Known in the West as Cybernator, Assault Suits Valken is one of the finest mech action games of the 16-bit era, and this PS2 soundtrack release preserves the punchy, militaristic compositions that made the SNES original so memorable.
Read more
"Beginning" and "Prologue" waste no time establishing the grim, war-torn atmosphere -- this is a game about the brutal reality of mechanized combat in space, and the music never lets you forget it. "Mission Briefing" has that perfect pre-deployment tension, the calm before the storm of giant robots smashing into each other.
"Pursuit" and "Counterattack" deliver the high-energy action goods you'd expect from a side-scrolling mech shooter, but it's the more reflective tracks that give the soundtrack real depth. "The Price of War" and "Hope" inject genuine emotional weight into what could have been a straightforward shoot-em-up score, reflecting the game's surprisingly serious anti-war narrative.
"Formidable Enemy" has that unmistakable boss encounter energy, while "Infiltration" and "Intrigue" prove the score can do stealth and political maneuvering just as well as full-scale assault. The inclusion of the complete sound effects library is a charming period-appropriate touch -- those chunky mech footsteps, beam rifle blasts, and thruster sounds are as much a part of the game's audio identity as any melody.
"A New Battlefield" and "Wind" round out the musical tracks with forward momentum and contemplation respectively. For fans of Masahiro Kajihara's work and the Assault Suits series, this is essential listening that captures a particularly focused era of Japanese game music.