Vital Suits, or VS, are robotic suits designed to fight the Akrid. Most VS can be equipped with two weapons, and most can be removed to give you extra firepower while on foot. Not all VS are the same; some are slow, some are fast, some are tough, and some are weak. You also lose T-ENG faster while in a VS than on foot. Actions such as jumping, and thrusting will also drain T-ENG, so make sure you have a good supply before you jump in.
Vital Suit Types
PTX-140/Hardballer- The durable Hardballer is one of the more agile vital suits in the game. It can jump and hover with directional jets to change direction mid-flight. While on the ground, it can boost in one direction to quickly get into or out of a fight. With a VS saw attached to the left arm and two shoulder mounted guns, this VS is an offensive powerhouse.
PTX-40A/Ivan- The cousin of Hardballer, Ivan handles similarly and has the same chainsaw attachment. The only real difference between the two is that Ivan has a white paint job.
GTT-01/Nida- This is the first vital suit you'll find in the game and you'll quickly learn to take a different VS when the option presents itself. Nida is slow and can't do anything other than walk and hop. If it weren't for the added protection and gun mounts, this VS would be edging towards useless.
GTN-A01/Turnable- Turnables are stationary VS. Some Turntables have missile launchers. Others have rockets or chain guns equipped. All of them are deadly. These are found in both the multiplayer game and story mode and always stir up commotion. Once inside, you'll have some protection, though you can be shot out of the seat and the Turntable itself is destructible.
GTB-22/Faze- This is the VS you'll want when traveling in the vertical direction is important. For starters, Faze can do a double jump. For reaching even higher areas, holding down the Y/Triangle button charges up a giant jump. While in the air, tapping the Y/Triangle button again reverses the direction of the thrusters and blasts the VS back to the ground. To round things out, Faze has a smoke grenade gun to help confuse the enemy.
GAB-25M/Cakti- Even though this spider-like VS was designed for drilling, the Cakti can transform into a tank and use its two drills to either attack enemies or break through rubble. In spider mode, Cakti can jump and hover or crawl around on the ground as it uses the attached Cannon and Vulcan Laser to attack.
GTF-13M/Evax- Evax acts like a normal VS until you tap the Y/Triangle button and it folds into itself and transforms into a high speed snowmobile. Steering Evax when it is boosting along in it's snowmobile mode isn't exactly easy, but for getting across large areas quickly there isn't a better option.
GAN-34/Granseed- Despite its bulky appearance, Granseed is a fairly agile VS. It functions similarly to Hardballer, but doesn't have the giant chainsaw. Granseed is a good all around VS with directional hovering and ground boosting abilities.
GTF-11/Drio- The Drio controls and behaves exactly the same as Granseed. The only difference comes in the rounded shape and open air top.
GAN-A04SD/Cyclops- Cyclops can't be controlled by players. These machines hover around levels in the story mode and emit a visible search laser. If you cross the beam, that Cyclops and all of the others around it will swarm in and start attacking you. The red "eye" is the weak point, though all Cyclops have a set of metal shutters that they keep closed most of the time for protection.
GTN-A03M/C/Zebet- These machines don't fall into the greater VS family and you can't actually use them yourself, but you'll come to know them quite well through the story mode. These automatic turrets scan the area and will start shooting laser blasts at you on sight.
Aside from the different types of VS, there are also many different weapons you can attach onto your VS, or use on foot.
VS Weapons
Gatling Gun- This is the standard VS armament that works just like a Machine Gun, only much bigger. The oversized VS weapon can be removed from the VS, although you'll be less mobile and will find that moving and shooting a gun this big at the same time is pretty much impossible. Still, the high rate of fire and massive damage this gun dishes out can essentially turn the wielder into a mobile turret.
Laser Rifle- This high-tech gun has to be charged before the power can be unleashed, but it never runs out of ammunition because it feeds off your T-ENG. Once it is charged, the energy it delivers is more than enough to take out a lone human or small Akrid and can even do some hefty damage to the bigger Akrid and VS enemies out there. As a large weapon to use without a VS, this is one of the best.
VS Rocket Launcher- Packing more power than the standard Rocket Launcher, this may be the most devastating weapon in the game. It has to reload in between each shot and that will kill a few seconds, but for sheer destructive capabilities, there's no substitute. You're going to want to make extensive use of this weapon if you have any hope of surviving Boss battles.
VS Shotgun- Stronger than a normal Shotgun with slightly wider range, the VS Shotgun packs quite a punch - just watch out for the kickback. If you decide to carry this weapon around on foot, be prepared to get staggered every time you pull the trigger. It also has the added bonus of being able to do a lot of damage with out any splash effect, perfect for when the larger Akrid get straight up in your face.
Grenade Launcher- This weapon functions similarly to the Rocket Launcher and is a great all-around choice. It can deal out a huge amount of damage but doesn't suffer from having to reload immediately after each shot like the Rocket Launcher does. The major difference is that the grenade splits up into several smaller explosions to carpet the target with damage allowing for a nice area-effect weapon.
Homing Laser- This weapon allows you to lock on to multiple enemies, letting your laser beams rip with deadly accuracy. Once you've locked on, you're nearly assured of connecting with your target.
EM Laser- This weapon behaves almost exactly like the Laser Rifle, and is only a little more powerful. When fired, it draws from your T-ENG, so don't overuse it.
Cannon- This weapon is only found on the Cakti, and can't be removed, so get as much as you can out of it. Its firepower rivals the Rocket Launcher, holds 30 shells, and has an almost instant reload.
Vulcan Laser- This weapon acts just like the Gatling Gun, except it fires lasers instead of bullets. It too is only found on the Cakti, and can't be removed. It also has unlimited ammo because it draws from your T-ENG.