Strider (CPS-1)

Main	Development	Reception	Gallery

Strider
Vital Statistics
Genre	Platform action, "Stunt Action"
Developer	Capcom
Publisher	Capcom
Release Date(s)	March 7, 1989 March 7, 1989 Early 1989
Key Staff
Team	First Planning Room
Designer(s)	Kouichi Yotsui
Producer(s)	Tokuro Fujiwara Shinichi Yoshimoto
Composer(s)	Junko Tamiya
Artist(s)	Kouichi Yotsui (illustrations)
Ports and Other Releases
Ports	Amiga, Atari ST, Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, PC-DOS, Mega Drive, Master System, Sharp X68000 PC Engine, PlayStation, mobile phones, iOS, Android
Compilations	Capcom Classics Collection Volume 2/Remixed Capcom Home Arcade Capcom Arcade Stadium
Other Releases	Wii Virtual Console PlayStation Network Nintendo Switch Online Retro consoles

Strider, known in Japanese as Strider Hiryû (ストライダー飛竜), is the first game in the Strider series, a side-scrolling action platformer released by Capcom for their CP System (CPS-1) arcade board in 1989. The player assumes the role of Hiryu through five expansive stages (Kazakh, Siberia, The Flying Battleship Balrog, the Amazon and The Third Moon), overcoming obstacles and eliminating hordes of enemies to reach each stage's end boss. Vibrant, colorful graphics and a memorable soundtrack accompany the action at all times. The player advances by following any path but a straight line, facing both military forces and hired assassins out for Hiryu's head.

Story

In the year 2048, also known as "Meio Year One" (冥王暦元年), the world is ruled by a mysterious outerworldly being known as Grandmaster Meio, who holds control of all technology and military on Earth and has created his personal base on an artificial satellite known as The Third Moon. Meanwhile, the oppressive regime of the Kazakh administration, themselves servants of Meio, has led to the creation of rebel forces, who clash with government troops in conflicts all over the world.

Eventually, these rebel forces sought out the services of a clandestine group known as the Striders, who were experts of espionage and assassination. The dangerous and most important mission, to eliminate Grandmaster Meio, is given to their youngest and most talented Special A-Class member, Hiryu.

With the destiny of humanity in his hands, Hiryu makes his move and infiltrates Russia's Imperial Capital and center of Meio's power, the Kazakh Federation.

Cast

Hiryu

Strobaya

General Mikiel

Solo

Kuniang
Tong Pooh

Captain Beard Jr.

Amazoness

Grandmaster Meio

Gameplay

Controls

Strider has a simple layout: an eight-way joystick and two buttons, one each for attacking and jumping. The player has total freedom of movement, being able to jump in any angle and direction. Hiryu is very quick and easy to handle. By holding a direction before jumping, the player triggers cartwheel jumps to leap farther and move faster. Hiryu's most recognizable feature, however, is his ability to stick to any surface, using a sickle to cling onto walls and ceilings. The player can cling to any surface and freely move along its length; pressing up while clinging below a platform will flip Hiryu up onto its top.

Hiryu's health is represented as a three-unit lifebar positioned at the top left of the screen. Each unit absorbs one instance of damage. The player's number of lives and score are marked below and above the lifebar, respectively. A clock in the top center of the screen shows the time remaining for the player to complete the current section of the stage. Each stage has certain checkpoint areas where the timer resets and where the player respawns after losing a life.

Hiryu's Cypher slash.

Hiryu's primary way to attack is his Cypher, a sword-like weapon that, when swung, creates a plasma energy wave which damages on contact. The player can attack from any position (crouching, jumping, while clinging off ceilings or walls), as well as continuously by rapidly pressing the attack button.

Hiryu's other abilities include:

Slide - By holding the stick down and pressing jump, the player can make Hiryu perform a quick sliding attack. This will eliminate enemies as well as going under certain hazards like projectiles.

Cartwheel Jump - By moving left or right and pressing the jump button, the player makes Hiryu perform a higher and longer jump that sends him flying forward, as he turns his body like a wheel. Also known as the Rotating Jump Kick, since the tip of Hiryu's feet can damage enemies on the way down.

