Super Robot Wars GC is the first and only Nintendo GameCube Super Robot Wars installment. It would later be ported to the Xbox 360 under the title Super Robot Wars XO, which had an online mode called "Super Robot Competition".
Like the Dreamcast port of Super Robot Wars Alpha, GC plays the Video Game 3D Leap by using fully 3D battle animations and is the only game to feature multiple Hit Point bars on all units. Aside from the primary HP bar representing the "body", the "head", "arms" and "legs" of all units are also given HP values. By targeting specific parts of a unit, it may be disabled during combat scenarios rather than become destroyed. Additionally, disabling enemy units allows the player to capture them and add it the playable roster or sell the machine for credits or turned into equippable parts.
Finally, in a similar vein to the Stat Grinding system used in Final Fantasy II, GC features the "Skill Ace System", wherein pilots will earn bonuses to stats and other attributes by repeating certain actions during scenarios, such as using melee or ranged attacks, successfully evading or hitting enemies, dealing Critical Hits and casting "Spirit Commands".
A complete Fan Translation was released in May 2021.
Series listing (debuting series are highlighted in bold):
- Blue Comet SPT Layzner
- Future Robot Daltanious
- Heavy Metal L-Gaim
- Invincible Robo Tryder G7
- J9 Trilogy
- Galactic Whirlwind Braiger
- Galactic Gale Baxinger
- Galactic Hurricane Sasuraiger
- Mazinkaiser (OVA)
- Metal Armor Dragonar
- Mobile Suit Gundam
- Saikyo Robo Daioja
- Shin Getter Robo vs Neo Getter Robo (OVA)
- Super Beast Machine God Dancougar
- Zettai Muteki Raijin-Oh
Tropes for Super Robot Wars GC are:
- Adaptational Heroism: Zeon deploys the Apsalus III during its second attempt to capture Jaburo. Aina is piloting it but Ginias soon assumes control over it after removing a half-hearted Aina from the cockpit. Ginias asked Norris to take Aina to safety while he pilots the Apsalas III himself in spite of his poor health, vowing victory for Zeon. In essence, Banpresto treated Ginias a lot better in GC than in the original series.
- Adapted Out: The Titans are not shown to exist in the game and their leaders are stated to have been dealt with offscreen. Made even more ironic in that their Leitmotif, Running Through Space ~ Clash!, is used as the battle theme for the Zeta units rather than either of their usual Mobile Suit Combat or Fleet Battle).
- A Day in the Limelight: GC is this for the One Year War and the Neo Zeon movement - you jump from one to the other, and there is no Titans force to worry about. The main OYW pilots all live (so no, Slegger and Ryu DON'T die) and stay on your side through the entire game, the White Base is your main ride (even after getting the Gundor), and Bright Noa is always important to the plot. On top of that, Lalah Sune is an automatic recruit.
- Alternative Calendar: Takes place in the Year 0079 of the Universal Century
- BFG: Both L-Gaim's Buster Launcher, Zeta Gundam's Hi-Mega Launcher, Hyaku Shiki's Mega Bazooka Launcher, Kruez Warheit's Long Rifle and God Raijinoh's God Raijin Bazooka
- Character Select Forcing: While occasional mandatory deploys exist, for the first 19 scenarios, you are basically limited to Amuro Ray and his Gundam RX-78 if you want to actually shoot other parts and capture enemy units. Worse, one secret that would save a beloved character is located within these scenario frame. If you want this secret, you better be investing on Amuro and RX-78.
- Chest Blaster: Shin Getter Robo's Getter Beam, Soul Saber's Buster Blaster, Mazinger's Breast Fire, Great Mazinger's Breast Burn and Mazinkaiser's Fire Blaster
- Lethal Joke Character: Over the course of the game, you can capture grunt mecha from various shows, and some of them (mostly from Mobile Suit Gundam, Metal Armor Dragonar, and Heavy Metal L-Gaim) can be used. Naturally, the better, star mechs from the show are better, but these often upgrade rather cheaply and some carry some pretty powerful attacks. Notable is the High Mobility Prototype Zaku 2 - you can replay the fifth subscenario as many times as you want, and get up to three of these every time you play. Considering they're already upgraded Zaku 2s...
