Azure Striker Gunvolt, also called Armed Blue: Gunvolt in Japan, is a side-scrolling action game made and released by Inti Creates. It first came out for Nintendo 3DS through the eShop in August 2014. Later versions of the game were released for Windows in 2015, Nintendo Switch in 2017, PlayStation 4 in 2020, and Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S in 2022. The game uses gameplay similar to Mega Man Zero but adds new features, such as Gunvolt’s ability to "tag" enemies and attack multiple enemies at once, making the game more complex.
The story takes place in a futuristic world where humans live alongside beings called "adepts." Gunvolt, a powerful adept, leaves his organization after discovering a failed assassination attempt. He becomes a freelance agent and tries to stop the Sumeragi Group, a peacekeeping group that secretly harms many adepts.
Mighty Gunvolt, a game that combines elements from Mighty No. 9 and Gal Gun, was released on the same day as Azure Striker Gunvolt. A sequel called Mighty Gunvolt Burst came out in 2017. A direct sequel to Azure Striker Gunvolt, called Azure Striker Gunvolt 2, was released in 2016. A spin-off focusing on the character Copen, named Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX, was released in 2019. It had a sequel, Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX 2, in 2022. The most recent version, Azure Striker Gunvolt 3, was released in 2022 for Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and PC.
Gameplay
Azure Striker Gunvolt is a side-scrolling action platform game, similar to the Mega Man series, including the original series, Mega Man X, Mega Man Zero, and Mega Man ZX. The player controls Gunvolt, who can jump, dash, and use a gun that fires special bullets. These bullets "tag" enemies, allowing Gunvolt's electric fields to track them. Hitting an enemy with multiple tags increases the damage Gunvolt can deal to that enemy. The player's actions are limited by an energy bar that decreases when using electric fields, performing extra movements like double-jumping or air dashing, or being hit by enemies. When the energy bar is empty, Gunvolt enters an "Overheat" state and cannot use his special abilities or defend himself until the bar refills.
Gameplay requires players to use skill and technique to complete stages. While finishing stages is possible, the game includes a ranking system and optional challenges. A "chain" system increases the player's score as long as they avoid enemy attacks. Extra points are earned by defeating enemies in the air or defeating multiple enemies at once. The game also includes a system where players create and equip items, which is important for reaching the game's true ending.
Gunvolt can use special skills called Offensive Skills to attack enemies or heal himself. Each boss also has their own Offensive Skills, which activate when their health drops below a certain level or, in the case of Elise, when one of her halves is defeated before the other. Talking to Joule in Gunvolt's apartment between stages increases the chance of being revived by Lumen during gameplay, which gives Gunvolt unlimited energy but results in a higher stage ranking. Gunvolt can also level up by earning experience from defeating specific enemies.
Plot
Azure Striker Gunvolt is set in a near-future world where some people, called "adepts," have developed special abilities known as "septimal powers." These abilities allow adepts to perform superhuman actions, such as flying, using powerful energy weapons, and controlling elements like fire, water, and electricity. The world is at peace because of a large corporation called the Sumeragi Group. However, Sumeragi secretly controls and experiments on adepts. Gunvolt, a highly skilled adept with the power to create electrical fields, works for an organization called QUILL, which aims to expose and stop Sumeragi's hidden goals.
The game begins with Gunvolt assigned to assassinate an adept named Lumen. He is told that Lumen can control other adepts through her singing and is considered dangerous. However, Gunvolt learns that Lumen is a special version of a young girl named Joule, who is being held captive by Sumeragi's scientists. Unable to kill her, Gunvolt rescues Joule and decides to leave QUILL to protect her. He becomes a freelance agent but still takes jobs for QUILL occasionally.
Six months later, Gunvolt is asked by Moniqa, his former QUILL handler, to investigate and eliminate several Sumeragi agents. These agents are also adepts, but their powers are fueled by strange weapons called "Glaives," which contain their septimal essences. Each agent represents one of the Seven Deadly Sins:
– Merak, lazy and unenthusiastic, can bend space for attacks.
– Jota, proud, controls light.
– Viper, loud and violent, controls fire and is jealous of Gunvolt for Joule.
– Carerra uses magnetic fists and waves to pull enemies close before destroying them with a powerful pulse.
– Elise has two conflicting personalities and can raise the dead.
– Stratos, addicted to drugs, controls swarms of insects.
– Zonda, driven by carnal desires, attacks Gunvolt's friend Zeno but is seemingly killed by Copen, a human who hates adepts and uses a gun that suppresses their powers.
