Volt Kraken

"This is how you greet me after so long? No "Nice to meet you again", or "I'm sorry"... not even a "Hello". How rude."

- Volt Kraken

Volt Kraken (ボルト・クラーケン), also known as Squid Adler, was a retired kraken-based Maverick Hunter before being affected by the Sigma Virus and turned into a Maverick during the events that took place in Mega Man X5. He held an Energy Cart needed for the Enigma laser cannon.

Characteristics
Volt Kraken is a Reploid based on a kraken, which is a dangerous mythological squid monster. Indicative of this, his head is designed to resemble the mantle of a squid and he possesses multiple tentacles that extend from his back. His armor is blue and white in color.

Kraken was good friends with Launch Octopus of the 6th Naval Unit during their time as Maverick Hunters. However, during Sigma's first rebellion against mankind, he refused to have any part in it, unlike Octopus. When X helped lead the charge against Sigma's uprising, he was forced to destroy Octopus, leading to a rift between him and Kraken. He later resigned as a Hunter due to growing doubts about his job, and became a researcher to lead a peaceful life and moved to an energy engineering facility located near the Korea Strait, hoping it was far from conflict. Unfortunately, he went Maverick due to the Sigma Virus, giving him a crazed and violent demeanor that necessitated his destruction.

Strategy
Kraken will not only fire electrical bolts, but will also create blocks in random places (some of which have electricity covering them). As the fight presses on, he will also cover the floor in electricity to force X and Zero into relying on the walls or his blocks to avoid damage. When his health is at a low enough level, he will extend his tentacles to send out a barrage of bolts. Goo Shaver and F-Splasher will short circuit him. The electric balls that Volt Kraken releases can also be destroyed by Zero's C-Flasher.

Powers and Abilities

 * Tri-Thunder (トライサンダー) - Volt Kraken shoots three slow electric arcs which go up, forward and down, and turn into lightning balls after making contact with the walls.
 * Grand Spark (グランドスパーク) - Volt Kraken will hit the floor and leave it electrified for some time. Only used after losing 25% of his health.
 * Body Blow (体当たり) - Volt Kraken chases his opponent to cause contact damage. Usually used after Grand Spark.
 * Horizontal Tri-Thunder (橫長トライサンダー) - Volt Kraken goes to one side of the room, extend his tentacles and shoot 6 electric arcs that go forward, covering most of the screen. Only used after he lost 75% of his health.
 * Vertical Tri-Thunder (縱長トライサンダー) - Volt Kraken will go to the bottom of the room, extend his tentacles and shoot 6 electric arcs that go up, covering most of the screen. Only used after he lost 75% of his health.

When playing as X
Needing the Energy Cartridge= X: Volt Kraken! Will you do me a favor?

Volt Kraken: This is how you greet me after so long? No "Nice to meet you again", or "I'm sorry"... not even a "Hello". How rude. You have not changed at all.

X: I'm sorry about Launch Octopus...

Volt Kraken: I wasn't referring to such an old story. You destroyed him because you are a Maverick Hunter... It's your duty... your mission... Well. I got fed up with the hunter jobs, that's why I quit, not because of Octopus.

X: Please... We have little time left... Give me the Energy Cartridge...

Volt Kraken: You are free to take such a worthless thing... But what a simpleton you are. Even if you get it, you can't change the fate of the Earth! Every Reploid has been infected by the Virus and become... Ma Ma Ma Mave...ve veR...

X: No! He has been infected, too!

Volt Kraken: Wooooo! Maverick Hunter? You will be terminated! Just like you did to Octopus! Without needing the Energy Cartridge= Volt Kraken: Ghaaa ha ha ha ha! What made you come here, X?

X: Darn, he's already become a Maverick. So, I have lost another comrade... Have I lost everything...? I don't want to have to fight you.

Volt Kraken: Ghaaa ha ha ha! Then, be a nice boy and die here! I will terminate you just like you did to Octopus!

When playing as Zero
Needing the Energy Cartridge= Volt Kraken: Zero, I never expect you to come here... It must be an emergency...

Zero: You assumed right. You don't need me to explain any more, do you?

Volt Kraken: Always so pushy... You haven't changed at all... I made the right choice when I resigned as a Hunter... I don't want to be a rude jerk like you.

Zero: Oh, come on. I just have a hard time listening to you babble... You know what I want, don't you?

Volt Kraken: You're free to take such a worthless thing... But what a simpleton you are. Even if you get it, you can't change the fate of the Earth! Every Reploid has been infected by the Virus and become a... Ma Ma Ma Mave ve veR...

Zero: No! He's been infected! Relax... I'll put you out of your misery. Good bye, Volt Kraken... Without needing the Energy Cartridge= Volt Kraken: HA HA HA HAAAAAAA! ANOTHER FISH HAS BEEN TRAPPED! I'M A MAVERICK HUNTER! I'LL RETIRE YOU.

Zero: He's already become a Maverick... I'll put you out of your misery now... Say your prayers, Volt Kraken...