Big Jump - Known as "Acceleration Jump" in the NES Strider. When Hiryu runs down an inclined slope, he speeds up. By taking advantage of this acceleration, the player can jump farther than normal. This ability is used sparingly; the most memorable time being during the downhill "Big Run" section of Siberia.

Power-ups

Several items can be found in each stage hidden within special item containers which are lying around or carried by flying enemies. Enemies do not leave items after being destroyed, and not all containers hold items: these will instead grant either 200 or 400 points after being opened.

	Item Capsule (アイテムカプセル) Item Box (アイテムボックス)	Containers that are found throughout the stages, they hold power-ups or score points. They can be found either on the ground or carried around by the Flying Mosqueman enemy.
	"Hi" Kanji Mark (「飛」マーク)	Restores a life unit.
	"Ryu" Kanji Mark (「竜」マーク)	Upgrades the lifebar by 1 unit. Maximum possible is 5 units.
	"Hiryu" Mark (「飛竜」マーク)	Restores all life units.
	Cypher (サイファー)	Extends the Cypher's wave range for 100 uses.
	Invincibility (無敵)	Grants Hiryu temporary immunity. Once picked up, Hiryu will glow gold and leave afterimages as he moves. The invincibility lasts 15 seconds.
	1UP Hiryu (1UP飛竜)	Grants an extra continue. This item is only found in the 2nd stage, Siberia.
	Option (オプション)	Once picked up, an Option A will follow Hiryu. Up to two Option A can be active at the same time, finding a third one will yield an Option B instead. Option B lasts a short time, after which it reverts back to the Option As.
	Panda (パンダ)	A bonus item that grants 400 points. This item is only found in the 3rd stage, the Battleship Balrog. It's hidden behind a stack of bullets and disappears shortly after being uncovered.

Hiryu in Stage 1, accompanied by two Options.

One of this game's unique features is the use of helper robots, known as the Options. The Options serve as support for Hiryu by attacking any approaching enemy. There are three types of Options: Option A (Dipodal Saucer), a small bipedal robot which moves around Hiryu and attacks with ring-shaped lasers; Option B (Terapodal Robo-Panther), a Saber toothed tiger-shaped robot which remains at Hiryu's side and lunges at approaching enemies; and Option C (Robot Hawk), which circles the air above Hiryu and dives down to destroy airborne enemies. Except for Option C, the Options are connected with one of Hiryu's life units, recognized by it changing from green to red (Option A) or yellow (Option B), and are destroyed if said life unit is lost.

Credits

Position	In-Game	Full Name
OBJECT DESIGNER	S.THING♥	Shinji Sakashita (坂下眞司 Sakashita Shinji)
	TAKE.PONG
	TISSHU
	MAKIZOE
	TERY
	TERABO
	HISABO
	KURIBO	Akemi Kurihara (栗原明美 Kurihara Akemi)
	KOMSAN
	GIN
SCROLL DESIGNER	TEIKI
	RIE.POO
	ZIGGY	Yoko Sakamoto
	RINMA
	MARILYN
	MORILYN
	KINTARO
SOFT PROGRAMMER	T.MARUCHI	Toshihiro Yamauchi
	TAE 25OR	Tae Komatsu (小松多恵 Komatsu Tae)
	MIKKUN	Miki Toshihiko
	TADAKEN	Tadashi Kuwana (桑名正 Kuwana Tadashi)
	KANEKON	Kiyomi Kaneko (金子清巳 Kaneko Kiyomi)
	DOROMPA.E
	KA~KUN.Y
	CHECK.MASA
PLANNING ADVISER	ARTHUR	Tokuro Fujiwara (藤原得郎 Fujiwara Tokuro)
	YOSSAN	Shinichi Yoshimoto　(吉本伸一 Yoshimoto Shinichi)
GAME PLANNER	ISUKE	Kouichi Yotsui (四井浩一 Yotsui Kouichi)
T.F'.S FIRST PLANNING ROOM (Tokuro Fujiwara's First Planning Room)

• Uncredited music composer: Junko Tamiya (民谷淳子 Tamiya Junko)
• Akiko Nagashima (長嶋昭子 Nagashima Akiko) and Chieko Ryugo (立古智恵子 Ryūgo Chieko) are both credited alongside Yotsui in the staff roll of the Capcom Game Syndrome walkthrough video. They are listed as A.Nagashima and T.Ryugo respectively.