Bionic Commando (arcade game)
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| Bionic Commando | |
|---|---|
 Cover of the Amstrad CPC version |
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| Developer(s) | Capcom, Software Creations |
| Publisher(s) | Capcom, Go! |
| Designer(s) | Tokuro Fujiwara |
| Platform(s) | Arcade, Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum |
| Release date | March 1987 |
| Genre(s) | Platform game |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
| Input methods | Joystick |
Bionic Commando (トップシークレット? lit. Top Secret in Japan) is an arcade game produced and released by Capcom in 1987. It was later released for several home computers (ported by Software Creations and published by Go!).
The game was followed the next year by a NES game with the same title (see Bionic Commando (NES)) that was, however, a sequel to this one.
The protagonist of the game is a commando called Super Joe. He is equipped with a bionic arm featuring a grappling gun, allowing him to pull himself forward or swing from the ceiling. The series is notable for being one of few instances of a platform game in which the player cannot jump. To cross gaps or climb ledges, the hero must use his bionic arm.
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[edit] Plot
The original arcade installment follows the commando Joseph "Super Joe" Gibson (the hero from Commando and Speed Rumbler), who must infiltrate an enemy base and try to stop some Imperialistic forces from taking on the world. Our hero must pass through five enemy infested levels to do so. The levels are as follows:
- Level 1: Forest
- Level 2: Enemy Outpost ("The Forefront")
- Level 3: Underground Base ("Infiltration")
- Level 4: Final Base
In the final level, the hero must stop a missile from launching and then fight the final boss, the leader of the enemy forces, guarded by an armed bodyguard.
[edit] Game Play
Our hero transverses through the five levels: from a forest to a base, in order to stop a threatening armed force. The levels themselves are, like any conventional platformer, straightforward and semi-linear, with many situations in which there are enemies and other dangers lurking, while at the same time, cliffs that must be passed through.
Prizes like points and power-ups can only be obtained from crates that come on the screen in a parachute, which can be revealed by shooting them. Unlike most of the later games, the player cannot use the arm and shoot at the same time, the arm cannot be used in the air and the only power-ups are weapon enhancements.
In the Japanese version, the characters were all sporting an anime look, but in versions of the original game released outside of Japan, the characters were sporting a western comic book look.[citation needed]
This version was later compiled and released in the Capcom Classics Collection for the PlayStation Portable, PlayStation 2, and Xbox.
[edit] Computer ports
Home computer ports of the game, (available for 8-bit computers Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum and 16-bit computers Amiga and Atari ST) generally received average or decent reviews, apart from the ZX Spectrum version which was greeted by some critical praise, receiving ratings of 9/10 and 92% from Your Sinclair and CRASH.[citation needed]
For Commodore 64 there are two distinct versions: a US version by Capcom, and a UK version by Software Creations. The UK Commodore 64 version seems to be the most well-received computer port, while the US version is considered poor.[citation needed]
[edit] Music
The music for the computer conversions was arranged by Tim Follin, using a music playback engine programmed by Follin's brother, and has been considered to be of high quality.[citation needed] The original music was composed by Harumi Fujita for the YM2151 arcade-game sound chip.
Tim Follin rearranged original compositions and utilized capabilities of computer sound chips well; the music on stage four is mainly Follin's own composition. The game's music sounds very different on every machine due to differences in sound chips. The Amiga version features music that is based on well-chosen instrument samples while the C64 version is a great example of utilizing the capabilities of the SID-chip. The Atari ST music is well done despite of the limitations of the YM2149 soundchip.
[edit] See also
- Bionic Commando, for other games in the series.
[edit] References
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