Mekko the Dolphin Pilots a Mech With a Japanese AI in Bleeding Edge

Bleeding Edge has a brand new character: a dolphin called Mekko who pilots a big mech with help from a Japanese AI system. Yes, you read all of that correctly.

Ninja Theory's team shooter has never shied away from bold character design, and Mekko the Dolphin is no different. No prizes for guessing who inspired the character. You can see Mekko in action below.

Mekko's mech suit puts his natural sonar abilities to use as a projectile weapon, with a sonar gun attacking enemies from range. Additionally, the dolphin has an active shield that transforms damage taken into regenerating health orbs. All things considered, Mekko sounds pretty complicated to play.

Speaking to Eurogamer, Ninja Theory revealed Mekko was one of the first Bleeding Edge characters that was conceptualized, but sat on the sidelines for over four years before eventually joining the game. "There was a chap next door who was working on Disney Infinity, and he basically helped us out in his free time in the evenings," said Ninja Theory's Aaron McElligott. "We were looking for some sort of Japanese mech thing that was maybe led by an AI. And he came back with this and was talking about how dolphins were intelligent. And it was like, what? I was not expecting that at all."

McElligot goes on to say that Mekko was a bit "too outlandish" compared to what they already had for Bleeding Edge. So the dolphin just ended up sitting around until Ninja Theory eventually changed the aesthetic of the game to a point where they felt comfortable including Mekko.

Bleeding Edge launches with Mekko the Dolphin on March 24, for PC and Xbox One. Kat recently spoke to Ninja Theory about working with Microsoft, overcoming doubts about Bleeding Edge, avoiding crunch, and much more.