Cybernator
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| Cybernator / Assault Suits Valken | |
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| Developer(s) | NCS Corp |
| Publisher(s) | US Konami / JP Masaya |
| Platform(s) | SFC/SNES, PlayStation 2, Virtual Console |
| Release date |  December 18, 1992 April 4, 1993 |
| Genre(s) | Run and gun, Platformer |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Media | Cartridge (SNES) DVD-ROM (PS2) |
| Input methods | Game controller |
Cybernator (Assault Suits Valken or Jūsō Kihei Varuken; 重装機兵ヴァルケン in Japan) is a run and gun game released in 1992 for the Super Famicom/Super NES. It is the indirect sequel to Target Earth as part of the Assault Suits series by NCS Corp. The game was localized and published overseas by Konami. A remake of Cybernator was released in 2004 for the PlayStation 2. The original Japanese release featured artwork done by Satoshi Urushihara, a renowned hentai artist.
Cybernator was released on the Virtual Console in PAL regions on December 7, 2007, and in North America on December 17, 2007.
Contents |
[edit] Storyline
The game takes place in the future, during a time when Earth's fossil fuels have begun to dwindle. There is a massive war taking place all over the earth for control of these resources, as well as for territorial rights on the moon. The two warring governments, the Axis and Federation, have the ability to go into space and create giant space stations and weapons of mass destruction.
Jake is the game's protagonist. He is a soldier drafted into the Pacific States' Marine Corp and pilots a Federation Assault Suit. The Suit has a humanoid shape, with arms, legs, torso, and head. It is equipped with a variety of weapons and other special accessories, giving it full land and minor air capabilities.
Jake and his platoon are tasked with destruction of Bildvorg, the most powerful mech of the Axis forces. The various missions in the game lead up to the completion of this objective.
Although Assault Suit Valken (Cybernator) released after Assault Suit Leynos (Target Earth), chronogically, Valken takes place a decade before Leynos. So Cybernator, essentially, is a prequel.
In Assault Suit Valken 2, Jake makes a cameo appearance as a 30 year old veteran soldier who assists in battles as an NPC. His full name is Jake Brain.
[edit] Characters
Jake Brain Main character. An AS pilot in the United Pacific States Marine Corps, assigned to carrier Versis' AS Squadron.
Claire Coral Communications officer on board Versis. She seems to be romantically attached to Jake. In the Cybernator, her name is misspelled as "Crea".
Chuck Jonston Captain of Versis.
Geltz Enemy commander of Space Fortress Arc Nova. He is a small sized, ruthless man who has no qualms for civilian casualties as he tries to drop the fortress to Earth during the 3rd mission. He pilots a gigantic mobile weapon. In the Cybernator's manual he is falsely named "Fransico Flako", obviously a parody of Francisco Franco.
Alex Bedrach Enemy ace pilot. He first appears during 4th mission and becomes nemesis of Jake during the game. He is also the final boss.
Schermalk Enemy supreme commander. A ruthless military dictator that started the war in the first place. In the uncensored Japanese version, he commits suicide after Jake's Assault Suit raids the enemy's assembly building. In the Cybernator's manual he is given an unnecessary long name: Claus Von Meister Barron.
Herman One of Jake's wingmen. He is a cocky but reliable pilot. He was killed by Alex during the 4th mission.
Kurt One of Jake's wingmen. He wears eye glasses.
[edit] Music
The music from the game was later rearranged on a ROMpler synthesizer (the same synthesizer used to provide the SNES samples played back on the SPC700) and released as a CD in Japan.
[edit] Differences between versions
Cybernator was the subject of censorship during its localization. The Japanese version features written dialog accompanied by a portrait of the speaker, but these portraits were removed during localization. There is also a scene absent in which the president of the enemy forces, after realizing that his nation has been defeated, commits suicide. Also some written dialog is taken out, which shows the soldier rescued in the fourth level being in the robot fought before the final boss.
The instruction manual of the English version is also filled with inconsistent information by Konami's localization team at the time. For example, the 6th mission takes place in Alps where Versis tries to fly over the mountains to reach the Allied front lines but according to the manual, the player's aim is to raid enemy commander's mountain retreat.
[edit] Endings
The game has two endings. Bad ending can be acquired if player fails most of the side-missions in the game, such as failing to stop Arc Nova from falling or allowing Versis to take too much damage in 6th mission. In this ending Versis is critically damaged and most of her crew were killed including Claire, which leaves Jake devastated in the credits. If player succeeds the side missions, Versis survives and Jake returns to carrier, the war is over and Jake and Claire embrace each other in the Versis' deck.
[edit] Remake
A remake was released for PlayStation 2 only in Japan and Europe, but the game received poor reviews as it did not have any new features. Some players even called it "a SNES rom inside a PlayStation 2 disc."
