Capcom A to Z: Armored Warriors

 

Title: Armored Warriors

Release Date: October 24th 1992

Platform: CP System II

A quick update before we begin; we are going to be focusing on Capcom A to Z for the next month or so due to Super FamiComplete hitting TWO Japanese exclusive RPGs. Both of those games are 20+ hours and are going to take some time to complete, so I am going to knock out some quick Capcom games until I get those games under my belt. 

Background

Capcom is well known for their quality and off-the-wall beat-em-ups, and this game is no exception. This game, instead of having you play as a person of normal proportions, takes the genre to gargantuan scale by having you play as giant skyscraper sized mechs.  It should be noted that, before we begin, that these aren't, generally, Gundam style humanoid mechs, but instead look like walking construction equipment. 

The story of the game is a little over developed for an arcade beat-em-up, as Capcom really developed a world and backstory for a game about crashing giant robots against one another. The story takes place in the year 2281 and the unified government of Earth and a new neighboring planet, Reia, have settled from decades of war into an uneasy peace. The Reians, though, become subjugated by an alien menace, and the Armored Warriors, Earth's military squad of mech pilots, are called to repel this menace. There is a conspiracy that develops where members of Earth's government are using this as an opportunity to take over Reia, which translates to hopping between Earth locales and alien locales as the game progresses. 

You have four different playable characters: Lieutenant Jeff Perkins who pilots the BLODIA, which serves as your all around fighter who probably has the best range of any mech....

Captain Ray Turner who pilots a tall blue mech called REPTOS. This one is built for close range quick combos...

Major Glenn Reed who pilots the hulking GULDIN, a mech that looks like a giant green bulldozer and is built for high attack but low hit/speed combos...

...and finally Lt. Sarah White who pilots the FORDY, a small and quick mech who has a lot of range as well. This one ended up being my most used and favorite throughout the campaign, as you could quickly get in/get out and deal damage to multiple targets at once. 

Gameplay

The gameplay is a traditional side scrolling beat-em-up. You have a limited number of lives, with which you must fight your way through enemy mechs and even normal sized humans (whom you can crush under the treads of your mechanical juggernaut), and eventually take on the boss mechs of each stage. For each stage, you have a generous time limit to destroy every enemy and eventually the boss. Each mech has two generic attacks: a close combat combo and a ranged gun attack. Your gun attack takes ammo which can only be refilled by enemy drops. Finally, you can also do a ringed forcefield attack which will push away and damage all enemies at the cost of some health. 

The gameplay conceit in this game that I think is the most successful is the "scrapping" mechanic. As you destroy enemy mechs, you can grab parts of their robot and attach it to the chassis of yours. This is usually the arms, legs, armor, or guns of the mech that you grab. These scrapped parts will increase your offensive capabilities and attack power dramatically. Some of my favorites in this playthrough were the drill arm, which is one of the most powerful melee attacks, the laser cannon (which just shoots a horizontal laser across the screen, or the spider legs, which allow you to do a jump spin attack which does tremendous damage and hit most everything on screen. Because of the spider legs in particular, I was able to beat the final stage without dying. 

It must be noted that the sprites in this game are, appropriately, quite gigantic and attractive. Everything pops, color wise, and the action is really well animated. For a mech game, which I usually find that aesthetic rather boring, this game is pretty engaging and alluring. I imagine in the middle of a crowded arcade, this game would stand out. 

There is two times the gameplay formula is switched up for some "bonus stages." These are similar to the vehicle segments in Alien vs. Predator in that your mech is autoscrolling and driving through a level, and you only have your gun to use. Your goal is to blow up as many enemy drones on the path to the end, and then fight a short boss. 

The boss fights, as should be mentioned, are pretty fun and imaginative. You fight creatures like a scorpion mech, a crazy brain mech at the final boss. Of course you also have your rival mech that you fight several times throughout the game, which is a common thing in "mech" and beat-em-ups alike. 

Music and Sound Design

The music is, per usual for Capcom, pretty excellent when you can hear it over the sound of metal crunching, guns firing, and mechs exploding. Overall, the music and the sound does a great job putting you in the "middle of the fight."

Concept Art

Final Verdict

This is a well made beat-em-up that is worth playing through if just for the neat "mix and match" gameplay of the scrap system. Overall, it is a little forgettable, especially when compared to some of the more off the wall beat-em-ups out there, but it is worth playing through once certainly.  It is available through the the Playstation and Switch in the Capcom Beat Em Ups Collection which collects six excellent Capcom beat-em-ups in one easy to play package.