Assault Suits Valken

Game Title: Assault Suits Valken “ヴァルケン”
Developer: In-House
Publisher: NCS Masiya
Release Date: 18/12/1992
Serial No: SHVC-AV
Cart Size: 8 Mbit
Players: 1
Battery Back-Up: No
Game Info: A platform blaster inside an Assault Suit.
Historical fact: Prequel to the Mega Drive Assault Suit Leynos/art work done by Satoshi Urushihara

The Story:

In the future Earth's natural resources have begun to dwindle. There is a massive war taking place all over the earth for control of Fossil Fuels, 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. The Federation assign “Jake” and his team of expert Assault Suit pilots from the United Pacific States Marine Corp to foil the Axis plans for domination.


Assault Suits Valken is a fast paced Action Platform Shooter using similar game mechanics to Akumajō Dracula (Castlevania IV) and Contra Spirits. You do need to think and plan in this game as strategy is a key part in defeating your enemies.

You operate a 50ft tall Robot with a plethora of weapons such as Laser Cannon, Flame Thrower, Missile Launcher and a Trusty shield thrown in for good measure. The Robot’s abilities are excellent, very quick, agile and great booster function for high/long jumps when needed!! The shield is a vital function for the Robot as you can prevent damage from enemy attacks at all angles enabling you to plan on your next move. Your Robot also has the ability to power slide, this action can be very useful in times of extreme attacks for that quick getaway.

There are a total of 7 levels, some levels can be more difficult than others for example, level 1 is the easiest as it sets the bar for the player but level 2+ gradually increases in difficulty. The Bosses look amazing, fantastic sprites and animation used, some Bosses are very tough to defeat and requires skill and patience.

The Graphics in Assault Suits Valken are excellent, great attention to detail especially in the back-drops. The sound and music really do some justice for the game adding to the enjoyment. The music score was later released onto CD in Japan.

This is certainly the best Port as the Snes version suffers from censorship and changes; (A suicide seen on the end level is cut!). The Super Famicom version features dialog accompanied by an anime portrait of the speaker, but these portraits were removed on the Snes version. The ending differs on both versions as well.


Glitches:

None.

Availability:

A fairly rare title and it hardly appears on Ebay. Expect to pay £20 for (MIB), £13 (CIB) and £6 for a loose cart.

Ratings:

Graphics: 91%
Sound: 83%
Playability: 90%
Lastability: 85%
Fun Factor: 90%

Total: 91%

Final Thoughts:

This is an all round excellent game which at the time Konami knew its potential hence their reason acquiring the rights from Masaya to publish it onto the US market under their banner. I thought nothing could come close to my favorite Action shooter (Contra Spirits) but I have to say that Assault Suits Valken is in the same league but more challenging. Having a Robot makes a real change from the standard protagonist character with a gun, it gives depth into the game but above all it's different and a break from the norm. Assault Suits Valken is a fantastic game and worthy of a “Top Shelf” title, totally recommended!!

Reviewed by MO!