NanoBreaker is a 2005 Hack and Slash action game made for the PlayStation 2 by Konami, and (according to GamesRadar), "the bloodiest game you never played".
Yes, really.
Wait, let us start over —
In an Alternate History version of 2001, nanotechnology has advanced to the point where it's integration is crucial to everyday lives. Headed by the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI), the inventions of various scientists, professors, and top experts in the nanotechnology field allows a breakthrough and revolution in industry, economy, businesses and various sectors.
Based in Nanotechnology Island near the coast of the United States, an island outpost where leading members of the nanotechnology research and their families lives, new tech are developed on a regular basis, improving the entire world, sector by sector. Concepts and ideas from the 20th Century which once existed only in fantasy, are now reality...
Two decades later, in 2021, the nanomachines unexpectedly malfunctions, starting from the headquarters in Nanotechnology Island. Infecting the island's inhabitants like a viral strain, civilains are forcefully converted into mechanical creatures called Orgamechs, with the nanomachines infecting humans, animals, insects and even plants. As the government had Nanotechnology Island sealed off, to prevent the viral strain from escaping from the island drastic measures needs to be taken. As such, a former soldier is called out of retirement.
The Player Character, Jake Warren, is an ex-commando and part of a Cyborg guerilla unit, reputed as "The Genocide Hero", who alongside his ex-comrade Keith Spencer are the only survivors of a war seven years prior which sees Jake's entire platoon, and numerous innocent civilains, killed. With Keith escaping and on the run, Jake was put to blame over the massacre which have him cryogenically frozen, until the present where he's revived. Sent to Nanotechnology Island, Jake unexpectedly meets his comrade, Keith, now working for an unknown villain seeking to take over the nanomachines.
When the world calls for a Genocide Hero...
- Absurdly Spacious Sewer: In order to infiltrate the Orgamech's underground quarters, Jake has to enter a massive sewer system filled with enemies. And tall enough for him to scale walls by jumping on platforms.
- A.I. Is a Crapshoot: The Nanomachines were created to improve technology, economy, businesses and daily lives, but an unexpected malfunction had them assimilating humans instead turning their victims into half-mechanical Orgamechs. Subverted by the revelation; it turns out General Raymond purposely had them sabotaged and instigated the infection manually.
- Airborne Mooks: The small Orgamech drones (which dies in one hit) and larger, insectoid Orgamechs as large as Jake himself (and are considerably tougher).
- Attack Drone: Small, hovering, Orgamech drones are enemies who hovers around trying to blast Jake from a distance.
- Attack on the Heart: The Orgamech Core, as Jake unveils in the final battle, is a massive, beating, mechanical heart. That he must defeat to finally deactivate all the Orgamechs on Nanotechnology Island. And then General Raymond takes over the core once the heart is destroyed.
- Awesome, but Impractical: About 90% of the available Plasma Blade combos and almost all of the Boosters serve no real purpose other than to put on a (somewhat nifty) laser light show for your opponents. For that matter, if it doesn't hit all around you or deliver a quick instant kill, it was essentially useless against the game's swarming Orgamechs.
- Body Horror: In the opening FMV, we see what happens to humans infected with the Orgamech virus, on a civilain woman - firstly a shot inside her where the nanovirus takes over all her cells and assimilates her from the inside, then her skin turning gaunt and metallic before her body turning inside out into becoming one of the game's many Orgamech monsters.
- Censored Child Death: The opening FMV features a young boy witnessing his mother being assimilated and turning into an Orgamech drone, before he's narrowly rescued by one of the military personnel... just as the boy suddenly starts to mutate. Then cut to the title screen, and later it's made very clear that the entire island's population has been wiped out or assimilated.
- Container Maze: Jake runs into one of these near some docks early on, and he can only move the containers by turning his plasma sword into a zero-gravity whip and move obstacles out of the way. Unfortunately he couldn't destroy the containers, only positioning them until he clears a path leading to an exit.
- Cores-and-Turrets Boss: The Orgamech Mobile platform boss, which is surrounded by laser turrets, all which Jake must destroy before locating the only weak spot.
- Cyborg: Jake and Keith, and their former platoon of commandoes, are cybernetically-enhanced humans. After the war seven years ago Jake and Keith are also the only ones remaining.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Jake, who still experiences remorse over the genocide from seven years ago. The fact that his moniker is "The Genocide Hero" doesn't help a bit.