- Also note that any mech you capture remains with you in a New Game Plus. So later game "grunt" mechs may be able to outright beat early units in power, mobility, and defenses.
- The game also throws a few bad mechs at you for this type of use, notably a Ball and a GM (not a custom type of GM like the potential GM Sniper you can get later, but a normal GM) and, as always, Boss Borot. The Ball is also cheap, and its one attack is a seven range cannon with 20 rounds, plus small enough to be able to aim for specific parts on many enemy mechs. The GM is a weaker and cheaper version of the Ground Type Gundam you get a few missions later, and Boss Borot remains frail, easy to repair if it dies (10 money!), and cheap to upgrade, but it has the added bonus of a 1 range attack with REALLY high power, on top of three pilots who have good Spirit pools. Plus, it can Repair and Resupply. Sure, it can't take hits, but its usability makes it potentially useful.
- Possibly one of the most interesting examples comes from Sasuraiger, the third of the J9 trio. The robot form is much more like a Real Robot instead of a Super Robot (can't take hits, dodges reasonably well), and it has a train transformation. UNLIKE most normal vehicle transformations, this train is bulkier than Sasuraiger, has better attacks, and is less dodgy - meaning they invert the Super/Real relation! Now, looking at the stats, you can tell the train is better (aside, of course, from not being able to access the J9 Special), but the idea of using a train to kill everything, ESPECIALLY since Braigar's two transformations (the Brai-Star and Brai-Thunder) are situational at best and joke forms at the worst...
- Overshadowed by Awesome: Sadly a lot of the OYW pilots run into the problem of running face-first into the Newtype bloat once they hit Zeta-era. The 08th MS Team and Chris/Bernie are outclassed even by people like Fa Yuri which is a little sad. Shiro/Aina are literally only worth deploying if you use both of them for their Love bonus.
- Power Up Letdown: Zig-Zagged by the Layzner when it upgrades. In terms of attack power it noticeably drops, as the Powered Layzner's V-MAX tops out at 4900, the Mk 2 tops out at 5000, and base Layzner will top out at 5250. Everything else about the unit, however, is powered up, essentially trading power for invulnerability as enemies fail to hit a V-Max Powered/V-MAXIMUM boosted unit.
- Secret Character
- Dragonar: Dragoons
- Mazinkaiser: Upgraded Great Mazinger and Venus A
- L-Gaim: Bat-Shu
- UC Gundam: Four Murasame in the Re-GZ, Fa Yuiry in Ground Combat-Type GM, Aina Sahalin with the GM Sniper & Apsalas II, Bernie Wiseman (he will not bring a unit with him), Puru Two in Qubeley Mk-II, Nu Gundam and Sazabi.
- Shin VS Neo Getter Robo: Jack and Mary King and their Texas Mack
- Layzner: Getting the Mk 2 instead of Powered Layzner.
- Spared by the Adaptation: Lalah Sune, Bernie Wiseman, Four Murasame, Elpeo Puru, Puru 2, Alan Igor, and the Baxinger Team except Don Condor get to live.
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Spiritual Predecessor: To Super Robot Wars NEO - Super Mode: Mazinger Z, Great Mazinger and Mazinkaiser's Mazin Power, Shin Getter Robo's God Getter mode, Dancougar's Aggressive Beast Mode
- Super Title 64 Advance: GC stands for "Gamecube", while XO stands for "Xbox".
- Transforming Mecha: Braiger, Neo Getter Robo, Shin Getter Robo, Sasuraiger, Zeta Gundam, Gundam Double Zeta, and Tryder G7.
