Metal Combat: Falcon's Revenge was the light-gun-shooter sequel to the Super Nintendo game Battle Clash that utilized the Super Scope. It offers similar game play as its predecessor, but this time with two playable characters, longer levels, new weapons, training mode, and a ranking system which increased the replay value.
Story
As the 21 century dawned and society ignored the warning signs of social unrest and tamperings with nature, crime, riots, and food shortages became commonplace. Cities soon dissolved into ruins and were divided and run as armed camps. As earthquakes and flooding devastated the remaining great cities, all seemed to be lost. In this world of anarchy, human life was filled with violence, hatred and hopelessness. Soon, the only source of amusement became the Battle Game.
Advanced technology in weapons systems, armament and hydraulics were twisted to create a vehicle designed solely to compete in arena style combat. The first of these were little more than old army tanks outfitted with updated weapons systems. As pursuit of this new sport progressed, advanced designs with humanoid shapes soon began to appear. Originally called "Standing Tanks," they soon came to be simply called "ST." Typical combat between these metal monsters consisted of two STs facing off and firing their weapons at each other until only one was left standing. Victory meant power and prestige. Defeat meant that the loser would become a second-citizen, forced to served the victors.
Not all accepted the Battle Game's class system. One young man, Mike Anderson, refused to live by the station being forced on him by his father's defeat in the Battle Game. Determined to seek vengeance on the fighter who had defeated his father, Mike dedicated his life to learning all he could about the technology of the STs.
While Mike trained, Anubis, the fighter who had defeated his father, continued to win even more power fighting in his ST Thanatos. As he took control, Anubis promoted the best fighters in the Battle Game to be his "Chiefs." Along with this title, each was given control over a portion of the earth.
Upon completion of his self imposed training, Mike undertook a most dangerous goal: to battle through Anubis' Chiefs and take on the one who had declared himself Emperor, Anubis.
Three years have passed since Anubis suffered defeat at the hand of Mike Anderson. A new age of prosperity has begun to emerge and along with it, the rebirth of some of earth's great cities. Just as quickly as he disappeared following his defeat, Anubis has reappeared to resume his tyranny. Again you must join Mike and attempt to crush the iron rule of Anubis before he can once more throw earth back into the darkest of ages.
Table of Contents
New features
- A new playable ST, Tornado, which has to be unlocked.
- Training Mode, which is mandatory to complete if the game is played for the first time.
- Combat Mode, a two-players versus mode, in which the first player controls either the STs Falcon or Tornado, and the other one controls the STs Garam Mk2, Siamang, Wong, Griffin, Viscount, Thanatos and Arachnus via the standard SNES controller.
- The game uses a battery back-up, which saves any progress on Battle Mode, best times for any mode and overall rankings.
- The ability to charge shots more than one level in order to unleash a more powerful Energy Bolt.
- New special weapons, such as the Neutron Bomb. Also, it is possible to stock up to five standard bombs, which all of them only consume one space in the weapons slot.
- This game was the only one ever to use the OBC-1 chip.
Gameplay
List of STs
Allies
- Falcon
Description: The main ST. Its functions are not too different from the previous game, but this time it is able to charge up to 3 energy bolts in order to fire the powerful Treble Energy Bolt.
Pilot: Michael Anderson, protagonist of the previous game. He is also the designer and pilot of the ST Falcon. Earth's new renaissance, which began three years ago, has been directly attributed to Michael's defeat of Emperor Anubis. Since then, Mike has kept a low profile. However, with the return of Anubis, he has been seen in training near a deserted air base in the southwestern area of North America. Often he has been accompanied by two mysterious strangers, Rola and Carol Eugene.
- Tornado
Description: The secondary ST. It can hold up to ten levels.
Pilot: Carol Eugene, the second main character. She is also the pilot and presumed own of the ST Tornado. Her place of birth and the details of her background are currently unknown. She has recently been seen in the company of Michael Anderson and the other mysterious stranger, Rola.
- Spika
Description: A pink ST with wings like an angel. Spika does not actively participate in the Battle Game. As this ST used to have never been known to battle, its intentions was quite unknown.
Pilot: Rola, an Eltorian, a green-skinned alien race. She is the pilot and owner of the ST Spika, but she isn't playable. She is also the instructor at Michael's secret training grounds located in Southwestern North America. She helps the ST Falcon through situations that risk his life. She also harbors some hidden secrets. A mysterious stranger, she has been seen only in the company of Michael Anderson and Carol Eugene. Back in the past, no one knew who piloted this graceful looking ST. It was never been involved in the Battle Game - it has been seen only observing.
Training Droids
These machines are remote-controlled and are used for practicing.
- Ankoh TD
Description: This training droid, fashioned in the shape of an angler fish was developed by Rola for ST gunner training.
- Kinoko TD
Description: This mushroom shaped training droid was developed by Rola to train and test potential gunners to accompany Michael Anderson and Carol Eugene in their attack on Anubis.