- Defrosting Ice Queen: Michelle is really salty at the sight of Jake when meeting him the first time (by rescuing her from a horde of Orgamechs that had her cornered), after learning Keith to be the infamous "Genocide Hero", demanding for him to stay out of her way and that she can handle herself (despite the fact that she clearly couldn't). But upon witnessing Jake's determination to stop the outbreak and realizing he's on the side of good, she warms up to him gradually.
- Dual Boss: The Orgamech Snails, two giant snail-like robots who repeatedly tries ramming you over.
- Find the Cure!: One of the missions have Jake voluntering to locate the Ampoule Samples necessary to reverse the nanomachine effects, necessary for Michelle to stop the infection around the island. Goes without saying the only sample is in the middle of Orgamech territory Jake have to slice and dice through legions of mooks to get it.
- Flash Step: In his second and third boss battle Keith suddenly gains the ability to side-step at rapid pace, making him harder to hit than in his initial battle. Keith's reasoning is that he was "going easy on Jake the first time".
- Gainax Ending: Jake has defeated his ex-partner, Keith, as well as the true Big Bad General Raymond. Escaping with Michelle and Dr. Baker as the island blows up behind them, Jake suddenly remembers the bridge leading out has collapsed. And they're right in the middle of the structure... The End?
- Giant Mook: There are huge - and extremely overwieght - Orgamech enemies several times larger than Jake, who moves around dragging their massive bodies trying to attack him in the later levels. They can absorb plenty of hits before dying thanks to their Kevlard, and if killed from bisection their upper bodies can even keep on fighting.
- Good Colors, Evil Colors: Jake, the game's main hero is clad in white and silver, while his traitorous ex-partner Keith is clad in red.
- Gorn: Owing to the Orgamechs bleeding thick, copious amounts of Machine Blood, which you can decorate an entire area with after slicing up hordes and hordes of mooks.
- Guns Are Worthless: The military and police attempts fending off the island's Orgamech outbreak, but being made of nanomachines the monsters simply absorbs their bullets with ease before killing or assimilating everybody. Requiring Jake to be called out of retirement to resolve the Orgamech crisis.
- Half the Man He Used to Be:
- In the opening FMV, a policeman gets ripped into half from the waist after their attempts at containing the Orgamech outbreak didn't quite work. He's one of the island's luckier inhabitants considering most of their population gets assimilated instead.
- Jake's Absurdly Sharp Blade can easily slice Orgamechs into sizeable chunks, or separate them both vertically adn horizontally, both on a regular basis throughout the entire game. Though there are certain upgraded Orgamechs - like those with white armor or the Giant Mook variety - which can continue attacking without their lower halves.
- Halfway into the game, the second rematch between Jake and Keith ends with Keith halving Jake diagonally above the waist. Jake gets better thanks to Dr. Baker stitching him up.
- Hidden Villain: For most of the game, Jake's opponent seems to be his traitorous ex-colleague, Keith, until it's revealed that Jake's superior, General Raymond, is the mastermind behind the Orgamech takeover, manipulating Jake to help him take down the Orgamech computer core so Raymond can take over before having Jake disposed of. He's also the game's actual Final Boss.
- High-Pressure Blood: All over the damn place, accompanied by every Orgamech sliced apart onscreen. Dealing a One-Hit Kill from up close notably turns lower-level enemies into a literal blood fountain!
- Kraken and Leviathan: The Orgamech Octopus boss is a mechanical version, who sticks it's head and Combat Tentacles around a platform trying to attack Jake.
- Laser Blade: Jake's trusty weapon, which he uses to slice and dice through hordes of mooks. It was powered by plasma energy for good measure, making it the only weapon the Orgamechs are vulnerable against.
- Machine Blood: The Orgamechs are mechanical enemies, and in the game's menu you could decide what of wide range of colors of "blood" they would bleed as you viciously dispatch them with your shapeshifting sword. For great humor, select the "random" option, and turn your battlefield into a particularly colorful impressionistic painting!
- Man-Eating Plant: The Orgamech can infect even plants, with the first boss a giant Venus flytrap head who repeatedly tries chomping on Jake.
