Virtual On
Encyclopedia
is a series of video games created by Sega AM-3
(Amusement Research and Development Department 3, later renamed Hitmaker). The original series was first published for arcades in February 1995. The game features fast, action-oriented gameplay requiring quick reflexes. It has seen four iterations to date and has been ported
to several video game console
s.
The mecha
designs for all installments of the series were created by robot designer Hajime Katoki
. Related merchandise released for sale include plastic models
, original soundtracks, trading figurines
and audio drama CDs
.
Cyber Troopers Virtual-On (Virtual-On: Operation Moongate)
Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Oratorio Tangram
Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Force
Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Marz
The Virtuaroids Temjin 747J, Ahparmd the HA-T and Fei-Yen the Knight from the Virtual-On series appeared in the Japanese, turn-based strategy game Super Robot Wars Alpha 3
. This was the first occasion of characters from a video game series, owned neither by Banpresto
nor their parent company Namco Bandai
, appearing in a Super Robot Wars game. Of note about the game is that if the other pilots in the game remove their suits, approach the Virtuaroids and try to speak to their pilots, the Virtuaroids would say that they were being remote-piloted by pilots in another plane or dimension.
General resources
Sega AM-3
Sega AM3 is a division of Japanese video game developer Sega Corporation. The development team has produced some popular arcade game and video games, including Virtual On, NASCAR Arcade, Crazy Taxi, Astro Boy: Omega Factor , Virtua Tennis, and the Initial D Arcade Stage series.-History:In 2000, as...
(Amusement Research and Development Department 3, later renamed Hitmaker). The original series was first published for arcades in February 1995. The game features fast, action-oriented gameplay requiring quick reflexes. It has seen four iterations to date and has been ported
Porting
In computer science, porting is the process of adapting software so that an executable program can be created for a computing environment that is different from the one for which it was originally designed...
to several video game console
Video game console
A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...
s.
The mecha
Mecha
A mech , is a science fiction term for a large walking bipedal tank or robot, including ones on treads and animal shapes.-Characteristics:...
designs for all installments of the series were created by robot designer Hajime Katoki
Hajime Katoki
is a popular Japanese mecha designer. A member of the studio Sunrise, he is highly noted for his work on the Gundam series as well as his work on video games, such as the Virtual On series and Policenauts.-Biography:...
. Related merchandise released for sale include plastic models
Plamo
refers to the hobby of plastic modeling, and to the products of this hobby. In the West, the term is most often used in reference to fantasy, anime, or manga-related objects and characters, as this type of modelling has had a proportionately larger contingency in Japan than in the US...
, original soundtracks, trading figurines
Gashapon
is a Bandai brand trademark widely used throughout the world for their capsule toys. It is also referred to as ." Both gashapon and gachapon are Japanese onomatopoeia, made up of two sounds: "gasha" or "gacha" for the turning of a crank on a toy vending machine, and "pon" for the sound of the toy...
and audio drama CDs
Radio drama in Japan
Radio drama in Japan has a history as long as that of radio broadcasting in that country, which began in 1925. Some consider the first Japanese radio drama to have been "" which was a radio broadcast of a stage play. Others consider the Japanese translation of Richard Hughes's "Danger" or to be...
.
Games
The games in the series are as follows.Cyber Troopers Virtual-On (Virtual-On: Operation Moongate)
- Released between 1995 and 1996 for arcades, Sega SaturnSega SaturnThe is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console that was first released by Sega on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America, and July 8, 1995 in Europe...
, and PC. The Saturn version of the game is one of few games that supports the SEGA Net on the console. It also features the Sega Twin Stick Peripheral. The game features M.S.B.S. v3.3 (Arcade), v3.3s (Sega Saturn) and v.3.3w (Windows PC), among others.
Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Oratorio Tangram
Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Oratorio Tangram
is a 1998 Japanese Sega Model 3 arcade game that was later ported to the Sega NAOMI arcades and then later for the Dreamcast home console in both Japan in 1999 & America in 2000 . Oratorio Tangram is a sequel to the 1995 video game Cyber Troopers Virtual-On: Operation Moongate...
- Released between 1998 and 2000 for arcades and Sega Dreamcast, with special peripheral device, the Twin Sticks, and in 2009 for Microsoft Xbox 360Xbox 360The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
's Xbox Live ArcadeXbox Live ArcadeXbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
service. Very few VOOT arcade units made it outside of JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. The USUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
release of VOOT on Dreamcast had many features such as Cable Versus and Custom Virtuaroid locked for unknown reasons, and the game was not released in Europe. Later versions for the arcade incorporated a VMU slot for imported colours created on the Japanese version of VOOT on Sega Dreamcast. The game features M.S.B.S. v5.2 (Early Arcade), v5.4 (Arcade), v.5.45 (Sega Dreamcast), v5.6 (Rare Bonus disc addon) and 5.66 (Late Arcade and Xbox 360 XBLA).
Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Force
Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Force
is a 3D Mecha fighting game developed by Hitmaker and published by Sega. It was released in Japanese arcades only on the Sega Hikaru arcade system board in 2001. Following its initial release, there was no home console port of the game due to the Arcade Board's superior graphical capabilities...
