How does PS2 Assault Suits Valken compare to SNES rev.??....

[dave4shmups]

Just curious; I tried the original out on an emulator again today, and I've actually gotten quite used to the controls.

So, how does the PS2 version stack up against SNES Cybernator?

And BTW, how is the Saturn Assault Suits game?

[8 1/2]

Haven't played the remake on PS2, but the Saturn Assault Suit Leynos 2 is really good. It can be somewhat hard to follow the action at first as it keeps zooming in and out, but once you get the controls down and get a feel for the mech it really opens up. I think it's pretty much a direct sequel to the Genesis Target Earth, as it plays much more like that than Cybernator. In fact Cybernator seems pretty weak in comparision to either the Genesis or Saturn game, and that's really what put me off from buying the PS2 rev.

[MadSteelDarkness]

The PS2 version of Assault Suit Valken is an almost pixel-for pixel remake of the SNES Valken/Cybernator. In fact, when I first received the PS2 remake, I was kind of disappointed that they hadn't really changed anything. IIRC, in the PS2 remake, there's a bit of difference in the level layouts, but not much. The difficulty on both versons is the same: they present a decent challenge. One should be warned: there is a game for the PSX called Assault Suit Valken 2. It plays nothing like Cybernator or Assault Suit Leynos. It's a Strategy RPG, which would be fine if I could read Japanese...or liked Strategy RPGs...

Oh, and here's another positive vote for Leynos 2 on the Saturn. Good stuff! As far as which is better between Leynos 2 and Cybernator, I like 'em both. I'm glad we've got both of these games to kick around, personally...

[SheSaidDutch]

Any chance of some Screens of the game? I've googled but alas no good screens were found

[Neon]

One review I read stated more or less the opposite of Madsteel, claiming ruined controls, etc. Couldn't provide a link with a gun to my head though.

[MadSteelDarkness]

One review I read stated more or less the opposite of Madsteel, claiming ruined controls, etc. Couldn't provide a link with a gun to my head though.

Huh...

I think there's a possibility that reviewer was smoking crack. I just had a quick run through on both. On the PS2 rev, there is the addition of a mostly unskippable cut scene at the beginning, followed by a throw away semi-shmup mini-level with shootable rocks and a little "mini-boss"(none of which can hurt you, as you have no health meter). After that, there is a skippable story crawl. Then you go right into the first level, which aside from a nice high res sheen to the sprites, plays identically to the original SNES version. The controls are mapped exactly the same as the original, so I don't know where that reviewer got the whole "ruined controls" thing. In fact, if you don't like the original controls, there are three additional preset control configs in the options menu.

There is a major difference between the two versions that I hadn't remembered: Difficulty. The PS2 rev's difficulty seems much higher than the US SNES version. Enemies go down quite a bit faster in Cybernator, and your mech seems to take less damage per shot, as well. I cruised quite easily to the end of level two in Cybernator on my first go through, but after a couple of tries, can't seem to get out of level one on the Valken remake . Yes, I suck terribly at these games, but to be honest, I've never spent much time with either one (or Leynos 2, for that matter).

Perhaps someone with more experience at this game (or better skills ) would be able to point out more differences. I say if you have to choose, go for the SNES rev. It's probably cheaper by at least $40, and the difficulty seems much better balanced. Or I might just be crap at these games...

[dave4shmups]

Well, thanks for the impressions MadSteelDarkness! There are screenshots of PS2 game at Play Asia, and they look beautiful to me-especially the screenshot with the mountains in the background.

[SheSaidDutch]

A 2D game onthe PS2 I know It's a psudeo sequel to the SNES version, but it does look too much like the same game IMHO.

[Ganelon]

Err, a remake rather than a sequel. The game only goes for about $20 sealed now, which says something I guess...

[SheSaidDutch]

Err, a remake rather than a sequel. The game only goes for about $20 sealed now, which says something I guess...

Maybe..Maybe

[ST Dragon]

Well, judging by this review:

http://www.ntsc-uk.com/review.php?platf ... uitsValken

This remake's Pros are:
- The game disc makes a nice coffee coaster...

It could be wrong of course.

[BrianC]

One review I read stated more or less the opposite of Madsteel, claiming ruined controls, etc. Couldn't provide a link with a gun to my head though.

Huh...

