Strider

Strider
Developer(s)	Capcom
Publisher(s)	Capcom
Designer(s)	Planner Kouichi "Isuke" Yotsui Planning Adviser Tokuro "Arthur" Fujiwara Shinichi "Yossan" Yoshimoto
Composer(s)	Junko Tamiya
Platform(s)	Arcade
Release date(s)	March 1989
Genre(s)	Platform
Mode(s)	Single player, multiplayer
Input methods	8-way joystick, 2 buttons
Cabinet	Upright
Arcade system	CPS-1
Display	Raster, 224 x 384 pixels (Vertical), 3072 colors

Strider, released in Japan as Strider Hiryu (ストライダー飛竜^?) is a 1989 side-scrolling platform game released for the CP System arcade hardware by Capcom. It became one of Capcom's early hits before Street Fighter II, revered for its innovative gameplay and multilingual voice clips during cutscenes (presented in Japanese, Mandarin, Russian, Spanish and English).

Gameplay

A gameplay image of Strider.

The game takes place in the year 2048. The player controls Strider Hiryu, a young top-ranked member of a ninja-style assassination group known as "Striders", hired to assassinate the "Grandmaster", a legendary being who has observed Earth from his dwelling in a far-off galaxy and created a space station (known as "The Third Moon"), between Earth and its original moon in order to rule Earth and continue his observation. The levels take place around the globe (including the Soviet Union and the Amazon Rainforest).

Hiryu uses a "Cipher" (a razor-sharp blade that generates metal-cutting plasma, wielded similarly to a tonfa) called "Falchion". He can also latch onto and climb across walls and ceilings using a metallic hook. Throughout the course of the game, the player obtains power-ups, including an extension power-up for the Cipher (increasing Hiryu's attack range for the next few attacks), an invincibility power-up (which creates a copy that mimics his attacks for a short while), and robotic animal-like companions called "Options" (a mushroom-like droid, a hawk, and a panther) which help him defeat enemies.

Ports

• U.S. Gold produced ports of Strider for various computer platforms in Europe in 1989. They released ports for the Commodore Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, and ZX Spectrum, all of which were handled by developer Tiertex.

• Sega released a Mega Drive/Genesis version in 1990, which was one of the earliest 16-bit cartridges for the system. It was considered one of the system's "killer apps". Sega also released a Master System version in Europe in 1991, which was ported by Tiertex as well.

• In 1991, Capcom also released a port for the X68000 computer platform in Japan.

• NEC Avenue produced a PC Engine version of Strider Hiryu in 1994 in the CD-ROM² format, requiring the Arcade Card. It featured an additional stage not in the arcade version. NEC planned to release the game in various formats, including the SuperGrafx, before finally deciding to release it as an Arcade Card release.^[1]

• Capom released a PlayStation port in 2000 as a two-in-one bundle with the Capcom-produced sequel Strider 2.

• An emulation of the arcade game is featured in Capcom Classics Collection: Remixed for the PlayStation Portable, as well as in Capcom Classics Collection Vol. 2 for PlayStation 2 and Xbox, both released in 2006.

Manga

Before the release of the Strider arcade game, Monthly Comic Comp (an anthology published by Kadokawa Shoten) serialized a Strider Hiryu manga authored by Tatsumi Wada from May to October in 1988. A single collected volume was published in November of the same year.^[2] This manga was produced as a tie-in to the the Famicom version of Strider Hiryu, which was canceled in Japan while the manga was finishing its serialization and released only in the West.^[3]

Reception

Strider is fondly remembered, having spawned numerous fansites and retrospectives^[4][5][6]. Upon its release, Electronic Gaming Monthly was impressed with the Genesis port, devoting portions of three separate issues to it and awarding it the Genesis Game of the Year in 1990.^[7] Brett Alan Weiss of All Media Guide called it "a nice effort and a lot of fun for someone who likes to travel through a dark future Earth killing everything in his/her path with a giant sword", while also noting that "it does get a little repetitious using the same weapon over and over. And the sound your sword makes is annoying from the start."^[8]

Legacy

Sequels

• An NES version of Strider was released exclusively in North America a few months after the arcade version's release. This version was produced alongside the arcade game and follows the same plot as Moto Kikaku's tie-in manga. A Famicom version of the same game was planned in Japan, but canceled.

• Under license from Capcom USA, U.S. Gold and Tiertex produced a Strider sequel in Europe titled Strider II (released in North America as Journey From Darkness: Strider Returns) for various computer platforms, as well as the Mega Drive, Game Gear, and Master System. This European-produced sequel was unreleased in Japan.

• Capcom later produced another sequel, unrelated to the Tiertex-produced Strider Returns, titled Strider 2, which was released for the arcades and the PlayStation in 2000.

Other appearances

The character of Strider Hiryu also appears in the 1998 fighting game Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes, which was followed by Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes in 2000. Additionally the Hiryu character has made appearances in other Capcom-produced games such as SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighters Clash, Namco X Capcom and Adventure Quiz: Capcom World 2.

Related games

The 1997 arcade game Osman, released by Mitchell Corp., was produced by former staff members from Capcom who worked on the original Strider, likening Osman as a spiritual sequel to Strider.

References

External links

• Strider at MobyGames
• Strider for NES at GameSpot
• Strider for Genesis at GameSpot
• Strider at the Killer List of Videogames
• Light Sword Cypher Mainframe 4.0
• Complete Strider video (Genesis) on archive.org