Rolling Thunder (video game)

Rolling Thunder
Japanese arcade flyer of Rolling Thunder.
Developer(s)	Namco
Publisher(s)	Namco / Atari Games
Platform(s)	Arcade, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore Amiga, NES
Release	1986, 1987, 1989 Virtual Console
Genre(s)	Run and gun
Mode(s)	Up to 2 players, alternating turns
Arcade system	Namco System 86

Rolling Thunder (ローリングサンダー, Roringō Sandā) is a run and gun arcade game that was released by Namco in 1986. It runs on the Namco System 86 hardware platform and was licensed for US distribution to Atari Games. The player takes the role of a secret agent who must save his female partner from a terrorist organization.

Gameplay

The player takes control of Albatross, a member of Interpol's "Rolling Thunder" espionage unit. Albatross's mission is to save a missing female agent named Leila Blitz from a secret society named Geldra located in New York.

File:Rthu0053 shoot.jpg

Screenshot of the arcade version of Rolling Thunder.

Albatross must travel through two different segments or "stories", each composed of five stages, for a total of ten stages. Depending on the dip switch settings, the player has the option to start the game from any point in "Story 1" (making the first four stages skippable if desired). On each stage, the player can enter doors to hide from enemies (a feature inspired by Taito's Elevator Action), as well jump over to higher or lower platforms with rails, including stairs (a feature reused in Sega's Shinobi). The stages in "Story 2" are essentially harder version of their "Story 1" counterparts, featuring more traps and different enemy placement. At the end of each stage, scenes from Leila's capture and ensuing torture are shown on a large monitor screen.

The player is armed only with a handgun and a limited supply of bullets. If the handgun's ammunition runs out, the player's gun can only fire a single "chaser bullet" on-screen at the time. The player can also gain a submachine gun for rapid-fire, which substitutes for the default handgun until it runs out of ammunition . The player can acquire handgun ammunition and submachine gun ammunition only from doors marked with the appropriate symbol. Despite the presence of a life meter, the player can only take two physical hits from the enemy, since a single hit drains half of the meter. The player is killed instantly when hit by a projectile attack such as enemy bullets or lasers.

The main enemies in Rolling Thunder are hooded soldiers known as "Maskers". Maskers are dressed in various outfits and colors, which determines their strength and attacking pattern respectively. Some Maskers do not shoot, but throw grenades instead, while others will shoot their gun below waist-level. Other enemies include mutated bats, shrieking yellow creatures and lava men. There are no boss characters in the game, with the exception of Maboo, the game's final opponent. Once Maboo is defeated, Leila is rescued and the game ends.

Enemy characters

The following is a list of enemies featured in the game:

• Masker Type A - Hooded small fry grunts. Comes in four designated colors: Pink, Orange, White and Gray. They specialize in running, punching, throwing grenades and shooting respectively. Worth 300 points each.
• Masker Type B - Comes in four designated colors: Yellow, Brown, Green and Blue. Exactly like the Type A Maskers, except they wear goggles and can only be killed with two shots instead of one. Worth 400 points each.
• Ninja - Similar to the regular Maskers, except they come out from the walls and their color determines the number of hits they can sustain. From 1 hit to 4: Blue, Purple, Yellow and White. Worth 700 points each.
• Bloga - A yellow mutated creatures which jumps constantly. Can be killed with one bullet and worth 300 points.
• Fire Man - A fire-covered creature that jumps out from the lava in cavern stages. When shot, it splits into three smaller "fire men". Worth 800 points for the entire set.
• Gelzo - A giant mutant bat. Flies atop the screen and comes down to attack the player. Worth 800 points.
• Panther - Black panthers are located behind certain cages and areas in the cavern stages. Worth 500 points.
• Maboo - The supreme leader of Geldra. A green alien-like humanoid. Attacks the player by rushing towards him or throwing fireballs. Can sustain up to 25 shots from the player's weapon and worth 2,000 points.

Ports and related releases

File:RT US cover2.jpg

U.S. cover artwork of the NES version.

Rolling Thunder was ported to a fair number of platforms, including the Nintendo Entertainment System, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, and the Commodore Amiga.

The Nintendo Entertainment System version was developed internally by Namco and contained mild differences such as hidden power-ups in unmarked doors, a password feature and a harder second quest. It was released in North America by Tengen without Nintendo of America's license. Tengen's version of it is slightly different compared to Namco's. The most notable difference is in the game's sound. The Famicom version contained an extra audio channel not available in Tengen's NES version.

The computer versions were developed by Tiertex and published in Europe by US Gold. Though different in terms of visuals, all of them match in being ports from the arcade with no new additions.

The original arcade version was featured in pixel-perfect quality in Namco Museum Encore for PlayStation, Namco Museum Battle Collection for PlayStation Portable, and in Namco Museum 50th Anniversary for PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox and PC.

Legacy

Rolling Thunder was followed by two sequels; Rolling Thunder 2 (1990, Arcade/Sega Genesis) and Rolling Thunder 3 (1993, Sega Genesis). The Capcom game Code Name: Viper and the Sega game Shinobi also feature similar gameplay to the Rolling Thunder series.

External links

• Rolling Thunder at the Killer List of Videogames
• Rolling Thunder at SpectrumComputing.co.uk
• Rolling Thunder at MobyGames