Universal Century 0079: The Principality of Zeon has declared its independence from the Earth Federation, and subsequently launched a massive war of independence, a war which has raged in every continent on earth and in nearly every space colony and lunar settlement. The Zeon have the upper hand through their use of a revolutionary new type of weapon, their humanoid like mobile suits. When a Zeon recon team disobey mission orders and begin attacking Side 7 its citizens stumble across the Federations latest weapon: the Gundam. With the aid of Earth Federation soldiers stationed aboard the MS carrier White Base the newly formed crew of refugees set out to change the course of the One Year War — or die trying. (Source: Gundam Wikia)

Kidou Senshi Gundam was first published in English by Del Ray Books in 1990. Due to a lack of official romanizations, a number of names were translated phonetically (e.g. "Char" as "Sha", "Zaku" as "Zaks"). A revised edition, which updated these romanizations, was published in a single omnibus by Stone Bridge Press on April 1, 2004.