Earlier this summer, amid an incoming typhoon, Game Informer visited Bandai Hobby Center Shinkan, the 132,000-square-foot factory where the entertainment company manufactures its iconic Gundam model kits. If you buy a new Gundam model kit at your local store today, it was originated at this facility in Shizuoka, Japan. The factory includes 35 plastic color-molding machines – 25 electric and 10 hydraulic – all of which help produce millions of models annually.
Bandai Spirits employee Miyuki Nakagiri, a subject matter expert on exactly how the factory works, escorts us through the building. Our translator during this tour is Atsuo Yoshimura, a video game production manager who has been working at Bandai Namco for the past 17 years. Notably, Yoshimura worked on last year’s Eldon Ring – Game Informer’s 2022 Game of the Year, and most recently, Armored Core VI Fires of Rubicon. Additionally, Yoshimura played an important role in helping to coordinate Game Informers The latest Armored Core VI cover story trip.