- ST Majin
Description: The ST Majin is used by Rola for training exercises. It carries only the most basic weaponry and can be reassembled for spare parts in just minutes.
Enemies
- Garam Mk 2
Description: An improved version of his gorilla-like ST Garam, it is more maneuverable than its predecessor, as well as faster and stronger. When Guido redesigned his ST Garam as Garam Mk 2, he retained most of the original design. This time, however, he has chosen the next generation of systems in order to make Garam bigger, better, stronger and faster than before.
Pilot: Guido, a reinstated Chief of North America from Battle Clash. After being defeated by Falcon three years earlier, Guido returned to his training grounds in the Rocky mountains. When Anubis regained control, Guido came out of hiding and quickly seized Neo New York, the seat of North America, where he serves as a Chief of Thanatos.
Location: Neo New York
- Siamang
Description: A monkey-like ST. The ST Siamang uses a particle emission engine specially designed for him by the Alfred Research Center in the ancient city of Kyoto.
Pilot: Chada, a close friend and sworn "brother" of Guido. He is the chief of Oceania and Borneo. He rules the area of Borneo and Oceania from a base in the Indonesian islands. Originally he had hoped to use Antonov's old Russian aircraft carrier as a base, but it was booby trapped and sunk when he tried. As a youth, Chada was wild, small and thin. He sought power and strength by learning to pilot an ST. He traveled the world, fighting all challenges, until he met up with Guido, who was training in the Rocky Mountains. They became fast friends and swore an oath of brotherhood under a Douglas Fir
Location: Oceania
- Wong
Description: A quick anti-gravity ST that has indestructible shields as arms. It can launch volleys of missiles and charged shots from its head. The ST Wong is equipped with an anti-gravity device, developed by the Alfred Research Center, the foremost authority on anti-gravity.
Pilot: Dayan, a Mongolian warrior determined to protect his compatriots from any aggressor. He was previously defeated by Anubis, who forced him to swear loyalty and become the Chief of Asia. Dayan, pilot of the ST Wong, stages his battles as a running fight from behind "The Great Wall" in Mongolia. Originally the head of a tribe of nomadic Mongolians, Dayan learned to pilot an ST in order to protect his people, but he is now the Chief of the Asian region. At first Anubis sent many battlers to dispose of Dayan, but when the were unable to defeat him, Anubis challenged Dayan himself. After soundly thrashing Dayan in battle, Anubis stopped just short of finishing him and made him swear an oath of loyalty, which Dayan secretly desires to break.
Location: Mongolia (specifically the Great Wall; the player fights on the Chinese side, while Dayan fights on the Mongolian)
- Griffin
Description: An anti-gravity ST that is particularly agile and maneuverable. It can move in all directions and launches energy bolts and volleys of missiles. Its wings are near-indestructible. The ST Griffin, by means of its Alfred anti-gravity engine, has the ability to enter space, dropping in and out of the atmosphere at will. Orusoh, who has no regard for his enemies, takes advantage of this ability and actually fights his battles by dropping into the atmosphere. His theory is that anyone who challenges him is foolish, and that if he doesn't destory them quickly, the heat of re-entry will.
Pilot: Orusoh, Anubis' general and a ruthless and cowardly pilot who takes advantage of the gravity of the Earth and the entry of the atmosphere with the belief that anyone who dares to challenge him is a fool, since if he is not able to defeat them, the atmosphere's heat will. After the environmental changes began on Earth and the axis slipped, the last great achievement of the old society was to build a space station in the orbit of the new equator. It was dubbed the O.R.S. (Orbital Ring Station) Babel, and is connected to Earth by a great elevator. O.R.S. Babel also connects to the original Moonbase, Luna, by means of a magnetically guided space ship. It is here where Anubis has placed the most ruthless ST pilot he could find, Orusoh, as a guardian.
Location: Orbital Ring Station Babel
- Viscount
Description: An enhanced version of his ST Baron from the prequel, Viscount fixes some of the weak points of its predecessor, and increased other attributes such as its speed. When Carlos rejoined Anubis, he was given complete access to all Xeno-Tech knowledge and materials. After consultation with Zephyr himself, Carlos designed and rebuilt a much improved version of Baron, calling it Viscount. Improvements include the built-in hyper bazooka in his right hand. This bazooka is designed to have more destructive power than Falcon's. He still carries a shield in his left hand and has improved all of the weak points Falcon attacked before.
Pilot: Carlos, the former top general of the former Battle Game. After his defeat against the ST Falcon and the loss of his eye, his hatred towards it and the two pilots (Michael and the player, who plays as the ST Falcon's gunner) continued growing. After Anubis returned, Carlos quickly accepted to rejoin with his former boss in order to get his revenge. When Thanatos held the world in his hands three years earlier, Carlos was Anubis' top General. After being defeated by the ST Falcon, he wandered the Earth trying to find himself. He succeeded only in building up an intense hatred for the ST piloted by two people, which he considers an abomination. When Anubis returned, he found Carlos and offered him the position of personal bodyguard. Carlos has accepted knowing that ST Falcon will most likely return as well and when it comes, he will get revenge...
