Tag Archives: helicopters

U.N. Squadron, Arcade

Released in Japan as “Area 88” and based on the Manga series of the same name, U.N. Squadron is a horizontally-scrolling bullet hell shooter arcade game developed and distributed by Capcom in 1989. It features three playable characters, each flying a different aircraft, and one or simultaneous two-player gameplay.

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Super Chase: Criminal Termination, Arcade

Super Chase: Criminal Termination was first released into arcades by Taito in 1993, followed soon after by a Super Nintendo version called “Super Chase HQ“. It is an enhanced sequel to the classic Chase HQ, and Special Criminal Investigation, and features viewpoints that change, depending on where you are in the game, and what vehicle you’re driving. In fact, this moving camera feature has been so well implemented by the developers that it really enhances the dynamism of the exciting car-chase gameplay.

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Time Crisis, Arcade

Time Crisis is a classic lightgun shooter, developed and distributed into arcades by Namco in 1995. The game is played in a 3D environment, with all the locations, characters and cut scenes fully-modelled as texture-mapped polygons. Unlike many lightgun shooters of the time, Time Crisis is a single-player only game, because it utilizes a foot pedal for taking cover.

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Operation Wolf 3, Arcade

Developed by East Technology for Taito, and first distributed into arcades in 1994, Operation Wolf 3 is – as the title suggests – the third game in the famous Operation Wolf series. It’s a lightgun shooter for one or two players, and it goes the route of using digitised graphics, which I personally think was a mistake, because the hand-drawn 2D graphics of Operation Wolf, and the sequel, Operation Thunderbolt, are much better than the dodgy visuals in this.

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Lucky & Wild, Arcade

Lucky & Wild is a one or two-player lightgun shooter from Namco that is incorporated into a driving game. Not only does each player hold a handgun in one hand, but they also have a steering wheel and two pedals (accelerate and brake) to contend with. That might sound like too much to handle, but it works well in the context of a car chase shoot ’em up. Which is what this game is. Imagine Chase HQ crossed with Operation Wolf, and you get Lucky & Wild.

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Mechanized Attack, Arcade

Mechanized Attack is a manic, one or two-player lightgun shooter that was released into arcades by SNK in 1989.

On the face of it you could argue that Mechanized Attack is a clone of Taito‘s 1987 hit, Operation Wolf. You could also argue that it’s not a very good clone.

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Operation Wolf, FM Towns

The FM Towns conversion of Taito‘s smash hit arcade shooter, Operation Wolf, is both an authentic port of the original, and also a playable and fun game that utilises mouse controls to great effect. It was first published by Ving in 1990.

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Operation Wolf, ZX Spectrum

The ZX Spectrum version of Taito‘s classic arcade shooter, Operation Wolf, was developed and published by Ocean Software in 1988.

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Cabal, Arcade

Cabal is a third-person, war-based shooter developed by TAD Corporation and distributed into arcades by Taito in Japan, by Fabtek in North America and by Capcom in Europe, in 1988.

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Thunderhawk, Sega CD

Thunderhawk is an action-based helicopter combat game developed and published by Core Design in 1993. It first came out for the Amiga and PC in 1992, although the Sega CD version is probably the most memorable.

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