Operation Thunderbolt (video game)

Operation Thunderbolt is a shooting gallery video game made by Taito and released in arcades in 1988. It is the sequel to Operation Wolf. Like its predecessor, the game uses mounted positional guns as controllers. It also adds two-player simultaneous play. Versions of the game were released for Amiga, Commodore 64, and Super Nintendo. An arcade exclusive sequel was released in 1994: Operation Wolf 3.

Operation Thunderbolt
Promotional flyer
Developer(s)Taito
Publisher(s)Taito
Director(s)Menahem Golan 
Platform(s)Arcade, Amiga, Commodore 64, Super NES
Release1988
Genre(s)Shooting gallery
Mode(s)Single-player, co-op

Gameplay

Roy Adams and Hardy Jones, two green berets, must save American hostages from a hijacked airliner which was forced to land in the fictional African province, Kalubya. To accomplish their mission, they must capture six different bases, shoot enemies such as soldiers, jeeps, tanks, and helicopters using their machine gun or grenade launcher, and try to save the hostages along the way. Enemies attack with bullets, grenades, or rockets. In stages 4 and 6, killing one of the hostages will decrease the player's life. At least one hostage must be rescued in those stages or the game is over. Once Stage 8 is reached, the players must engage with the lead hijacker holding the pilot hostage. At this point continues are no longer permitted and if the player dies, the game ends. The game also ends when the player fails to insert coins before the continue timer reaches 0. The player can accidentally kill the pilot, which triggers a bad ending. If the player kills the hijacker, the good ending is shown with the credits.

Ports
Super NES version

Ocean Software published ports of Operation Thunderbolt for the Amiga, Amstrad CPC 464, Atari ST, Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum in 1989.[1] A cartridge version for the Amstrad GX4000 followed in 1993.[2]

The Super NES version was released by Taito themselves in 1994[1] and works with the SNES Mouse[3] and the Super Scope.[4] In addition, the player can choose from a variety of different characters.[1] The storyline was altered in that the hijackers were members of a fictional country known as the Bintazi People's Republic, ruled by General Abul Bazarre, ruler for life. General Bazarre demands that his comrades be freed or else the hostages will be executed.

Reception

In Japan, Game Machine listed Operation Thunderbolt on their February 1, 1989 issue as being the second most-successful upright arcade unit of the year.[12] The game won the award for best graphics of the year according to the readers of Crash magazine.[13]

Reviewing the Super NES version, GamePro criticized the repetitiveness of the gameplay and the slowness of the aiming reticule, but praised the colorful and detailed graphics and strong sound effects, and concluded that "This Operation is a success, generating plenty of shootin' thrills for intermediate soldiers."[14] A reviewer for Next Generation dismissed it as "another shooting-gallery game, just like Operation Wolf ... It's good for a mild adrenaline rush–barely–but that's it."[7]

Legacy

Operation Thunderbolt was included in the Taito Legends compilation for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, and Xbox.

See also

References
  1. Martyn Carroll. "Ultimate Guide: Operation Thunderbolt". Retro Gamer. No. 139. p. 40.
  2. "Cart Reviews". Amstrad Action. No. 98. p. 48.
  3. "Let's Get Technical". GamePro. No. 76. IDG. January 1995. p. 14.
  4. "Buyers Beware". GamePro. No. 98. IDG. November 1996. p. 24.
  5. "Operation Thunderbolt Review". Crash. No. 71. 1989. p. 62.
  6. "Operation Thunderbolt Review". Computer & Video Games. No. 98. 1990. p. 100.
  7. "Operation Thunderbolt". Next Generation. No. 6. Imagine Media. June 1995. p. 113.
  8. "Operation Thunderbolt Review". Sinclair User. No. 94. 1990. p. 102.
  9. "Operation Thunderbolt Review". Your Sinclair. 1989. p. 18.
  10. "Operation Thunderbolt Review". ACE. No. 29. 1990. p. 48.
  11. "Operation Thunderbolt Review". The Games Machine. No. 25. 1989. p. 86.
  12. "Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - アップライト, コックピット型TVゲーム機 (Upright/Cockpit Videos)". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 349. Amusement Press, Inc. 1 February 1989. p. 25.
  13. "CRASH 75 – Readers' Awards". crashonline.org.uk. Retrieved 2015-09-06.
  14. "ProReview: Operation Thunderbolt". GamePro. No. 76. IDG. January 1995. p. 74.
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