I think there's a possibility that reviewer was smoking crack. I just had a quick run through on both. On the PS2 rev, there is the addition of a mostly unskippable cut scene at the beginning, followed by a throw away semi-shmup mini-level with shootable rocks and a little "mini-boss"(none of which can hurt you, as you have no health meter). After that, there is a skippable story crawl. Then you go right into the first level, which aside from a nice high res sheen to the sprites, plays identically to the original SNES version. The controls are mapped exactly the same as the original, so I don't know where that reviewer got the whole "ruined controls" thing. In fact, if you don't like the original controls, there are three additional preset control configs in the options menu.

There is a major difference between the two versions that I hadn't remembered: Difficulty. The PS2 rev's difficulty seems much higher than the US SNES version. Enemies go down quite a bit faster in Cybernator, and your mech seems to take less damage per shot, as well. I cruised quite easily to the end of level two in Cybernator on my first go through, but after a couple of tries, can't seem to get out of level one on the Valken remake . Yes, I suck terribly at these games, but to be honest, I've never spent much time with either one (or Leynos 2, for that matter).

Perhaps someone with more experience at this game (or better skills ) would be able to point out more differences. I say if you have to choose, go for the SNES rev. It's probably cheaper by at least $40, and the difficulty seems much better balanced. Or I might just be crap at these games...

Umm. Didn't the US SNES rev of the game have some cutscenes cut out of the Japanese SFC rev?

[sven666]

the PS2 version is inferiour.

mostly due to the lack of a "hold" button which makes the game alot more difficult (in a stupid way) why the hell the took it out ill never understand.
also as remakes and come thisones rather poor.. id sy its more of a re-release.
they just smoothed out the pixels a little.

id pick up a SNES for cheap and invest in cybernator/valken for that system.. make sure to pick up metal warriors (believed to be the lost assault suit gideon) also.
if you own a megadriveyou might want to check out assault suit leynos/taget earth as well.

leynos 2 for the saturn is imo the peak of the series, the game is simply put fucking brilliant, a shame its so short and easy tho

[Ganelon]

Umm. Didn't the US SNES rev of the game have some cutscenes cut out of the Japanese SFC rev?

It was the other way around. The US version had lots of censored dialogues and scenes. AGTP put up an English patch of the JP Assault Suits Valken so you can see the fairly major differences.

[ST Dragon]

Assault Suit Leynos on the Genesis was horrible.
But the cover is very cool imo.





I've yet to try Saturn version.

[Strider77]

the lock/hold feature is the only hold back for me trying it out... i heard it goes for cheap

[SAM]

Most say the SFC one is better, I got both but I have play with the PS2 version much... (Never got the time for that after one grown up... )

[TransatlanticFoe]

Old topic bump because hey this fits better here than the hunners of Valken mentions elsewhere. Morbid curiousity got the better of me and I picked up...

Assault Suits Valken for the PS2
(as a Cybernator veteran... with napalm I got to the penultimate boss after several attempts at simply getting through the first two stages, more on that below)

The Good
* It's Valken so at its core everything good about Valken is still here
* It's uncensored, so all the cuts from Cybernator are restored - including the portraits, missing mid-mission dialogue, the suicide scene and Rick piloting the penultimate boss (not sure if the post credits scene is there though, have to make it past Rick for that!)
* 60 Hz mode on a PAL game!

The Bad
* Aim lock is there... but you can't walk backwards (it flips you around if you press the opposite direction to which you were facing) which makes zero gravity doable but annoying and the underground bit on the final stage borderline impossible (because you will end up facing the wrong way a lot)
* Enemy fire rate early in the game is greatly increased (those cannons in stage 1 fire faster than they usually do on Arc Nova)... and bizarrely reduced in several places later on (the dudes in the cave virtually never shoot)
* Bosses and some other enemies now have a ludicrous amount of health - it's really hard to bring down the first boss in time and even with napalm the second boss takes ages. Also I couldn't stop the shuttle in time with napalm because its health was so high, and I had to hit and run due to the enemy support units having a ridiculous fire rate (and nigh-zero respawn time)
* Your suit is really sluggish in zero gravity. Control is tight elsewhere which means they deliberately introduced lag, presumably to simulate inertia. You get used to it but it's still awful
* Enemies no longer drop periodic health and power up items, though the fixed drops from the SNES version are there
* The translation ends up worse than Cybernator, though it's clearly closer to Valken (compared with the translation patch for SNES Valken) it's littered with bizarre Engrish grammar and typos. It seems truncated in a lot of places (particularly in mission briefings) and also regarding scenes of rememberance for Apollo/Herman