- Master Swordsman: Jake and Keith are both experts trained in using their standard-issue plasma blades, with both their confrontations being an epic Sword Fight.
- Meat Moss: Several interior walls and corridors in the building and sewer stages are infested with the nanomachine virus, and are coated with a silvery, flesh-like coating.
- Mirror Match: All three boss battles against Keith plays out as such. Jake and Keith are both the same size, use identical weapons, deals similar damage and have identical special attacks...
- Nanomachines: What causes the Orgamech infestation in the first place, when the reprogrammed nanotech starts infectign and assimilating humans.
- One-Winged Angel: General Raymond, after his revelation as the main villain, then fuses himself with the computer's core to become a gold-plated, giant Orgamech monster to assault Jake. Cue Final Boss fight.
- Our Hero Is Dead: ...but not really. Jake, despite getting sliced into halves by Keith, was later recovered and reconstructed by Dr. Baker.
- Parrying Bullets: Jake can deflect projectile attacks with his sword, which is best used on the small Orgamech drones who solely uses projectile attacks.
- Protection Mission: Two missions have Jake watching Michelle's back and preventing her from being killed by Orgamechs, while Michelle tries accessing the computer system to deactivate the Orgamech hordes. Michelle dying counts as Jake losing a life and requiring to restart the whole level.
- Recurring Boss: Keith is fought thrice in the game, and each subsequent battle is progressively harder.
- Redshirt Army: The police and military of Nanotech Island in the opening cutscene attempts to contain the first Orgamech infection. But as the monsters, being made of nanometal, are Immune to Bullets, they instantly overwhelm the human defenses.
- Red Baron: Jake, the "Genocide Hero", because of his past as a decorated soldier but also being responsible for a city-scale massacre.
- Scary Scorpions: One of the forms taken by the Orgamechs, into a mechanical scorpion-like creature. Whose sole facial feature, it's eye, is growing out it's stinger tail.
- Shapeshifter Weapon: Jake's sword, depending on the combos he acquired, can morph into different weapons, including axes, whips and mallets.
- Sole Survivor:
- Jake is the last surviving member of his unit still in service, owing to his partner Keith's betrayal and killing of his whole team.
- Dr. Baker is the only survivor of the Orgamech takeover which wiped out the entire population of an island.
- Speedy Snail: The Orgamech Snails, a Dual Boss, are anything but slow, and attacks Jake with a spinning tackle that he needs to jump to avoid.
- Stationary Boss: Most of the larger Orgamech monsters are simply rooted to a spot. Like the Venus Plant (a giant Venus flytrap head growing under a pit), the Orgamech Octopus (tethered to a platform Jake is on) and the Nanotower's main computer (being a tower and all that).
- Sword Lines: Jake and Keith, owing to using plasma swords, will leave behind energy lines with each swing. And in typical Good Colors, Evil Colors manner, Jake's lines are blue while Keith's are magenta.
- Synthetic Plague: The source of the Orgamech infestation is caused by General Raymond programming them to infect humans instead.
- Unwilling Roboticisation: One of the most horrifying examples from video games, where the ex-humans are converted into Orgamechs starting from having their insides assimilated. And then their bodies flip itself inside-out into machines...
- Weapon of X-Slaying: One that Jake gains by default, his plasma blade which is the only weapon that can harm Orgamechs. It's also integrated into his systems thanks to Jake being a cyborg, making him the only character capable of fighting the infestation.
- Wham Episode: "Terrible Truth" - after Jake defeats the malfunctioning Orgamech Platform, he returns to realize his traitorous partner, Keith, is holding Michelle as a hostage... and Jake's commanding officer, General Raymond, is with Keith. Turns out Raymond is the main instigator of the Orgamech outbreak, and that they're working in tandem to retrive the nanotechnology for themselves. Said level ends with Keith getting the drop on Jake and killing him, but later on Dr. Baker managed to recover and revive Jake.
- Whip Sword: One of the most common and recurring features of Jake's weapon, where it changes into an energy whip to snatch Orgamechs from a distance, and pull them towards Jake for a One-Hit Kill.
- Jake: I forgot to mention one thing.
Dr. Baker: What's that?
Jake: The bridge, up ahead? It's gone.
THE END
