Gunparade March (2000)

Koukidou Gensou GPM - Gunparade March is a Japanese video game that was later turned into a 3 volume manga and a 12 episode anime. The video game, Koukidou Gensou Gun Parade March was released on September 28 of 2000, for the PlayStation video game console. It was developed by Alfa System and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. Due to its creativity and attention to detail, it won the prestigious Seiun Award in 2001. The manga by Hiroyuki Sanadura was serialized in the magazine Dengeki Daioh. The three volumes published by MediaWorks between 2001 and 2003 were translated by ADV Manga between 2004 and 2005.

Storyline

In 1945, World War II was abruptly ended when an alien race appeared on Earth and began to slaughter the human population. This alien force, known as the "Phantom Beasts", had effectively taken over more than half of the Earth. The year is 1999 – 54 years later, mankind is still fighting to survive against the alien forces. Earth forces now use advanced mecha called Humanoid Walking Tanks (HWTs) to combat the invaders, but throughout the ordeal, far too many pilots have been killed in action. To ensure the future of the human race, the Japanese government enforced a student draft which recruited high school students to become HWT pilots. Gunparade March follows the lives of the 5121th Platoon, which consists mainly of drafted high school students and their struggle to defeat the Phantom Beasts and at the same time, lead a normal social life.