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| Steambot Chronicles | |
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| Developer(s) | Irem Software Engineering |
| Publisher(s) |  Irem Atlus  505 Games |
| Released | June 30, 2005 June 23, 2006 October 13, 2006 October 19, 2006 |
| Genre | Action-Adventure Sandbox |
| Mode(s) | Single Player |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation 2 |
| Media | 1 × DVD-ROM |
Steambot Chronicles ( ポンコツ浪漫大活劇バンピートロット:Ponkotsu Roman Daikatsugeki Bumpy Trot?) is an action-adventure game for the PlayStation 2 that features a sandbox style of play. The game was developed by Irem Software Engineering in Japan and is published by Atlus. Irem later published a puzzle spin-off, Blocks Club with Bumpy Trot. A sequel, Bumpy Trot 2, has recently been announced and was shown at the 2006 Tokyo Game Show.
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Storyline
The game begins by asking the player several personality questions. The effects of answering these questions include pricing of items in the game, affectiveness of items, and tweaks to Vanilla's personality. Afterwards, a scene takes place where the main character, Vanilla Bean, wakes up on a plank of wood from a beached shipwreck, to find a girl named Coriander (nicknamed Connie by her friends) standing over him. Vanilla has amnesia after the shipwreck in which he was involved, so remembers absolutely nothing about himself. In fact, he only knows his own name because it was engraved on a harmonica he had on his person. At this point, the player can choose from a number of dialog options to speak to Connie, including friendly or hostile options. Though these different options have no long-term effects, they will influence how characters will react to you through the course of the cutscene. After a brief discussion, the player learns that Connie is gathering herbs to medicate her sickly mother, Rosemary, with whom she lives in her hometown of Nefroburg. Soon after, Vanilla spots a blue vehicle atop a nearby cliff. After the driver notices the pair looking towards him/her (the driver's identity is unknown for a large part of the story, and is one of the many plot points in the game), s/he uses a bazooka affixed to the vehicle to shoot another cliff, causing an avalanche of rocks to block the only exit from the beach, which is in a small rocky cove. At this point, Connie mentions that she must catch the last bus to her town, but obviously cannot do this if she is trapped on the beach. After searching through a small wooden beach house, which seems to hold bad memories for Connie, including an old photograph that shows her and two unknown other figures, Vanilla stumbles across an old run-down Trotmobile, a type of mecha resembling a bipedal automobile, which is the same sort of vehicle as that of their attacker. After reading the operation manual to the trotmobile, Vanilla manages to move the rubble and leave the beach. The pair then discover Connie's bus has already gone, so she asks Vanilla to drive her home.
On the way to Nefroburg, Vanilla and Connie are ambushed by a member of a local trotmobile-riding gang, The Killer Elephants. The player can choose from a number of dialog options after the hoodlum threatens Connie, including standing up for her, offering to leave her to the gangster in exchange for his safety, and proposing a cash bribe. No matter what option is chosen, the player will inevitably be forced to fight the hoodlum. After defeating him, the two drive to a nearby carpet mill so Connie can rejoin with her friends Basil and Marjoram, with whom she plays in a band. The two were apparently at the mill to fix their instruments for a show later in the evening. After being joined by Basil and Marjoram, the player continues on to Nefroburg. They encounter a large quadraped mechanical mobile fortress belonging to the aforementioned gang, The Killer Elephants. The fortress opens fire on your Trotmobile and you are left with no choice but to try to destroy it. This encounter could be looked upon as the game's first boss fight. After defeating the mechanical beast, you reach Nefroburg, and escort Connie home.
Character Names
Most of the characters' names are names of herbs, spices, flowers, or seasonings (Vanilla, Coriander, Dandelion, Basil, Rosemary, etc.). This is actually satired in an event where in Coriander's next door neighbor, Ms. Echinacea's room the player examines a number of jars containing a seasoning "or a person, it's hard to tell".
"Hot Cocoa"
One side quest in the game allows Vanilla to date one of three girls. If Vanilla "makes his move" on the girl, she'll ask him if he would like some "hot cocoa". This is a reference to (as well as a parody of) the Hot Coffee mod in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
Trotmobiles
The mechs, or "Trotmobiles" as they are called in the game, are the main meat of the game. In order to get from town to town near the beginning, the player must use his Trotmobile to traverse the countryside. The machine functions as more than a simple mode of transportation. Between towns, many other trotmobiles, many not really recognizable as such, are dispersed, such as the Desert Hornets' various models, the bandits outside of Happy Garland, and even the miners within the various ruins. The Trotmobile is also used to haul materials. When visiting an area such as a forest, there may be someone who will stock the players trotmobile with lumber, which can then be transported to someone who needs it, allowing a transaction for money to take place. Various back attachments are involved in this, such as a flatbed, carriage, basket, and a tank. Trotmobile battles are a core aspect of gameplay. An arena, dozens of parts, and multiple opponents allow players to compete in melee for cash about the course of the game. Parts may either be purchased from stores, found as a part of the story, or crafted from materials at city garages. Many styles can be created as well. Small trotmobiles are faster, but cannot carry as much weight, and as such are prone to low HP totals. The smaller models, involving smaller leg types and the Small to Medium bodies, are effective against larger opponents. Meanwhile, larger Trotmobiles are more heavy-duty, bestowing more HP while lowering speed. Due to the stronger leg units, and likely the Large frame used, some of the heaviest equipment can be used on larger frames.
Music
The role of music in Steambot Chronicles is almost as a chapter ender. An example would be that after the first series of events, which involves the meeting of Basil, Fennel, and the rest of the band, before the attack on Nefroburg they play the first song of the game. Eventually, the player is given the sheet music to the song, and from then on one can play for money. There are a multitude of instruments in the game, all ranging in difficulty. Many place the Trumpet at the bottom of the difficulty ladder because of the control scheme, and place the Accordion at the top, for the same reason. A few of the instruments are the before mentioned Accordion and Trumpet, Piano, Harmonica, and Guitar. Music also serves, as before stated, to pull in money. With sheet music in hand, one can play at any place you can stop your Trotmobile and hopefully attract a crowd. Depending on player performance, it is possible to earn a large amount of money.
Trivia
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The game contains a fair amount of references, both towards real life people, foods and other fictions.
- The Bloody Mantis member, '0007' (encountered in the villain storyline) can be seen as a reference to James Bond 007. Both are part of a secret group and wear black.
- One of the many film reels players can collect in the game say the movie is entitled "Welcome Back, Trotter", an obvious play on the name "Welcome Back, Kotter."
- The two brothers who wish to fly and use a Trotmobile are a humorous take on the Wright brothers.
- A discarded robot found near the GTW factory (in Happy Garland) greatly resemble the classic Sci-fi film rouge killer robots from the 60's.
- The artist 'Pablo' is a caricature of the famous real-life artist Pablo Picasso.
- One of the books the player can obtain in the game is "Trains for dimwits"; a homage to the "...for Dummies" help books.
- The "Ultimate Trotmobile Championship", or "UTC", is probably a reference to the "Ultimate Fighting Championship", or "UFC."
- The name of the band in the English localization is the "Garland Globetrotters", which is likely a reference to the comedy-based basketball team, the Harlem Globetrotters.
The game's localization was led by Tomm Hulett.
