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Background:
Although the cover art doesn't suggest anime, the game does have anime graphics to it. The endings, although not "animated" in the way that a CD-ROM could have animation, are definitely anime style. I don't know if there's an anime behind the game or if the game is just done in anime style. There are also two different endings to the game: a "good" ending and a "bad" ending. ---Neflite
I'd never played Cybernator until the contributing reviewer told me about it. I'd seen it several times before at Blockbuster Video, but I never rented it because I was unsure of it. Like many other SNES games released in the U.S. that feature anime style graphics, the fact that it has anime style design is downplayed on the game box and replaced with a more American-style design. ---Greg
The Game:
You pilot a giant Mech and try to save the world (very original). The action in the game is different from most games though. Sometimes you walk through a level; sometimes you fly; soemtimes a combination of both. (I forget the exact story because I only rented the US version once, then bought the JP version.) ---Neflite
Your character Jake is a member of a unit of Assault Suits, and you engage in a variety of different missions on a campaign against the enemy forces in a war to control the resources of what little fossil fuel remains on Earth. The game reminds me a lot of Gundam. ---Greg
Secrets:
Go through the first stage without destroying anything or getting any power-ups until you get to the boss. Kill just the boss (not the two guns
that protect the boss). If you are successful, then you will be given the Napalm gun (The most powerful weapon in the game). This makes the game
considerably easier (although still somewhat difficult). (There is also a code that gives you extra continues, but I can't remember it
right now. I have it in a magazine somewhere in my room and I'll look for it later.) ---Neflite
In order to get six continues, at the title highlight Option and press and hold L + R + Up + Start. Hold them until just before the next screen comes up. ---Greg
The Good:
I really like how the storyline of the game is presented in an auto bibliographical fashion. The intro sequence is beautifully done, and gives a good impression of an epic space saga such as Mobile Suit Gundam or Legend of the Galactic Heroes. I like the little details, such as the shell casings flying back when you fire your Assault Suit's Vulcan cannon. ---Greg
The Bad:
The original Valken game has pictures of the characters' faces as they speak, but they removed these for some lame reason in the American release of Cybernator. I want to see the faces, darnit! Why'd they remove these? Plus, matching the text to a face would make it easier to keep track of the characters and give them more of a personality. Removing this feature makes it confusing to know who is talking at times in Cybernator, and it's nicer to associate the speech with a face than just a name. Except for the intro theme, the music at times seems to be out of place and a bit too upbeat for an SF war epic. Since this game is a bit unique, the control is a bit difficult to get used to at first. Also, I don't see why I am not able to use my shield when I'm in the air. I can only use it while standing on the ground. Finally, the name Cybernator itself is a downside. Assault Suits Valken sounds much more interesting than Cybernator. It's as if the distributors thought that the Japanese sounding name wasn't good enough, so they had to think up some lame trendy sounding name for the game.
Aside from leaving out the character's faces during dialoges and slapping on a lame name, Konami also did another let-down for the domestic release. In the Japanese version towards the end of the game, you confront the president of the enemy country. When hope is lost for himself, he sits down at his desk, aims a pistol at his head, and kills himself. Konami chose to censor this, feeling that this was too mature of a topic to have in a domestic video game. Apparently North American children, after seeing a tiny pixelated character pop himself in the head with a gun, will decide that it's fun to commit suicide and go out to do the same. LAME. The OPCFG did an article on this aspect of the game. click here to read about this and see screenshots of the suicide scene. ---Greg
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Overall:
After renting it, I liked this game enough that I bought Cybernator, and later replaced it with the import, Assault Suits Valken. If you really like this game, you may want to check out a game called Metal Warriors. It's another Konami game, and it is very similar to Cybernator. Also, a reader of this site wrote in that there is another game for the Sega Genesis/Megadrive called Assault Suits Leynos (US title: Target Earth), also by Masaya. This game is very similar to Cybernator/Valken, and it is its predecessor. Assault Suits Leynos 2 is for the Sega Saturn, and it's a great game with awesome firepower. It's much more difficult and intense than Assault Suits Valken. Assault Suits Valken 2 has now been released for the Playstation. I've never played it, but it seems more like a turn-based strategy mecha game like Front Mission than its SFC predecessor. Also, it has gone 3D. I don't know if this is a plus or a minus. ---Greg
Contributing reviewer:
Neflite@hotmail.com
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