Friends, it is almost time to be very, very sad because a massive metal man fell over and died. Ico and Shadow of the Colossus creator Fumito Ueda has dropped the first proper footage of his forthcoming mech game project, announced back in 2024 with the codename Project Robot. The official title is Gen Atlas.

Ueda and development studio genDESIGN have also shared details of the game’s plot and setting. It’s described as “a single-player, open-world action-adventure game”, and takes place on an abandoned, “living” planet full of derelict machines.

“Colossal structures stretch over endless plains, deserted facilities, and an ever-changing sea,” reads a description on the Epic Games Store. “The remnants of some grand design litter the planet’s surface. As you journey deeper into this strange world, a colossal robot awaits. Its overwhelming power opens paths to places once beyond reach, transforming your conception of the world. Across an endless expanse of time, the remnants of those forgotten constructs begin to move once more…”

The video is atypically combative for a Fumito Ueda joint. You get to shoot a gun and everything! Gosh, that’s not how Mr Ico used to solve his problems. It looks like part of the game will involve recovering pieces of your enormous robot buddy, starting with the head, which is usefully equipped with rocket boosts. Imagine if you had to begin with, for example, the pelvis.

The bit that excites me most is the prospect of boxing matches with other titans. It looks like you’ll be clambering around your Iron Giant during the action, taking potshots from its shoulder. All told, this is a game I would play, however bittersweet it ultimately proves. Fumito Ueda isn’t really in the business of Hollywood endings.