Rockman X5 (manhua)
Volt Kraken's backstory shows that prior to becoming a full member of the Maverick Hunters, he was friends with Zero during their training days and looked up to him for inspiration. Kraken was later stationed at Electric City, where he performed his duties without fail and had earned its denizens' respect. When the Maverick Wars broke out, Volt Kraken's commander was corrupt, and Kraken was eventually found by Sigma. Believing that the Maverick Hunters were merely pawns of power, Kraken deserted them and rounded up all of the hunters within Electric City.

X is later captured by one of Kraken's minions by taking a human hostage, and X is soon taken to a prison holding the other Maverick Hunters within Electric City. In the prison, X is severely tortured with the other hunters, but Kraken gives them to option to desert their allies and surrender to him. When one hunter speaks out against this, Kraken swiftly impales the Reploid and electrocutes him, but the hunter refuses to yield even if it means death. X soon taunts Kraken for picking only on the weaker hunters, and an amused Kraken releases X; wishing to personally torment him.

To his surprise, the human hostage, who secretly escaped, had informed the hunters, and Zero arrived in the jail. Rather than help X, Zero would bet that even in his damaged state, X would still be able to defeat Kraken's chiefs simultaneously. While Kraken sends his men against X, X is able to equip his armor and dispatches both with ease. A surprised Kraken then asks X is he is truly content wearing a fake mask of justice, but X responds that Kraken's original dream was to be a bringer of justice himself. Zero tells Kraken that X will soon show his former ally of the dream he had forgotten as well as to unlock his true power.

In a desperate move to match X's strength, Kraken injects himself with the Sigma virus but is reminded of how he was taken advantage of by his former commander and how he killed him after learning of how he embezzled money behind the Hunters' backs. Understanding his mistakes, Kraken surrenders and rejoins the hunters. Kraken and Zero soon move to Shining Firefly's laboratory, but notice that the animals in the area had gone berserk. By the time they arrive, they find a mortally wounded Firefly, informs them that his experiment, Spike Rosered, had gone berserk and had killed his researchers.

Zero looks at the old surveillance of the lab for clues and learns that Rosered was infected by the Sigma Virus when Sigma arrived and bit into Rosered's head. Rosered would soon arrive and attack the pair, and Zero is quickly overwhelmed while Rosered bites into Zero's throat. Kraken attempts to attack Rosered with his tentacles, but Rosered's vines tear through Kraken's tentacles and he is soon slammed onto the floor. Before he is finished, Zero is able to regain consciousness and restrains Rosered while ordering Kraken to return to base and inform X.

Reluctantly, Kraken flees but is chased by Tidal Whale and is severely injured until X arrives, having been tipped off by Dynamo. After X defeats Tidal Whale, Kraken passes on information to X regarding Zero's capture before finally succumbing to his wounds.

Archie Comics
Volt Kraken appears in the Worlds Unite crossover event as part of Sigma-1's Maverick Army. He joins Sting Chameleon in attacking the world of Viewtiful Joe.

Production Notes
Developer Comments

I decided from the start I was going to combine a squid with electricity. I fiddled comparatively with his movement in the game up until the very end. Previously, I wanted to invent a pretext for fighting with Octopuld, but when it came time to start thinking up the dialogue, it came to me in a flash: I'll make this guy XXX(?)! (grin) Thinking up the dialogue myself, I got a bit worried...well, no, I got sick of it, so I had Zero express my feelings at that point. (sweat)

Designer Comments

Seeing as he's a squid, he'd have plenty of legs, but if we honestly gave him all ten, he'd end up all pulpy-looking. I therefore tried giving him arms, legs, and two tentacles (equivalent to squid arm tentacles) always out for normal attack, plus two more stored away. These two would serve as his shoulder armor. He has a section pointing down from his waist, which is supposed to give the impression of the remaining two tentacles bundled together.

I tried to convey a real sense of speed while designing Kraken, especially around the lines of his back. -Haruki Suetsugu, Mega Man X Official Complete Works, 2009

Trivia

 * While he is stated as being based upon a squid in the original American release of the game, the original Japanese release and Mega Man X Legacy Collection 2 states that he is in fact based upon the mythological sea monster Kraken (which is believed to be in reality a giant squid).
 * This makes him one of five Mavericks to have a mythological basis. The others are Magma Dragoon from X4, Spiral Pegasus from X5, Blaze Heatnix from X6 and Avalanche Yeti from X8.
 * According to the English translation of Mega Man Xtreme 2, Volt Catfish had the Tri-Thunder before Volt Kraken did. It should be noted, however, that Volt Catfish's weapon is referred to as "Triad Thunder" in the original Japanese version of Xtreme 2.
 * Volt Kraken makes a cameo appearance in the Rockman Zero manga.
 * Volt Kraken's American name, Squid Adler, comes from Steven Adler, a member of the band Guns N' Roses.
 * Viewtiful Joe briefly mistook him for Dr. Cranken in Worlds Unite.
 * Likely due to an error of translation, in the dialogue with Volt Kraken, X refers Launch Octopus as "Octopardo". This was fixed in Mega Man X Legacy Collection 2.