The Ugly
* Slowdown! Not for dramatic effect like the exploding containers in the SNES version - genuinely because a lot is kicking off. Facing off against the snake-like mining robot in the cave is a lot like the first boss in the SMS port of Strider
* Is it widescreen? I think it's supposed to be widescreen. Stretching 4:3 to 16:9 makes text, portraits and objects look right anyway
* It all looks a bit smudged next to the SNES version and the final city stage is missing a lot of burning wreckage
* It's tougher, but only because everything's so aggressive in the opening two stages - it calms down a lot of after that

The Meh
* The post-title screen cutscene is now part of the game... unskippable and sort of playable (though you're invincible and it is rubbish)
* The music is not really better or worse, just slightly remixed
* You can't give your character a badass name so he's stuck as "Jake"

So yeah. The half-busted aim lock is probably the least of this port's problems given the ludicrous difficulty of the first two stages. Stick with Valken via a translation patch, or at least Cybernator.

[BIL]

Thanks a million for the detailed field report, TAF.

Sounds pretty fucked overall, especially the enemy HP buffs. The SFC's enemy resilience is pitch-perfect throughout (non-Napalmed). OTOH, I have to admit I like the prospect of more enemy fire early on (Arc Nova's wimpy guard mechs are a minor disappointment on SFC, as is the next stage's re-entry dogfight). Not at the cost of everything else though, especially not if it fucks with the SFC's superb lategame firefights.

Always thought the new "playable prologue" looked utter shit, and was one of the most ruefully funny missings of the point since PCE Strider's in-stage cutscenes.

Might still pick up a copy myself - I can't deny the curio appeal. Morbid indeed, haha.

[TransatlanticFoe]

Sadly the buffs wear out after stage 2, Arc Nova enemy firing rate is pretty much the same (the chaser lasers fire faster). If anything the final stage is considerably less intense than on the SNES - sad times indeed. Re-entry is a bit tastier though, as the enemy suits there have a lot of HP so it gets a bit hairy. That tension doesn't last to the "boss" though, as you can still block all of Beldark's attacks on the ground.

It's the boss HP that does it really, each time I got through stage 1 that power unit was right at the top and I had no health left. I'd see if it's easier if you forgo napalm to get a few power ups... but I have no idea how you're meant to take down everything else without napalm - so overpowered on the SNES as to be gamebreaking, seemingly so essential here.

It's an English-translated physical release of the uncut Valken, that's pretty much what it has going for it.

[Sumez]

Btw, did they make changes to PAL Cybernator, or can I just play it in 60hz and be fine, like most actual Konami games?

[TransatlanticFoe]

From what I recall Cybernator is PAL optimised. I didn't notice a difference in speed between it and emulating Valken at 60 Hz.

Cleared PS2 Valken this morning. It does have the post credit dialogue but it's literally just:

"This is outer space exploring unit. Do you copy?"

Repeated a few times with words missed out.

Final boss is also brutal. He doesn't stop smashing you with his arm and if you destroy the hand, he fires the cannon near constantly. Also without power up drops from enemies don't think there are enough fixed ones to get the laser to its maximum level. Balls to that.

[BIL]

Cleared PS2 Valken this morning. It does have the post credit dialogue but it's literally just:

"This is outer space exploring unit. Do you copy?"

Repeated a few times with words missed out.

According to GaijinPunch, that's what the SFC says too (fragmented speech intentional). It's a small but significant nod to the series' previous game, Assault Suit Leynos. Leynos spoilers:

Spoiler

its antagonists are that same deep space unit, presumed lost after a massive global conflict - Valken's. Years later the survivors return to Earth, borged up and not well pleased by their perceived abandonment. One war ends, birthing another in its wake! Causality be some scary shit!

Neat little cross-console tie-in, from a time of mortally intense console war! Naturally it got the chop in Cybernator.

[TransatlanticFoe]

I hoped there might be a little more to it but it's a cool easter egg anyway. Given it's missing from the SFC Valken language patch and the PS2 translation is awful (asteroids are boulders and Arc Nova is described as a hollowed out planet) I guess it's nice that it's there at all!

Seeing as I've got the PS2 hooked up, if I feel particularly awful about my life tomorrow I might see how far I can get without napalm...

[Mero]

I've had this for years but never really played it, will have to test my skills on it one day.

[Marc]

So is the PS4 game a remake of the MD one?

[BIL]

Yes - Assault Suit Leynos. The series chronology is AS Leynos (MD, aka Target Earth, remake on PS4), AS Valken (SFC, aka Cybernator, bargain bin port on PS2) and AS Leynos 2 (Saturn, JP exclusive).

There's also AS Valken 2 (PS1, JP exclusive), but it's a complete departure into turn-based strategy.