Gundam Versus Better Know A Mobile Suit — GM Custom
In my continuing Gundam Versus coverage, I thought I’d talk a little bit about the individual MS I’ve tried out over my time with the game. I don’t exactly “main” anything in this game yet, but I’m definitely quite familiar with a few units.
200 Points — GM Custom (Gundam 0083)
Pilot — South Burning. Yells a lot about newbies and babies and kids and scrubs.
Type — Close combat specialist. Definitely best with Blaze Gear.
Pros: High speed, powerful melee with the tools to set it up
Cons: Very short optimal range, low on ammo
One of the stronger 200-point suits along with the more all-purpose Nemo. GM Custom has a minimal but very effective move set that’s all about getting in close. You’ll be pushing forward and rushing or flanking the enemy. A simple and straightforward character, but not really for beginners.
With your limited ammo, you don’t really have a choice but to get in close on your enemies if you want to be at all effective with this character. Thankfully, GMC is also extremely fast, and a natural at chasing down slippery players.
Especially when you have to rely on melee, remember the difference between a smart offense and a dumb offense. Rush in, but don’t rush so far ahead of your teammate that they can’t help you. Get close, but don’t sandwich yourself between two enemy units. You’re going to be rushing a lot of enemies that outgun you. Rather than running in head-on and getting shot up, try and slip around them, looking for moments where you can catch them off guard.
The humble machine gun is great to pester enemies with at medium-close range, but its rather low ammo and long reload mean that it’s usually a prelude to a strike. You ultimately must move in with this character, and all of GMC’s weapons are designed to assist with this core goal.
The sub weapon is the common beam saber throw that stuns enemies for a free combo finish with either your machine gun or melee.
The special ranged attack is where GMC really shines. It’s a fast homing dash with machine gun fire that not only locks onto your enemy but will hold them in place, allowing you to immediately cancel the move with a melee combo. This move locks to the opponent’s location very tightly, and it’s hard for enemies to escape once it’s going. You only get one of these at a time, and the recharge is slow. You should constantly be looking for chances to slip in with this move.
GMC’s melee move set is not flashy, but it can lay down a lot of damage very quickly. His basic melee combo is abnormally strong for this class of unit, and he can finish combos with special melee for a grab finisher that does even better damage. His boost dash melee causes a stun, which can be very useful depending on the situation.
Also don’t overlook GMC’s special melee, which blocks ranged attacks in a pinch and outright counters melee attackers. Don’t forget you have this: it will save you so many times. Using this counter with discretion is going to make your enemies afraid of attacking you, which in turn allows you to get away with pushing your offense more often. (As an aside, this is generally the rule with “reversal” characters in fighting games at large.)
Suggested strikers: GM Custom lacks a decent attack at range, so look for something to help with this deficiency. Lately I’ve been using funnels (Sazabi, Hi-Nu, others) with melee suits because they force the opponent to run, and GMC is so good at chasing them down. Crossbone X3’s assist works from a long range and stuns on hit, making it very useful for your melee game. Sniper shots like Dynames and G-Arcane offer quick takedowns from a range where you’re normally helpless. And though it’s a good striker idea for any unit, beam launchers like Kshatriya are effective too.
Partner considerations: Due to your low cost and short range, you are going to want to team with something high-cost that can back you up with lots of ranged fire and keep the enemy off your back while you do your job. Two low-cost units won’t have the firepower they need to win, and GMC teaming up with another brawler, like an Exia, probably isn’t going to go so hot.
As a single (Gundam canon) example, the heavily ranged-oriented GP03 pairs well with the heavily melee-oriented GMC. So long as GP03 doesn’t hit GMC with those bazookas, anyway.
That’s about all for an intro to the GM Custom! I have plans for a few more “Better Know an Mobile Suit”, but if there’s anything else about the game you’d like me to write about let me know.
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