Steel Battalion, also known as Tekki (鉄騎) in Japan, is the first game in the Steel Battalion series. It was developed by Nude Maker (former Human Entertainment developers) in collaboration with Capcom Production Studio 4, and was published by Capcom. It was released on the original Xbox on September 12, 2002 in Japan, November 21, 2002 in North America and March 28, 2003 in Europe. The game, bundled with the controller included, launched at a retail price of around ¥19,800, £130, or $200. Only limited quantities were made available. These quickly sold out, making the game a collector's piece. In 2004 there was a re-release in limited quantities worldwide bundled with the sequel Steel Battalion: Line of Contact, with a new blue button controller distinguishing it from the first edition with green buttons.
Unlike other mecha games released for home consoles, Steel Battalion makes use of a large, complex cockpit peripheral, the Mega Jockey 9000 produced by Sammy Corporation. Containing three control blocks with two joysticks, a gear shift and a three pedal set, it totals 43 input control buttons and devices.
Set in futuristic 2080, players control a pilot of the Pacific Rim Forces (PRF) as they control large bipedal weapon platforms known as Vertical Tanks (VTs for short) to fend off the invading nationalist force Hai Shi Dao (HSD) in south-east Asia.
The game received two sequels: Steel Battalion: Line of Contact in 2004 for the Xbox, and Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor in 2012 (for the Xbox 360). Line of Contact was multiplayer-only via Xbox Live and system link making use of the same controller, while Heavy Armor makes use of both the Xbox 360 controller and the Kinect sensor.
Gameplay for Steel Battalion involves combat with Vertical Tanks. The game was built around the Mega Jockey 9000 controller set aiming for a simulated war experience, including losing all saved data if the player dies. Every mission starts with the player having to start up the VT through a specific button and toggle sequence with timed elements.
The cockpit controller made for Steel Battalion has about 40 buttons and two full-size joysticks, built with everything necessary to control the VT. These are split up into four "blocks":
Pedal Block
Slide Step Pedal - Used for leaping in certain directions.
Brake Pedal - Used for braking.
Accelerator Pedal - Used for acceleration.
Left Block
Gear Lever - Used to change gears (Reverse, Neutral, and speeds 1-5).
Rotation Lever - Used to turn the VT left and right. On the top of it is the Sight Change Stick, which is used to move the main camera.
Toggle Switches - Five buttons used for the power-up sequence.
Center Block
Communication Buttons - Five buttons used to communicate with the current frequency.
Tuner Dial - Used to change between the five COM frequencies.
Function Buttons - Nine buttons used for both mission-specific actions and other functions.
Weapon Controls - Six buttons used for weapon actions (such as reloading and weapon cycling) and some other functions (such as washing dirt from the main camera's lens).
Right Block
Aiming Lever - Used for aiming the VT's weapon. On top of the joystick is the Sub Weapon Trigger (which is used to fire the sub-weapon), the Main Weapon button (which is used to fire the main weapon), and the Lock On button (which is used for locking on to enemies).
Eject-CMD - Used as a last resort for ejecting out of the VT. Unlike other buttons, this one is protected under a plastic cover that must be lifted before use.
Multi Monitor Buttons - Six buttons used for toggling the radar sub-screen, cycling between camera modes, and zooming the main camera.
Cockpit Hatch, Ignition, and Start Buttons - Three buttons used for manipulating the cockpit hatch and for the power-up sequence.
The Vertical Tank, or VT, is the primary vehicle in Steel Battalion. The VTs are bipedal walking weapons-platforms, and they come in three different types. Throughout the game the player unlocks new generations, making them better in every way. Operating system, start-up sequence and combat functions all change from generation to generation.
The Light VTs are the mobile class, mostly used for hunting down fleeing enemies, or attacking bases after their main defences are taken out. These VTs can be airdropped, making them a valuable tactical asset.
The Middle VTs are the main offensive force. They are both agile, while also having decent weapons and good armour.
The Heavy VTs have the best armor and firepower. But due to their weight and low mobility, they are mostly used for base defenses and the like.
