| Gunbound | |
| Developer: | Softnyx |
| Released: | May 2002 (Korea) August 2003 (worldwide) |
| Genre: | Artillery |
| Modes: | Multiplayer |
| Platforms: | Windows |
Gunbound (stylized as GunBound; Korean: 건바운드 Geonbaundeu) is a free-to-play, multiplayer, turn-based artillery game developed by South Korean developer Softnyx. It has been compared to the Worms series as it shares many common gameplay features.[1] [2] [3]
The original version was released in South Korea in May 2002 before being released worldwide in August 2003.[4] A spin-off mobile game titled GunboundM was released in July 2017.[5] [6] [7] A sequel titled New Gunbound was announced for mobile in September 2019 and for the PC in May 2020.[8] [9] The PC version was scheduled for release on Steam in July 2020.[10] However, it remained unreleased and was removed from Steam in February, 2021.
Gunbound has turn-based artillery gameplay, bearing properties of two-dimensional games and ballistics-simulation games. In Gunbound, players are assigned to two opposing teams which take turns firing at each other with vehicles called "Mobiles" in Gunbound parlance. Each Mobile has three unique weapons, labeled "1", "2", and "SS" (Special Shot).
Factors like terrain condition, wind currents and elemental phenomena force players to continuously change their aim and trajectory power setting while rethinking their strategy at the same time. Gunbound also implements a "delay" turn system which is influenced by the Mobile, the weapon and/or item a player uses—using items or taking time with actions results in a longer wait before the player's next turn.
Before the start of every game, the room master has the option to disable certain items from being used during that game. All or none of the items could be disabled. Items either take up one or two slots, and each player is allowed to acquire any combination of items as long as they fit in six slots. Generally, strong items take up two slots, while weak items take up one slot. There are currently four different types of items available. They are attack items, defensive items, weather item, and other items.
A user's character can be equipped with clothing and other items, termed avatar Items, which provide additional statistical bonuses that will assist players in the game, except on specific servers where avatar bonuses are disabled. This adds an element of customization for players. Gold (the game's currency) earned from battles can be spent on these Avatar items. Avatars can also be bought using cash which can be bought using money from a credit card or cash using PayPal or mail (Gcoins). Most common avatars can be bought by gold, and very strong avatars by G Coin, but some can be bought with both.
In Gunbound International, avatars can be leveled up by enchanting, and this can only be done with Cash. The maximum level is currently 20. Each level boosts significant stats to the avatar.
The game has twenty Mobiles in total. Every Mobile falls under one of three different defense categories: Mechanical, Shielded, and Bionic, and one of four different attack categories: Laser, Explosion, Impact, and Electrical.
Different mobiles have different defenses, attack and health levels, delay, angle ranges, bunge (land damage) ability, and moving ability. The 24 Mobiles are Armor Mobile, Mage, Nak, Lightning, JD, A. Sate, Tiburon, J. Frog, Kalsiddon, Trico, Bigfoot, Boomer, Ice, Turtle, Grub, Raon Launcher, Aduka, Maya, Wolf, Phoenix, Blue Whale, Frank, Dragon, and Knight. Choosing Random (which randomly picks a bot) is the only way to obtain the Dragon, Knight, or Phoenix (if you aren't a Power User, Cash is used to pay for this EX Item) mobiles; the other bots can be chosen at any time prior to a battle. In the Gunbound Revolution version, Maya is bought in the Cash store. In June 2010, 4 new mobiles were introduced in Gunbound International. They are Shadower Walker, Princess, Assassin and Carrior. They're named by regular players.
To note that some of the mobiles weren’t present during the initial release of the game. Those were only added on future updates. The list below details in which phase each mobile was added:
Gunbound was developed and is maintained by South Korean developer Softnyx. Its first major release was in 2002 as an open beta software and was subtitled Thor's Hammer. In 2006, a World Championships was held and the game's subtitle changed to World Champion. In subsequent major releases, the game was subtitled by seasons and it is in Season 3.
Between 2003 and 2007, Gunbound was localized and launched in various parts of the world, such as in Thailand, Brazil, Japan and Europe. It was also released in North America as Gunbound Revolution by online game portal ijji.[11] However, the North American servers were shut down on July 24, 2009.[12]
In July 2017, a free-to-play mobile version of Gunbound titled GunboundM was released on Google Play and the App Store (iOS). It was developed by DargomStudio in partnership with Softnyx, and features gameplay similar the original Gunbound but with modified features such as a visible bullet path for players to aim their shots, a training mode against AI-controlled opponents, and in-built microtransactions. On December 13, 2021, GunboundM was released on Steam as a free-to-play game also with microtransactions. [13]
In September 2019, New Gunbound was announced as a new mobile game developed in partnership with Thailand publisher Electronics Extreme, which would be released in 10 countries within Southeast Asia.[14] A closed beta took place in 2020 between January 15 and January 22.[15] [16]
In May 2020, a desktop version of New Gunbound was announced and released in Latin America. A version developed by Rocket Punch Games was announced to be released on Steam in July 2020. However, it was never released and was removed from Steam in February, 2021.
The UK edition of PC Gamer magazine gave Gunbound a rating of 83 out of 100.[17]