Damascus Gear: Operation Tokyo review for PS Vita

A quick test to determine whether Damascus Gear: Operation Tokyo is the game for you: it features giant robots battling it out in the streets of a post-apocalyptic Tokyo.

Did those words send shivers of excitement up and down your spine? Are the hairs on your arm standing on end? Then you’ll want to pick this game up post-haste, because that’s pretty much everything there is to know about Damascus Gear. You’ll spend almost all your time in the game either battling it out with other giant robots or upgrading your robots, with only the odd bit of dialogue in between to fast forward through.

If you want anything else at all, of course, then you might find the whole thing a little dull. The graphics, for starters, aren’t anything incredible; the robots all look pretty identical, while ruined Tokyo is basically just piles of rubble and buildings that are half blown away. The story, too, isn’t anything to write home about; most of the time it’s just headquarters telling you about new enemies or destinations, with a little bit of intrasquad bickering thrown in for dramatic effect.

In fact, the only area where Damascus Gear isn’t forgettable is its sound — and quite frankly, that’s so ear-splittingly annoying, it may turn off even those who are moderately interested in the idea of giant robot fights. Just think of metal screeching against metal, and you’ve got a good idea of what you’re in for here.

It’s quite possible, however, that looking at Damascus Gear for anything other than robots beating the crap out of each other is expecting way more than is reasonable. This game promises giant robot fights, and it delivers those in spades. It understands that people are playing this game for one thing and one thing only, so to that end it gives you huge laser cannons and massive blades and big guns pretty much right off the bat. Combat is all about button mashing, for the most part, so there’s really nothing stopping you from picking this game up one minute and being deep in the heat of battle just a few moments later.

Is it a deep, engaging experience? No, of course not. But on the flip side, Damascus Gear: Operation Tokyo features giant robot battles. What more do you need?