Development
Producer Atsushi Inaba stated at the Game Developers Conference in 2005 that the Steel Battalion was a "product-focused project" in which the team initially focused on creating a new peripheral and software designed to go with it. Inaba's superiors were sceptical about putting such a game on the market. The amount of staff working on the project grew according to the team's experience with making new hardware. The earliest build of the game was created for the PlayStation 2. However, when the Xbox became available, the development team switched to it because of the system's greater power. Online play was taken out of consideration close to the development's start due to being too ambitious. While the game and its special controller received critical acclaim, the project turned little profit. Inaba stated that Steel Battalion was developed to show "what can be done in the game industry that cannot be done in others
Autographed by Hifumi Kouno.
Autographed by Hifumi Kouno.
Autographed by Atsushi Inaba & Hifumi Kouno.
Autographed by Atsushi Inaba.
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What are the games strongest points?
Inaba-san said he was most proud of "the sense of unity between the controller and the VT's movement. This game is not a simple action game with a big controller, every movement of the mech is designed to fit with the movement of the controller." Capcom feels that although there are already several mech action games on the market, Steel Battalion will challenge everything that is currently available. "The controller will add deep value to the game-play and hope that this controller will become part of video game history."
Steel Battalion is the first game to really show what the Xbox can do. It fully utilises its graphical capability resulting in the best looking game on Xbox to date. No game has ever been as immersive as Steel Battalion. The inclusion of the controller and the sublime nature of the graphics and game-play make this an instant hit.
Why did you choose Xbox for Steel Battalion, and not, say, PS2?
Inaba-san: When I started development of the game two years ago, there was no Xbox or GameCube, only PS2. The prototype of the game was done on PS2, but graphically I just wasn't happy with it visually. The PS2 is good for games with science fiction-style graphics, Armoured Core, for example, but just didn't capture the image that I wanted to present - that of the battlefield, with dust, noise and the like.
Screenshots
Reception
Steel Battalion was the 5th best-selling game during its week of release in Japan at about 15,092 copies.
Atsushi Inaba concluded that the game ultimately broke even in terms of units shipped and units sold.
Critic Reviews
Gaming since 198x
Sep 02, 2009
5 out of 5
100
Game Freaks 365
Apr 19, 2003
9.6 out of 10
96
Worth Playing
Dec 06, 2002
9.3 out of 10
93
The Video Game Critic
Feb 17, 2003
A-
91
X-Power
Sep 02, 2003
9 out of 10
90
Gamesmania.de
Mar 26, 2003
86 out of 100
86
Jeuxvideo.com
Jun 09, 2004
15 out of 20
75
GameSpot
Nov 22, 2002
7.3 out of 10
73
Games TM
Feb, 2003
6 out of 10
60
Eurogamer.net (UK)
Mar 26, 2003
6 out of 10
60
The game was very well received, with an average rating of 83/100 on Metacritic.
Many critics were impressed with the realism of the game and graphics as well as the controller.
Awards
Steel Battalion was nominated for the 2002 NAVGTR awards for Outstanding Graphics, Outstanding Innovation in Game Play, Outstanding Innovation in Game Technology & Outstanding Use of Sound.
Steel Battalion was also featured as a Nominee in 2002 Game Critics Best Simulation as a Game of the Year, 2002 NAVGTR Award as Most Innovative Game of the Year & 2003 Golden Joystick Unsung Hero as a Game of the Year 2002.
Steel Battalion was Nominated and Won the CESA-Game Awards for Outstanding Control Design & Outstanding Simulation Game, Also Won the NAVGTR Award for Best Simulation Game of the Year.
The Controller
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At least two versions of the Steel Battalion controller were produced. The first generation was easily identifiable by its green "numpad" buttons. On the later revision of the controller those nine buttons are blue instead. Based upon the experiences of the Steel Battalion community the later revision of the controller has weaker components in the foot pedals which are more prone to breaking.
