The Striders are the strongest group of warriors in the world who
specialize in acts such as smuggling, kidnappings, assassinations, etc. There are 3 different
divisions (or grades) within the Strider unit ranging from C to A. Hiryu was the
youngest member of Super A-Grade Striders.
After destroying an A-Grade Strider's sister gone mad, Hiryu left the team to spend the
rest of his life in Mongolia (his retirement plan, no doubt), and would have continued to live
peacefully if not for the iron clad fisted rule of Matic, Vice Director of the Striders.
Hiryu's best friend Kain was captured by the enemy and Matic was threatening to slaughter innocent
Mongolians if Hiryu refused to kill Kain. Hiryu had no other choice but to return. After rescuing Kain,
he realizes the Striders' plans in cooperation with a company called "Enterprise" to set forth an evil
project called "ZAIN" which penetrates human minds, brainwashes them, and makes them crazy.
Hiryu decided he must destroy the ZAIN mind control weapon along with the Striders and the syndicate.
According to the 1988-89 Arcade version of Strider by Capcom (rewritten and revised)
Disasters that have plagued the Earth for so long have finally come to an end as the future
of the planet hangs in the balance. The year is 1998 and the human race has resolved their conflicts in war to
help bring peace and prosperity back to the world. Through time, the beauty that once existed was gradually restored,
and the standard of living rose to a tolerable level. But elsewhere in a small Eastern European nation called Kazafu, strange things were happening. A rancher had witnessed
several "red dots" moving across the sky, only to disappear behind a mountain. Several days after the incident,
monsters started to appear out of nowhere and completely destroyed the capital city, as well as the
surrounding country side. All buildings were leveled, people were killed, and those who survived may have been
trapped under the wreckage. The monsters traveled throughout all of Europe and wreaked similar havoc to other contries, afterwads traveling
to North and South America. In a matter of weeks, 5 continents had been met with destruction and total annihilation,
and any survivors were later taken as slaves. Hope seemed very bleak at this point, for the humans were trapped within
a dream from which they might never awaken... Grand Master Meio (see above shot), the master mind behind all of this mayhem, is an entity who has been studying the
life styles and patterns of the human race from his home planet far away in space (a distant star, perhaps). He had built
a space station between the Earth and the Moon to serve as his fortress (control and planning center) in an ultimate attempt to take over
Earth. Called the "Third Moon", it was the primary element in his plans to rule the planet. News reports all over the world had told about the sheer destruction inflicted everywhere; no stone seemed to be left unturned in the monsters' disasterous wake.
But somewhere on the small island of Moralos in the Southern Seas, a small group of ninja called the Striders had picked up the reports and took abrupt
action to fix the problems. The Striders were the last line of defense for justice and peace on the planet, and Moralos served
as the perfect hideout and training grounds to suit their needs. Hiryu was the youngest man ever to achieve the rank of Super A-Grade Strider; he
was assigned to the dangerous mission of eradicating Meio and all the evil creatures that plague the Earth in order to return peace once again.
These stories are not related in anyway. The Arcade version came out in Japan in the summer of 88,
and was later released in the US (January 89). Almost a year after, the NES version came out (December 89). The original arcade version was later released on the Genesis in 90-91.
Two different versions of the stories, but nevertheless, one fact remains...when trouble arises, the Striders call on Hiryu to save the day! A hero's job
is never done...
Special Thanx goes out to Mike Varley for the images and story. Thanks Mike!
Strider Hiryu has officially returned...
The next story is about to unfold. Capcom Entertainment released Strider 2 for the PSX in Japan on February 24th. Storyline coming soon...check back within the next few months for updates!
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