The Cyber Troopers series started in 1995 with the release of Cyber Troopers Virtual-On. Released in arcades and on consoles throughout the years, the series gained more incarnations and versions. The game spawned three other games: Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Marz, Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Force, and of course, Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Oratorio Tangram. Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Oratorio Tangram (Also known as VOOT) was released in arcades and the Sega Dreamcast between the years 1998 and 2000 and on the XBOX Live marketplace on April 29th, 2009.
This game doesn't really have a story, and that's a disappointment. I do realize that this is a port of an old game but that doesn't mean Sega couldn't have added a story element to it, hell, still pictures and text would've been nice! Giant Mech games have always offered the possibility of an interesting and unique story; it's unfortunate that this game decided to miss out on that opportunity.
VOOT is an arena fighting game. If you've ever played a Gundam game, you'll probably know what I'm talking about. You'll choose a Virtuaroid (or V.R.) and get thrown into a colorful and unique stage. You and your opponent will then commence to blowing each other up with lasers and missiles. You can have timed matches, or what the game likes to call a "Death Match" where there is no time limit, and you just fight till the death. It's simple and does what you'd expect from a giant robot game; it gives you giant robots and lets you fight with them.
The left and right trigger will serve as your attack buttons. You can use them alone or combine them with the X and B button to pull off even more flashy and devastating moves. As you progress on harder difficulties, you'll need to use different and varied attacks throughout your encounters or you'll get demolished. You can jump using the Y button and dash by using the X and B button. Even though the controls seem simple, everything you do just kind seems stale and unresponsive. Nothing flows very well. Strangely enough, it's still fun.
One thing that really just makes me angry is the lack of modes. You have the Arcade and Time Attack modes but after those have been beat, there really isn't much else single player fun to be had. No awesome challenge mode or mini-games or anything like that. I know that the modes that are in the game are practically the modes in the original title, but who would complain if some new modes were added? I know I wouldn't. I beat the game on a few modes and honestly, the Arcade is short and repetitive. I could just go up to an enemy and press an attack button (which when your close to an enemy pulls out your melee weapon) and defeat them no problem! Granted on harder difficulties you'll die more often and the matches are slightly longer.
The environments are colorful and unique and they're great fun to look at. Navigating the battle grounds isn't very hard because the battle grounds aren't very big. This isn't a bad thing because this game focuses on closer ranged combat. Character models do look blocky, yes, but this is a port of an old Arcade and Dreamcast game so, all is forgiven. Sega did slightly touch up the graphics and effects though. Sound effects fit in with the games theme and the back ground music is really great. All of the tunes from the game stuck in my head for about an hour after I played it. The music fits the levels that they're placed in. The music is definitely one of the more positive things about the game.
VOOT's single player doesn't have much replay value to it; unless you want to beat your score over and over again, but it does have online. Online is just like single players Arcade mode except you're fighting a human player of course. You'll both choose a VR and get at it! Matches flow nicely and I didn't notice any hiccups with the frame rate or anything. Overall, the online is pretty satisfying and the main reason I think people are going to get this game. It's fun, even though I got owned while playing it.
I did enjoy the game. It's short, the modes are lacking, the controls feel clunky, and it's pretty simple but it has its charm and it provided me with enjoyment. I'll be playing it in the future from time to time, so you can get that I do like it. One final thing I do have to mention is; the game is pretty pricey (1200 Microsoft points) for what it offers and I would recommend trying out the trial version before purchasing the whole thing. You'll get the basic idea from playing that demo. Try it first.
Score - 7.8/10.0
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