Play Assault Suits Valken (Japan) [En by Aeon Genesis v1.0] Online

Game Overview

Assault Suits Valken (or Cybernator if you grew up with the Western release) is one of those SNES games that makes you wonder how they crammed so much mech-action goodness into a 16-bit cartridge. You're not just controlling a robot—you're piloting a clunking, heavily armed death machine that feels like it weighs ten tons. The controls have this perfect heft to them; boosting forward sends you skidding, and firing the shoulder cannon actually knocks you back a little. It's the little details.

At first glance, it looks like a standard side-scroller, but there's way more going on. You'll duck behind cover to avoid homing missiles, juggle between four different weapons (the spread shot is my go-to), and even get these cinematic mid-mission briefings that make the war story actually matter. The sprite work is insane—watch as buildings crumble when you accidentally (or not-so-accidentally) rocket them into rubble.

Honestly, it's aged better than most games from that era. If you missed this back in the day, now's the time to fix that.