After defeating the Sumeragi agents, Gunvolt's apartment is invaded, and Joule is kidnapped by a resurrected Merak. Gunvolt pursues Merak, defeats him, and travels to a Sumeragi space platform. Along the way, he fights resurrected agents, including Stratos, Jota, and Viper. He later discovers that Elise's third, hidden personality caused the agents' resurrection. This personality is killed by Copen, and Gunvolt subdues him. Gunvolt then confronts Sumeragi's leader, a young psychic adept named Nova, who uses Lumen in battle before merging with Joule and three Glaives to transform into a monstrous creature. Gunvolt defeats Nova and escapes with Joule.
In the initial ending, Gunvolt meets Asimov, his former QUILL leader, who offers him and Joule new roles in QUILL. Asimov reveals his plan to use Lumen and a Sumeragi satellite to destroy humanity as revenge for suppressing adepts. Gunvolt refuses, and Asimov shoots him and Joule, leaving them for dead.
However, if Gunvolt is wearing a special pendant made by Joule, the initial ending is revealed as a dream. In the true ending, Gunvolt is rescued by Lumen just before dying. He finds Joule's lifeless body and learns that she sacrificed her physical form by merging her mind with Lumen and then with Gunvolt's septimal energy to save him. This act greatly increases Gunvolt's power. Gunvolt later confronts and kills Asimov, who warns him that he will never escape conflict. Asimov dies from his wounds. In the end, Gunvolt is found by Zeno and Moniqa, who discover Asimov's body and a heartbroken, wounded Gunvolt, who walks away alone into the morning light.
Development
Azure Striker Gunvolt was created by Inti Creates, a Japanese video game company that also made the Mega Man Zero series, Mega Man ZX, and the games Mega Man 9 and Mega Man 10. Players who bought the game when it first came out received a free download for another game called Mighty Gunvolt.
In 2015, on March 5, Inti Creates released an update for the game on the Nintendo eShop. This update corrected mistakes in the game’s dialogue, fixed errors in the game, allowed players to move save data from the demo version to the full version, added features only available on the New Nintendo 3DS, and included new or updated content.
A version of the game for Windows was released in August 2015. A physical copy, named Azure Striker Gunvolt: Striker Pack, which included both Azure Striker Gunvolt and its sequel, Azure Striker Gunvolt 2, was released in Japan on September 30, 2016. Yacht Club Games released this version in North America on October 4, 2016. The Striker Pack was later released for Nintendo Switch in August 2017 and for PlayStation 4 on April 23, 2020. An update for the eShop version of the first game added voiceovers from the Striker Pack and used the updated translation from the Steam version. However, these changes have not been added to other versions of the game, and Inti Creates has not yet provided any comments about this situation. A separate version for Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S was announced and released on June 29, 2022.
Reception
Azure Striker Gunvolt received mostly positive reviews and sold more than 90,000 copies six months after its release. Players praised the game's artwork and gameplay, though some noted that its story was similar to the Mega Man series. In March 2015, Inti Creates reported that the game had sold 100,000 copies. By March 2016, sales reached over 150,000 units worldwide, and the company announced a presentation about its sequel on April 26, 2016. In May 2016, Inti Creates stated that sales had reached 160,000 copies. By May 1, 2017, the game had sold more than 180,000 copies. On September 7, 2017, Inti Creates announced that sales of the 3DS version had reached 250,000 copies.
Legacy
On February 27, 2015, Inti Creates said a sequel was being made. Azure Striker Gunvolt 2 was released digitally on Nintendo eShop in Japan in August 2016 and in North America in September 2016. Later, the game was made available on other platforms. The third main game, Azure Striker Gunvolt 3, was announced in 2020. It was released for Nintendo Switch on July 28, 2022, for Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S on August 2, 2022, for Windows on October 13, 2022, and for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 on December 15, 2022. A spin-off game called Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX, which focuses on the character Copen, was released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Windows on September 26, 2019. It was delayed for Xbox One until December 19, 2019. The second game in the spin-off series, Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX 2, was released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Windows on January 27, 2022. Copen also appeared as a playable downloadable character in the game COGEN: Sword of Rewind, which was released on the same date as Luminous Avenger iX 2.
Mighty Gunvolt, a retro-style shooter featuring characters from Gunvolt and Mighty No. 9, was released in 2014. A sequel, Mighty Gunvolt Burst, was released in 2017. Gunvolt also appears as a playable guest character in several other games, including Runbow, Blaster Master Zero, Indie Pogo, and Blade Strangers.
Anime adaptation
An original anime series was announced by Inti Creates at the Anime Expo 2016 convention in Los Angeles, California on July 3, 2016. Yoshinori Odaka directed and produced the series, with animation provided by LandQ Studios. Shigeru Murakoshi wrote the scripts, and Masakazu Sunagawa designed the characters. The series was planned to release in 2016 but was delayed until 2017. It was finally released worldwide on the Nintendo eShop on February 9, 2017, along with an English dubbed version. Peter von Gomm provided the English voice for the character Copen.