Gundam fans are getting a tabletop game

Gundam Assemble! A new tabletop game based on the Gundam series was just announced by Bandai Spirits, the toy arm of Japanese multinational entertainment company Bandai Namco. That’s in addition to the highly anticipated collectible card game, titled Gundam Card Game, expected later this year. While there aren’t many details available yet, the Gundam Assemble game will use a new line of five-centimeter-tall Gunpla miniatures based on characters from the iconic Mobile Suit Gundam franchise, connecting mecha from multiple series to converge at the table.

For the uninitiated, Gundam pioneered a subgenre of giant robot anime that has become one of the largest science fiction franchises in Japan. First airing in 1979, the animated TV series Mobile Suit Gundam (created by Yoshiyuki Tomino and the Sunrise studio creative collective known as Hajime Yatate) has evolved into a media empire with dozens of shows, books, and miniature model kits called Gunpla, which reportedly have sold over 500 million units across the globe. All together, sales of Gundam-related products totaled roughly $925 million worldwide, nearly doubling over the last five years. Banda Namco’s newest Chief Gundam Officer, Hiroshi Sakakibara, stated in a special feature for the franchise’s 45th anniversary that his goal was to expand Gundam’s recognition and presence internationally — and while Gundam Assemble wasn’t mentioned in that report, it seems the tabletop game is a part of that strategy.

However, like many IP-based games that have been announced recently, it seems the Gundam Assemble is promoting itself largely on nostalgia-based, hype-focused laurels built up over the last 45 years of publication. There is currently very little information on just what this tabletop game is going to be. The company’s announcement states that “Each unit has abilities that reflect their unique characteristics, allowing players to enjoy scenarios that follow the original story, or diverge into situations that transcend the world of Mobile Suit Gundam series; thus providing both a sense of recreation and distinct battles.” The trailer for the game shows the Gunpla’s in action, both on miniature sets and a square, multi-colored hexgrid alongside a few ten-sided dice.

Importantly though, Bandai Spirits isn’t asking for any money, yet. The company’s announcement says detailed rules and product specifications will be revealed at a later date, at which point we might begin to see preorders for the sets available. Will it end up being more of a board game, or something like the miniatures skirmish games that are growing in popularity? We’ll know more soon on the Gundam Assemble website.