit. Its role in the shows is really to serve as cannon fodder, making the important characters' suits look more powerful.


MS-05B Zaku I
Mobile Suit Gundam - Principality of Zeon
The very first mass-produced Mobile Suit, but had a very small part in the actual One Year War. The introduction of Zaku IIs meant the Zaku Is were mostly delegated to noncombat positions like mining, construction, and resupply ships.