The 94-GM2 Stormbringer is the name given towards a series of transformable spacecrafts that serve as the main protagonists of the 1992 PC Engine shoot 'em up Psychic Storm. The crafts were developed by the Space Army as a countermeasure to stop an alien being known as "The Thing" from devouring the Solar System. Each individual craft is flown by its own pilot, and has its own unique arsenal of weapons.
History[]
In the space calendar year of 0092, humanity became in engaged by a crisis that was never seen before. One by one, colonized planets across the Milky Way galaxy suddenly lost communication, and the Space Army's main battleship was suddenly sunk by an unidentified enemy that resembled a living planet. The creature, which the humans dubbed "The Thing" began to devour numerous colonies across the galaxy, all the while multiplying into numerous smaller "Things" that accreted this process. The Space Army was no match to this formidable enemy and was forced into retreating. Eventually, "The Thing" made its way towards the Solar System. Knowing that the main colony of Earth would soon be its victim, the Space Army developed a new weapon that would hopefully stop "The Thing" in its tracks. Codenamed the 94-GM2 Stormbringer, the craft was built using data gathered regarding "The Thing"'s strengths and potential weaknesses, and was forged to contain a destructive power known as the "Psychic Storm", which allow the craft to transform into an animal form and unleash its maximum potential in power to destroy "The Thing"'s forces. Four pilots were selected based on high marks in their aptitude tests, and each one was assigned to a different Stormbringer craft.
Once launched, the four crafts were sent to New Hong Kong City where they battled the incoming invasion led by a strange plant-like monster called the Green Gabol and destroyed it. With the initial invasion of Earth halted, the four crafts then flew towards the Galilean Moon of Europa where they encounter more of "The Thing"'s forces and destroyed there commander Double Jaws. Afterwards, the four Stormbringer crafts traveled to three different planets called Ulanos, Ul'Glace, and Trident. At each one, they continued to engage against "The Thing"'s forces, along the way they are "devoured" by an unidentified enemy known simply as "X" and are forced to escape the alien by destroying it from the inside. Once all the planets are dealt with, the Stormbringers make their way towards the final alien base, where "The Thing" awaits, after battling through the last of the enemy's force, they confront "The Thing" who attacks the team with brutal force. The Stormbringers manage to incapacitate the formidable foe, but in order to destroy it, they must travel inside the alien's body. After battling through numerous obstacles in the form of floating tumors, the crafts reach the brain of "The Thing" which is attached to three fused heads. "The Thing", who is unable to fight back, is then easily destroyed by the Stormbringers.
Following "The Thing"'s destruction, Lieutenant Alexander F. Lin, the leader of the team files a mission log, stating that from their findings, "The Thing" was in fact the mother host that had managed to produced multiple smaller "Things" over the course of hundreds of millions of years. However, thanks to their efforts, "The Thing" and its offspring were completely eradicated by their efforts. Alex hints that while unconfirmed, there could potentially be more "Things" across the galaxy (and possibly the Universe) which have yet to be dealt with, but hopes this theory isn't true. With the mission log over, the four crafts return to Earth.
Weapons[]
Each individual Stormbringer craft is armed with a different load out of primary, secondary, and "psychic attack" weapons, giving each craft a unique battle performance in combat. All weapons can be upgraded by means of obtaining a blue capsule power-up that is dropped when flashing enemies are destroyed. The power-up will randomly upgrade either the primary or secondary weapon by one level, or add a decent charge to the psychic attack meter represented below the health meter; this meter will also gradually charge overtime on its own. When the "psychic attack" meter is filled, the craft can unleash a smart bomb-like attack. The crafts can also perform a unique transformation called a "Psychic Storm" at certain times when the "psychic attack" is filled and the craft stops firing, this will cause the crafts to transform into a animalistic state that allows them to fire a more powerful weapon load out for a limited duration. During this time, a new power-up in the form of a grey orb with a yellow arrow will drop from random enemies, which replenishes a portion of the "Psychic Storm" meter depending on how many arrows are present on the power-up. Getting hit in this state reduces the meter, and once it's depleted, the craft will revert back to its normal state. This ability can be set to Auto at the start of the game, which will activate the "Psychic Storm" when the ship's health falls below a certain threshold, regardless of the "psychic attack" charge.