The controller could be serviced, at great personal expense, by CAPCOM's own arcade division. This service ended when CAPCOM closed its arcade division in 2004.
Steel Battalion Credits
108 Total Staff (96 Developers, 12 Extra Support) VT Designer - Junji Okubo
Military Adviser - Toshiyuki Kikuzuki
Calligraphy of Japanese Title - Daiei Mori
Main Programmer - Masaki Higuchi (Nude Maker)
Programmers - Yasuyuki Saito, Makoto Kitamura, Akihiro Shimamori, Eiichi Ozawa (Nude Maker)
Art Director - Hirokazu Yonezuka
Chief Background Designer - Junya Tasaki
Background Designers - Tomohiro Ise, Kentarou Yano, Eijiro Nishimura, Ryoko Koyama, Natsuko Shimizu, Tetsuya Tanabe
VT Modeler - Sawaki Takeyasu
Cockpit Designer - Shōji Kuga (Nude Maker)
Object Modelers - Yuichi Akimoto, Yoshifumi Hattori, Nobuaki Yamazaki
Motion Designers - Tomoya Ōtsubo, Akihito Miyake
Effect Designers - Norikazu Kudo
Cut-Scene Movie - Tetsuya Sasano
Interface Designer - Junji Kaifu
Assistant - Toshiya Koshimizu
Voice Script Translation - Shinsaku Ohara
Controller Production Team - Manabu Hasegawa, Shigeyoshi Sato, Masakazu Okimoto, Naomi Hashimoto
Music - Naru Shirai
Sound Effect Designer - Yasumasa Yamada
Recording Director - Shinji Yamamoto
Voice Directors - Collette Sunderman, Tomomitsu Matsushita
Recording & Mixing Engineers - Yukiyasu Wada (Burnish), Ronald Dutch Hill (DMG), Koji Tominaga
Voice di violino - Mica [Opening & Ending]
Voice transparente - Yoshino Aoki (Opening)
Voice velenosa - 76 - SeventySix - [Opening & Ending]
Guitar - Kazuya Takahashi
Acoustic Guitar - Daisei Mii (Instrumental)
Voice Actors - Dan Conroy, Chris Cox, Douglas Rye, Billy Brown, Scott MacDonald, Joshua Swanson, Brett Coleman, Patrick Harlan, Steve Martin, Raj Ramayya, Michael Rhys, David Schaufele, Kiyomitsu Mizuuchi, Hikaru Hanada, Kazuya Ichijō, Satoshi Taki, Takeharu Ōnishi, Isshin Chiba, Takashi Nagasako
Interpreter - Laurent Soumoy
Recording Assistant - Junko Okano
Recording Coordinator - Yumiko Imai (Burnish)
Voice Over Coordinators - Becky Allen (DMG), Amanda Wyatt (DMG)
Casting - Carole J. Ruggier, Green Planning, Ken Production, Arts Vision Inc.
Recording Studio - Burnish Stone Recording Studios, One Voice Komazawa Recording Studios, Design Music Group, Sound Arts Recording Studio, Yamadub Studio
Background Illustrations - Shiko Tanaka
Special thanks to: Tomoka Maeda, Eriko Maeda, John Griffin (Dolby Laboratories), Hisayuki Nakayama (Dolby Laboratories), RNC Vocal & Dance School, and all Capcom Sound Staff, Chong Chi Fung, Mak Wing Keung
General Producer - Shinji Mikami
Producer - Atsushi Inaba
Director - Hifumi Kouno (Nude Maker)
Credits: Manual Design - Hanshaw Ink & Image
Marketing - Todd Thorson, Sean Mylett, Bonnie Scott, Robert Johnson, Nathan Williams
Creative Services - Jennifer Deauville, Marion Clifford
Package Design - Michiko Morita Wang, Jamie Gibson
Translation - Ben Judd
PR - Melinda Mongelluzzo, Matt Atwood, Carrie Root
Special thanks to:
Tom Shiraiwa, Bill Gardner, Robert Lindsey, Customer Service
