Metal Walker

"A great RPG that says, "Poke-who?""

So, what is Metal Walker?

Some might say it is a Pokemon wannabe. Others may mark it as another one of those “train your monster and fight” games. Actually, it is a little bit of both. Metal Walker is an RPG that plays pretty much like Pokemon. It almost follows the same format: Get your monster, train it, battle bosses, etc. However, there are those major differences that separate these kinds of games. So, if you are one of those who want to get more from Pokemon-type RPGs, Metal Walker is the game for you.

Hmm…Metal Walker, you say? Tell me the story, first.

It is the 21st century. Core Units, which are types of metal that evolves into different machines, were found on an island. The military decided to excavate and examine these unique “species” of machines. At one point, a terrible disaster had occurred that left many of the island and military facilities into ruins and rubble. The island’s name was soon to be called “Rusted Land,” due to the lack of vegetation and plants.

50 years later…You and your father, Tetsuo, are desperately battling for your lives. The evil Metal Busters (the names of the machines) are trying to kill you. Your father tells you to run while he distracts them. You quickly grab your Meta Ball, your very own Metal Walker. Your father shouts that they are used for fighting…but suddenly, he screams in pain. You later wake up in someone’s bed and find out that your father is missing…so the search for your father is on.

Metal Walker will send you through hours of exploring the island of Rusted Land. Using your Metal Buster, you will fight hordes of enemies and gain levels. You will also meet with some very interesting (and funny) people. Badoh and Emil, the other two main characters, will occasionally pop in and out during your adventure. They will always add that special “effect” to the game. The bosses, strange as they seem, will put you up to a decent challenge.

That’s pretty cool, but I need more info on the game itself…

Like I said, the game plays a lot like Pokemon, but the differences set them apart from each other. I will point out them out as clearly as possible, as well as other aspects of the game:

The Evolution System
Perhaps one of the most unique systems I’ve seen, the evolution of your Metal Walker will be the biggest factor in the progress of your game. After you defeat each boss, you will receive a Core Unit. They are in three forms: land, marine, and sky. If you “equip” them to your Meta Ball (the default unit), it will evolve into a stronger land/marine/sky unit! And, by using these new units, you can go to places you couldn’t have gone to before. For example, using M. Marine will enable you to go across shallow waters, whereas using M. Kite will help you fly over a pit. If you have more than one Core Unit of a kind, you can reach even farther places. The evolved version of M. Marine can go across the sea, and the evolved version of M. Kite can fly over two pits. There are also “special” Core Units, but I won’t spoil it for you. You also have the choice of de-evolving.

The Battle System
Metal Walker’s battle system plays a lot like…pool. It is turn-based, like most RPGs. When you enter a random battle (which occurs more frequently than any other game alive on the face of this earth), you are against one to three enemies. To win, you must aim your Metal Walker to a strategic location to either hit an enemy, stay away from an enemy, get a capsule, or escape. Since the battlefield is quite small and it takes up the Gameboy screen, prepare yourself before you take any other action. Once you have aimed at a certain area of the battlefield, pressing the A button will cause a strength meter to appear on the bottom of the screen. If you press A while the bar is maxed, you will travel far. Pressing A while the bar is short will cause you to stay where you are, or not travel that far. Hitting the bar while it’s maxed will not always guarantee an effective result; the key here is strategy. When you hit an enemy, they will bounce back, depending on how much they weigh, and vice versa. If you destroyed an enemy, a cool picture of them blowing up will be shown. What is the outcome of a victory? You will get experience points and scrap metal to trade for capsules in a store.

You can use capsules in a battle to give you (or your enemy) an upper hand. By equipping a capsule, you will automatically throw it during a battle. After a capsule has been thrown, you must get to the capsule before your opponent does. Capsules can be either beneficial or harmful. For example, a capsule called Thunder 1 will hurt the opponent, whereas another capsules called HP 1 will heal you. It all depends on who rams into the capsule first. However, if neither character touches a capsule, it will disappear, and the next equipped capsule will be thrown in the battle. In order to buy more capsules, you must constantly analyze new enemies.

There are four kinds of battlefields: land, marine, sky, and electrified land. A land unit will work best in land, and a marine unit will work best in water, as logic would suggest. An electrified land is simply a battlefield with electric wires fitted on the sides. Touching the sides would be a big no-no. Certain types of units have the advantage over other types. It all depends on what the battlefield is.

Combos can be performed if your plan of attack is well executed. Aiming your Metal Walker and hitting the strength meter at a good time will cause your Metal Walker to bounce around and attack the enemy so that the enemy bounces to another, thereby hitting them by accident. This can go on for a long period of time if you are skilled or just plain lucky. If you attack three enemies and kill them in one turn, then you will win extra experience points. Combos are extremely important in boss battles, as they will end the fight quicker.

Camping
As another great and original system, camping will truly save your life during the long treks when you are almost out of health and health capsules. In the game you will find numerous blue signs. That is where your camping ground will be. You can move camps from one place to another; all you need to do is to look at the sign. In your camp, you can recover your health and go to a trade shop. Here, you can trade the scrap pieces you received from battle and get capsules in return. You can also camp battle with your rival, Badoh.

Linking with Friends
Like in Pokemon, you can link up with friends to battle each other. You can do this by going to a “specific area” in Rusted Land.

Wow! This game is starting to sound awesome! What did you rate it?

Each of the game’s key points are rated in a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the lowest and 10 being the highest.

Story/Originality: 7/10
“Metal Walker?” When I first heard the word, I was in a state of bewilderment (kind of). I can say that the story is certainly well-written, but this Pokemon-look-alike has gone a bit far enough. The only reason that this was bumped to a 7 was because of the Evolution and Battle System. Thanks Capcom.

Gameplay: 7/10
Well, if you liked Pokemon, then you will certainly love this game. Although you use only one buddy to help you, your buddy has the ability to evolve. Progressing in the game is fun, except for the constant random battles. If there is one thing terrible about this game, it is the random battles. Every eight or nine steps you take, you will end up in a fight. This can be and definitely is a pain in the butt. But other than that, you will enjoy exploring Rusted Land.

Graphics: 7/10
Well, what do you expect from a Gameboy cartridge? The background is badly made, and the sprites are somewhat…well, you know. However, Metal Walker redeemed itself and provided many hand-drawn pictures of your buddy and the enemies. They are each unique and special in their own way.

Sound/Music: 9/10
I think this is the first Gameboy game that actually features decent music. There are a whole bunch of tracks, well-composed, throughout the different sections of Rusted Land. The sounds of Metal Walker tend to get somewhat annoying at times, but the music usually covers it up. I was actually tapping my foot while playing the game. Weird, isn’t it?

Replayability: 9/10
As soon as you beat the game, you’ll want to find every single secret. This means finding all of the…oh wait, I’m not allowed to tell you any secrets…well after beating the game, you’ll have the urge to keep playing. So you know what that means? Buy more batteries!

Finale: 8/10
It’s not really a truly memorable experience when you play, but it still is a fun and decent RPG. Aside from the random battles, Metal Walker offers great gameplay and uniqueness. To put it in one sentence: Another great piece of work, Capcom.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 09/16/01, Updated 09/16/01