破天荒完成全球鋼彈迷的MS戰鬥夢：專訪萬代南夢宮製作經理橘川英史暨Atlas V 發行總監Jordan Moutamani

In the 2025 XR DREAMLAND’s “XR Overview” section, a groundbreaking new film called Mobile Suit Gundam: Silver Phantom extended version made a big splash as the “world’s first VR animated feature film.” This 90-minute VR movie not only takes Gundam fans back into the classic Japanese space war chronicle but also lets newcomers, using a headset, jump straight into a 3D battle scene in just a second. The project is a collaboration between the French studio Atlas V and Japan’s giant entertainment company Bandai Namco Filmworks Inc.. Directed by Kenichi Suzuki, it’s the first time the entire Gundam universe—first introduced in 1979—has been brought into virtual reality.

“I was sitting at home controlling MS units against enemies!” I said, mentioning that I wore a Quest 3 headset in my living room, battling enemy Mobile Suits on Meta’s platform. Head of Distribution of Atlas V, Jordan Moutamani, laughed and said, “Actually, we’ve gotten a lot of feedback from Mobile Suit Gundam testers.” He revealed that since Gundam first appeared in the late ‘70s, it has built up a loyal fan base across multiple generations. Now, bringing this “classic IP” into a new medium not only attracts dedicated fans to revisit it but also sparks curiosity among new viewers interested in VR movies.

“Fans are super excited, saying they’re finally seeing a new chapter in the Universal Century,” Jordan said. “And new viewers are amazed, saying, ‘Wow, this is how Gundam can be presented!’” Overall, he gave the project high praise, especially for faithfully capturing the universe created by Bandai Namco Filmworks Inc. from the beginning. “It’s not just a Gundam story; it’s an animated film— a 3D, panoramic VR movie that you can look around in.”

Compared to that, the calmer tone of the Bandai Namco Filmworks Assistant producer, Hidefumi Kitsukawa, was still sincere: “Gundam has always been my dream and an important part of my memories." he said honestly. “That’s how important this project is to me.”

“Before this,Bandai Namco Filmworks had never done a feature-length VR film," Jordan recalled how the collaboration started. “The Atlas V team had to prove that the Gundam universe could also exist in 3D and VR. The original Gundam was a 2D animation series, and we knew fans would be extremely picky about staying true to the original.” Because of that, the Atlas V team had to push standards to the limit—frame rate, textures, lighting—all in line with Bandai Namco’s rigorous animation standards. “The quality you see today is actually at the forefront of international standards.”

During my experience, I noticed that when viewers enter the “movie version” of Mobile Suit Gundam: Silver Phantom, their perspective keeps switching between the “pilot’s first-person view” and the “observer’s view” of the animation. Sometimes they’re in continuous combat, and other times they’re pulled out to watch from the outside, which can get a bit tiring. I asked, “How do you balance these two perspectives?” Hidefumi Kitsukawa explained that Bandai’s team comes from the anime world and is used to telling stories with script/storyboards and animation. Atlas V, on the other hand, built the scenes directly inside the game engine. They had to find a middle ground, which is why this ended up being the world’s first full-length VR animated film. “We were all pretty new to VR, but this project helped us really understand the power of virtual reality,” Kitsukawa said with a smile.

“Director Suzuki even invented a ‘six-panel storyboarding’ method,” Jordan shared excitedly. “He showed us a thick storyboard book, with six different angles on each page—so you could see all the motions at once. I think in 20 years, that book will be worth a fortune.” He explained that the book records all the preparation work.

The VR Gundam animation experience mixes VR360 and interactiive 6DoF VR space. The memories (or hallucinations of the protagonist) are mostly non-interactive VR360 scenes, while the real battles are mostly 6DoF. The director wanted to incorporate 2D elements: “It starts with 3D, then suddenly a 2D memory pops up—like an old-school animation style. It’s super cool!” Jordan added. “If you had bigger budgets, would you like to make everything in higher-quality 6DoF?” I asked. “Actually, doing 2D animation costs more—you should ask Mr. Kitsukawa!” I exclaimed, “I thought 2D anime would be cheaper!” Jordan shook his head. “Nope. 3D uses reusable assets, but 2D animation each frame has to be drawn, and it needs to display properly within the 3D environment—no one’s ever done it like this before.”

“But fans will love it, so we went for it,” Kitsukawa said calmly.

Streaming data shows that the average playtime for the VR Gundam is about 40 minutes, and most viewers finish the 90-minute Silver Phantom in one sitting. If they get stuck at parts, it might take over 110 minutes (that’s what I experienced). But most viewers want to see the ending. The question is—how many endings are there? Kitsukawa and Jordan both said in unison, “You can watch it a few more times (laugh).”

The 90-minute Silver Phantom is more than just a new chapter for Gundam—it’s a new horizon for full-length VR animation. Wearing the headset, you’re not just a viewer—you’re also a mobile suit pilot responsible for saving the universe. Hardcore Gundam fans say, “It’s not enough,” while new viewers marvel, “Wow, VR can be like this…” The most important question at the end of the interview: will there be a sequel to this Gundam movie? 

Mr. Kitsukawa from Bandai Namco Filmworks smiled and offered no clear answer. However, the future of Gundam is full of endless possibilities! It is hoped that the strong positive reception from the audience will prompt the development of another Gundam installment!