Cybernator

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To do: Document the prototype. There is some text here that should be moved to that prototype page when created.

Cybernator is the most well-known game in the Assault Suits series. The western version of the game is infamous for removing a bunch of story-related content.

Developer Copyright Message#

This is found at the start of the ROM:

VALKEN COPYRIGHT(C)1992 NCS
This softwere was producted by Nippon Computer Systems Corp. in 1992 , All right reserved.

Scrapped Localization Leftovers#

Assault Suits Valken was only released in Japanese and English. However, there might have been plans for other languages.

The European version modified the font to have letters with shorter ascender and x-height values. This is typically done to accommodate European languages that have characters with accent marks.

Additionally, the European version had its code modified to support an extended Latin font with accented characters. However, these modifications were in vain as Konami chose not to translate the game into other languages.

The font leftovers in Cybernator's case are slightly unfinished, and would have accommodated a Spanish-language version. If the text in the European version is edited to use the characters in the 0x80-0x8F range, they would work as intended. Versions for other languages would likely edit the font graphics to include different characters that suit their needs, like with French and German.

Regional Differences#

Assault Suits Valken was released as Cybernator in international markets.

Publisher Logos#

Japan, Nintendo Switch	USA	Europe

The North American version removed the Masaya logo, replacing it with Konami's trademark logo and chime sequence. The European version simply replaced the Masaya logo with that of Palcom Software, but Konami is still credited where applicable.

Title Screen#

Japan, Nintendo Switch	Cybernator (USA, Europe)

Cybernator's title screen has revised legal information to reflect its international publishing.

Font#

US Proto, US Final	Europe	Nintendo Switch English Version

The Japanese version uses a half-width English font for most menus and the score tally after the credits, and a full-width Japanese font (with added bold and border effects) is used for the story and radio messages. The North American version reused the half-width font for the story and radio messages and the European version further modified it.

Options Screen#

Japan	North America	Europe

• The North American version changed the SNES controller in the options screen to reflect the logo and color scheme of the buttons used in the region.
• An option to adjust the message speed was removed in the international versions.
• The screen for naming the protagonist allowed the use of either hiragana or katakana characters and a dakuten feature was present as well. This was removed in the international versions.
• Of note in the US prototype of Cybernator is a sound test option that was removed in the final version.

Removed Story Content#

The international versions cut a lot of story content.

Radio Communications#

The game's story is delivered via text, presented as radio communications accompanied by anime-style portraits of the speakers.

Much of the banter between teammates and enemies was removed in the international versions, retaining only the most essential mission objectives and boss battle messages. As a result, much of the story is lost in these versions. Additionally, the international versions (but not the US prototype) removed the portraits and added extra lines with speaker names to compensate. The instruction manual describes the game's setting using fictional locale names ("Madagascar Shuttle Port" and "The Axis Capital: Suburbionski Uzbekistanski") as opposed to the original Japanese version being loosely set in Europe.

Post Credits Scene#

A post-credits scene in the good ending, showing a mysterious radio communication and tying the game to Assault Suits Leynos, was removed in the international versions.

Suicide Cutscene#

In the final level, a sequence depicting a suicide was cut in the international versions.

The scene in question, set in the enemy president's room, depicts a short conversation between him and the main character. In it, the enemy president commits suicide, shown with a small animation, a gunshot, and the in-game sprite of the president collapsing on his desk. In the international version, this scene is omitted entirely and the player never enters that room, instead skipping to the subsequent communication with a killed teammate and an ensuing warp to the next chase sequence. The president's dying words are still mentioned, but in the bad ending.

The international versions retain some unused data that can be used to reinstate this scene:

The map and the scene can be displayed with the PAR code 7E19D0:0F (Japan) or 7E19C6:0F (international). This map and all its associated graphics and data are present but inaccessible in the English version outside of cheats. The scene was mostly translated, but the text was cut short just before the president pulls the gun. The bolded lines in the Japanese text have their equivalent line blanked in the unused English translation, but the associated portrait (ID: FAD8) is still included in the US prototype.

At that point, in the Japanese version, the conversation continues as the president pulls a gun to his head since that's "all he can do at that point". The animation plays, then the protagonist is shocked that this is how he's taking responsibility. The rest of the cutscene plays in silence in the unused English translation, until the teammate's call.

The prototype and some leaked info prior to it show numerous attempts to tone down the scene in the English version. First, one of the president portraits went unused and the conversation was cut short to avoid lingering on the suicide. Then, in the prototype, the text and scripting from the teammate call was copied and pasted over the end of the earlier scene rather inefficiently. The final version further removed the the gunshot sound, despite the scene itself already being disabled and the text never being updated with speaker names.

Version Differences#

In recent years, the game has seen two different re-releases: a 2023 enhanced version for Nintendo Switch, and a physical SNES cartridge with a modified ROM using a fan translation.

Assault Suits Valken Declassified#

A compilation for Nintendo Switch was released in March 2023. Developed by the renowned developer M2, this collection includes the original Japanese version, and an English version based on it that boasts a new translation and avoids many of the localization changes that were originally done in Cybernator. Some DRM was also added to prevent ROM redistribution. There were also some other changes:

• Naturally, the Masaya logo is restored at the start of the game.
• The Declassified version was reworked to support a variable-width font and display text faster.

Cybernator	Declassified

• The options menu removed the SNES controller and also disabled the control remapping option in lieu of the compilation's own control remapping feature.

Original (Japan)	Declassified

Retro-Bit Version#

With permission from the game's owners, a physical SNES cartridge re-release was done by Retro-Bit in April 2024. While Retro-Bit initially touted an "an all-new English localization", the translated text itself was a mishmash of two different translations: the 2002 Aeon Genesis fan translation and the localization from Declassified, with minimal reworking. The technical foundation for this version was the fan translation, itself based on the Japanese version.

Soon after the cartridge's release, this instance of plagiarism came to light for this re-release as well as other releases by Retro-Bit such as Shockman Zero, Gley Lancer and Majyuuou. They have since issued an apology.

This re-release is laden with bugs, many of which are inherited from the fan translation:

• The naming screen is disabled, since the fan translation had this screen broken, with bugged Latin characters pulled from the unused Japanese font. In the options screen shown below, the Name Entry option is changed to Exit.
• Overall text display is bugged, with skipped frames, skipped renders and crash issues depending on timing issues with certain characters.
• Some scenes, especially the post-credits scene, are bugged or missing.
• The options screen, shown below, shows the Japanese Super Famicom controller, as opposed to the North American SNES controller.

Japan	Retro-Bit (SNES Aftermarket)