Location: Moonbase Luna
- Thanatos
Description: This is almost the very same ST Thanatos (first form) from Battle Clash, but with new attacks, such as rocket punches and kicks (similar to Garam Mk 2's punches) and triple charged shots. With the advantage of his synaptic connections directly to the ST Thanatos, Anubis has only to think a command and Thanatos responds. Anubis also has a special power that allows him to take the battle into another dimension filled with a hypnotic show of swirling colors and dancing skulls.
Pilot: Anubis, the evil former champion of the Battle Game, who has returned to retake control of the Earth. Three years earlier after his original defeat, everyone thought that Anubis and his ST Thanatos had been destroyed forever. Somehow, he has returned and quickly reestablished himself as the world's Emperor once again. This time, it only has taken him three days to conquer the world, and has divided it into three areas for his new Chiefs. Each of them is assigned to control politics and laws for his area. He assigned Orusoh to be his General and guardian of O.R.S. Babel and has appointed Carlos his personal bodyguard at Moonbase Luna.
Location: Mars (in an alternate dimension)
- Arachnus
Description: As its name suggests, it is a spider-like ST. It is agile and can fire a wide variety of shots from many parts of its body, including the mouth, stomach and legs. While its weak point seems to be its abdomen, destroying it only makes the ST even faster and it resorts to spinning while launching an infinite volley of powerful shots in spiraling patterns. Equipped with a Xeno-Tech HFE (Hydrogen Fusion Engine), the ST Arachnus has truly amazing potential. Its armor and weaponry were designed by Zephyr on the spec provided by Danpe. Little more than this is known.
Pilot: Danpe, a general of the invading Eltorian race, who has since monitored Anubis' actions. A general of the Eltorian invasion army, Danpe has stationed himself to observe the actions of Thanatos from his post on Jupiter. From there he reports back to the central command. With a passion for fighting, he awaits his opportunity to strike.
Location: Jupiter
- Cobra
Description: Like its namesake, the ST Cobra is a snake-shaped machine with a shield on its left arm, which allows to absorb all of the charged energy of the player's ST, which will be shot from the big gun on its right hand. The huge ST Cobra has a shield on his left hand that can absorb any energy source, even the energy fired from Falcon's bazooka. Cobra's right hand is a psycho gun that uses the energy absorbed with his left hand to shoot an extremely strong shot.
Pilot: Zephyr, the timid but intelligent designer of all the Eltorian STs and sole authority of everything ST-related of his race.
Location: Saturn
- Groken
Description: A squidlike ST, whose main body is invulnerable to any kind of attack. Any attempt to use Energy Bolts on it will result in reflected shots. It also uses two arms that don't have the same protection. It also has a rapid-firing gun at the bottom of it. Pamela's ST Groken was designed especially for her, and is of mammoth proportions. Its squid shape is made specifically to function underwater. Groken can fire devastatingly effective shots from the cannons all over her body.
Pilot: Pamela (Pamera in the game's profiles, a mistranslation), the aggressive and narcissistic Chief Commander of the Eltorian forces and Zephyr's wife. Chief Commander of the Eltorian invasion and wife to General Zephyr, Pamela is highly aggressive and believes that she is the most beautiful creature in the universe. With a distaste for her army uniform, she wears her own clothes including an extravagant fur coat and lots of jewelry and gold.
Location: Uranus
- Virvius
Description: A gold version of Thanatos, its attacks are almost the same as the former, but more powerful in every single way. It has the ability to split itself into two or three images and to move vertically. Like the Thanatos in the previous game, it has a second form. Aside from the extra mouths, Virvius-2 also has floating pods which tend to attack when the parts are not active.
Pilot: The pilot is Anubis, but it turns out that the other pilots of the same name, who both controlled their Thanatos STs in both Battle Clash and Metal Combat: Falcon's Revenge are actually clones. This Anubis doesn't know Michael but that doesn't stop him from continuing his invasion plans.
Location: Space Fortress Eltoria
- Giga-Desp
Description: Like Virvius, it has two forms. The first form is a tadpole-like pod surrounded by a circle of pods, which can shoot weak shots. Sometimes, it opens its mouth to use a devastating attack which can inflict instant defeat (regardless of energy) if not first shot in its vulnerable core with a fully charged shot. The second form is a giant tree-like mass. The player must be careful not to shoot any part of it unless it is prepared to attack (when that happens, it will show its weak points), because it will regain energy. Its attacks are skulls that act like regular shots. It holds the ST Spika (and Rola) hostage, so that it will shield its weakest point.
Pilot: Typhon, the real leader of the Eltorian race who was suspended in a cryogenic sleep while Anubis took charge of the invasion. He is vain, cowardly and cruel, and doesn't care to manipulate others in order to survive.
Location: Core of Space Fortress Eltoria
- Depending on whether Rola (and if playing with the ST Falcon, Michael) survives or dies, the ending will have small variations. The biggest change will be the ending theme.