- Released exclusively in Japanese arcades in 2001. It was the first game in the series to be released after AM3 was renamed to Hitmaker, and features a new system of gameplay where players are teamed up in pairs to oppose another pair, with a leader/subordinate ruleset. The machines use a card system found in other arcade machines to keep player data. The game features M.S.B.S. v7.5, v7.6 and v7.7. The game is later released on the Xbox 360Xbox 360The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
on December 22, 2010.
Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Marz
Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Marz
was released exclusively on the PlayStation 2 in North America and Japan, with no European release. Marz is designed on the basic gameplay rules of Virtual-On Force, and uses most of the assets from Force, ranging from the stages down to the virtuaroids. It can be considered a spiritual home...
- Released in JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 2003, exclusively for the PlayStation 2PlayStation 2The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
. It uses the VO: Force rules for gameplay and graphics, and is the first Virtual On game to have a single player story mode, which follows on with the Virtual-On universe. As the PlayStation 2 has no official Twin Sticks, the game's controls rely on the PS2's DualShockDualShockThe DualShock is a line of vibration-feedback gamepads by Sony for the PlayStation, PlayStation 2, and PlayStation 3 video game consoles. The DualShock was introduced in Japan in late 1997, and launched in the North American market in May 1998...
controllers. The game features M.S.B.S. v8.5.
The Virtuaroids Temjin 747J, Ahparmd the HA-T and Fei-Yen the Knight from the Virtual-On series appeared in the Japanese, turn-based strategy game Super Robot Wars Alpha 3
Super Robot Wars Alpha 3
for the PlayStation 2 is the last game in the Alpha series. The 3rd Super Robot Wars Alpha, or simply, Alpha 3, contains one of the largest casts to ever be placed together within a Super Robot Wars game...
. This was the first occasion of characters from a video game series, owned neither by Banpresto
Banpresto
is a Japanese toy company, best known in America for game development, headquartered in the Shinagawa Seaside West Building in Shinagawa, Tokyo. It was founded April 1977 as Hoei Sangyo, Co. Ltd. The company was renamed Coreland in 1982, and during the 1980s it worked mainly as a subcontractor for...
nor their parent company Namco Bandai
Namco Bandai
, also known as the Bandai Namco Group, is a Japanese holding company formed from the merger of Namco and Bandai. It has interests in toys, video games and arcades, anime, and amusement parks. The new entity was founded on September 29, 2005...
, appearing in a Super Robot Wars game. Of note about the game is that if the other pilots in the game remove their suits, approach the Virtuaroids and try to speak to their pilots, the Virtuaroids would say that they were being remote-piloted by pilots in another plane or dimension.
Audio drama
Little is known about these drama CDs because there has been no translation or transcript in the English speaking community as of ever.- Cyber Troopers Virtual On Counterpoint 009A Episode #16. The S.H.B.V.D. (Special Heavy Battle Virtuaroid Division), including Black Onyx and Mimmy Salpen's search for the original Fei-Yen. Track Listing:
-
- • 01. fragment
- • 02. prologue
- • 03. intermission_1
- • 04. black onyx
- • 05. fade to black
- • 06. formidable tolerance
- • 07. belgdor corporate anthem
- • 08. on X-band
- • 09. procession
- • 10. intermission_2
- • 11. cyber imaginary space
- • 12. magical wonderland
- • 13. m.s.b.s. Ver.3.01
- • 14. intermission_3
- • 15. harmless harmony
- • 16. my sweet chocolate
- • 17. dislocation
- • 18. am r&d dept. #3
- • 19. burned by the fire
- • 20. conversation piece
- • 21. another future
- • 22. delta junction
- • 23. intermission _ 4
- • 24. maximum momentum
- • 25. party a go go
- • 26. love will tear them apart ...
- • 27. epilogue
- • 28. absent lovers
- Cyber Troopers Virtual On Cyber Net Rhapsody Episode#14. A more comedy-oriented audio drama, Cyber Net Rhapsody Episode#14 focuses on a pair of Virtual-On players who find themselves transported into the actual game, and stars the original Fei-Yen unit. It features Fei-Yen singing various songs and orchestral remixes. Track Listing:
- • 01. Next ～壊れかけたドアの向こう～
- • 02. D_Sequence #1
- • 03. main title
- • 04. D_Sequence #2
- • 05. 危機～逃亡
- • 06. D_Sequence #3
- • 07. Theme of Fei-Yen
- • 08. D_Sequence #4
- • 09. Love14
- • 10. D_Sequence #5
- • 11. 戦闘
- • 12. D_Sequence #6
- • 13. Believe
- • 14. D_Sequence #7
- • 15. 大団円
- • 16. Appendix
Overview
Virtual-On features mechs called Virtuaroids, or VRs, that are large robots the player controls in battles against enemy VRs, and its twin-stick control, in which two joysticks, complemented by an array of controls, are used by players. Additionally, in the plot of the first game, Cyber Troopers Virtual-On (Virtual-On: Operation Moongate), the Virtual-On's arcade machine is actually a remote operation device sent from the future in search of "Virtual-On Positive" (VO+) pilots.External links
OfficialGeneral resources
- Virtual-Century A fan-created database of Virtuaroids and general storyline information, taken from Sega's official guidebooks.