Duke in Scarlet[]
- Wave Shot - fires a Vulcan spread that deals moderate damage, when upgraded, the number of shots fired as well as the spread itself will increase.
- Storming Missile - fires a pair of missiles that travel forward with a slight shift away from the craft that explode upon hitting any enemy. When upgraded, the number of missiles fired will increase to a maximum of six.
- Explosion - the Psychic Attack ability which when activated, creates a large ring of fire around the craft that destroys all small enemies and projectiles whilst doing moderate damage larger ones. When upgraded, the damage increases.
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- Psychic Storm - upon activation, the Duke of Scarlet will transform into the Scarlet Papillon, which will fire a series of wave shots in four directions. These shots deal high damage as well as destroy enemy projectiles.
Blue Shooting Star[]
- Iono Laser - fires a penetrating laser forwards, the laser has above-average firepower, but lack a defensive spread. When upgraded, the width and damage of the laser increases. It is based on the Cyclone Laser from Gradius.
- Crack Shot - fires a volley of cone-shaped rockets that travel at a 45 degree spread to the sides of the craft, they have a fast movement speed, but a short range. When upgraded, the overall range and the number of rockets fired will increase to a maximum of six.
- Psychic-Smasher - the Psychic Attack ability which when activated, creates a bright flash that covers the entirety of field of vision, destroying all small crafts and projectiles instantly, but deals very little damage to larger ones.
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- Psychic Storm - upon activation, the Blue Shooting Star will transform into the Blue Scorpion, which will fire a pair of lightning shots that deal very high damage as well as penetrate through all enemies.
Pilates of Violet[]
- Hell Flame - fires a long flame shot forwards which can penetrate through any enemy, but has a somewhat slow fire rate. When upgraded, the length and width of the shot will increase, allowing it to deal more overall damage to anything it hits.
- Spread Nuclear - deploys a pair of spread bombs at a 45 degree angle to the left and right of the craft which travel a short distance before exploding. The resulting explosion will deal constant contact damage to any enemy unfortunate enough to move within the explosion's radius for its duration. When upgraded, the number of bombs fired will increase to a maximum of four.
- P-Thunder - the Psychic Attack ability which when activated, fires a series of lighting bolts directly in front of the craft, destroying all small enemies whilst doing heavy damage to larger ones simultaneously. It however cannot destroy enemy projectiles.
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- Psychic Storm - upon activation, the Pirates of Violet will transform into the Purple Hedgehog, which will fire a six vulcan shots at a somewhat fast rate.
The Black Widow[]
- Psycho Shell - fires a beam in front of the craft that deals continuous damage to any thing it hits, it has the highest damage output of all the primary weapons, but in turn has a short range. When upgraded, the width and length of the beam will increase, allowing it reach further enemies.
- Jay Walk Missile - fires a pair of orbs that track down the nearest enemies. They have penetrating power and have adequate accuracy. When upgraded, the number of homing orbs fired will increase to a maximum of eight. They are based on the Hunter from Thunder Force.
- Black Hole - the Psychic Attack ability which when activated, creates a black hole that swallows all small enemies and projectiles instantly, whilst dealing moderate damage against larger ones.
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- Psychic Storm - upon activation, The Black Widow will transform into the Black Crab, which will fire a chargeable orb shot that deals damage ranging from moderate to very high depending on the duration of the charge. The claws' position will determine the aim of the shots' movement. They can also deal contact damage and block enemy projectiles. The charged shots are based on the Energy Laser from Gradius.
All[]
- Energy - though not a weapon, it is a vital power-up that replenishes the health meter of the Stormbringer crafts. Small power-ups will restore about 10% of the meter, whilst large ones will restore roughly half of it.
Gallery[]
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