Formation Z's Ixpel becomes a transforming plastic model for 2027
Sentinel’s new GM²I line begins with a redesigned Ixpel kit that can be displayed in both its ground robot and air fighter forms.
Formation Z is turning its transformable player machine, Ixpel, into a plastic model kit. Sentinel says the GM²I Ixpel will launch in August 2027, with reservations now open through the company’s retail partners.1
The kit is the first release under GM²I, a new Sentinel brand built around plastic versions of mecha from classic games. Ixpel first appeared in Formation Z (フォーメーションZ), the side-scrolling shooter originally released in arcades in 1984 before receiving a home-console version in 1985. Sentinel’s official product page describes the kit as a refreshed take on that original machine rather than a simple modernised recolour.1
A new take on an old shooter machine
The redesign comes from mecha designer Kanetake Ebikawa, whose credits include Mobile Suit Gundam 00 and the Full Metal Panic! series. Takayuki Yanase is also credited on the GM²I project, while Takahiko Terada, known for the Super Robot Wars series, serves as producer.1
That gives Ixpel a stronger connection to the modern mecha design scene than its arcade origins might suggest. The official images show a sharply panelled blue-and-white machine with a large beam cannon, broad shoulder equipment and a distinctly retro silhouette. The colour layout remains recognisable, but the new sculpt adds the sort of layered armour and mechanical detail expected from a contemporary kit.
Sentinel says the finished model will stand at approximately 150mm in its ground form. It uses ABS and PS, and the package includes the robot-form machine, a 105mm beam cannon, replacement parts for the air form and stickers.1 The listed price is 8,000 yen before tax, with an August 2027 release window.
One kit, two forms
Ixpel’s most interesting feature is its ability to represent both of the machine’s forms. Instead of relying on a single halfway transformation, the kit uses replacement parts to switch between the ground robot and air fighter configurations. Sentinel says the changes are based partly on the transformation sequence shown in the home-console version’s package artwork.1
That approach should make the kit more practical to pose and display than a fully transforming model with a compromised robot or aircraft mode. It also reflects the way Formation Z presented Ixpel: as a machine that moved between ground and airborne combat while retaining a clear visual identity in both forms.
The official product gallery shows the ground form in detail, including the machine’s white head, green visor, blue armour and forward-mounted cannon. Sentinel’s product page also shows the air-form parts and the different silhouette they create, giving collectors a clearer idea of what is included before pre-ordering.1
Why it matters for Formation Z
Formation Z is not one of the most widely discussed arcade shooters today, but the Ixpel kit gives the game a tangible reminder of its design legacy. The machine sits in an interesting space between a conventional fighter and a humanoid robot, and the GM²I project is using that unusual premise as its starting point rather than smoothing it into a generic modern mecha.
The timing also makes this more than a routine merchandise announcement. GM²I is being positioned as a line, not a one-off product, with Sentinel explicitly describing it as a brand for mecha from well-known older games. Ixpel is therefore both a character product and a statement of intent: if the first kit performs well, other classic game machines could receive the same treatment.
Our opinion
The GM²I Ixpel looks like a sensible way to revisit Formation Z. Sentinel has kept the machine’s bold blue-and-white identity intact, while the Ebikawa redesign gives it enough extra structure to look convincing as a modern plastic kit. The decision to use replacement parts for the two forms is less flashy than a complex full transformation, but it should produce better-looking displays and a less frustrating build.
The biggest question is whether the 150mm scale and limited first-run context will make this a specialist purchase rather than an accessible gateway into Formation Z. Even so, the kit has a clear reason to exist: it preserves one of the era’s stranger arcade machines in a form that can sit on a shelf, switch between its two identities and remind people that old games had plenty of bold mechanical ideas beyond the better-known franchises.
Sentinel lists the GM²I Ixpel for August 2027 at 8,000 yen before tax. Reservations are open now, and the official product page carries the latest package details and gallery images.1