Originating in the arcades, Spy Hunter is a driving action game played from an overhead point of view. Your car is equipped with machine guns to help you get past the numerous enemies out on the road (be careful not to shoot any civilians, though!) Occasionally you will come across a weapons van, and if you drive into the back of the van your car becomes equipped with a second weapon (such as smoke screen, oil slick, or missiles). At several points the road splits and you can enter a boathouse which transforms your car into a boat temporarily. If you drive far enough the seasons change as well (watch out for icy conditions during winter!). The enemy cars will do anything to stop you, including running you off the road, firing guns from the back of a limo, or dropping bombs from a helicopter.
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This basically took Bump 'n' Jump and replaced the jumping mechanic with machine guns, which I'm not necessarily against, but it does nothing to alleviate the drudgery of just driving up a straight road after several years of similar games. Good visuals, good music, and swapping to the watercraft is a nice visual touch.
I played way too much of this back in the day.
You drive a car and you shoot every other car that even dares to drive on the same road as you. It is completely mindless, with no true purpose, but hey, sometimes a mindless distraction is all that you need once in a while. Although, I just wish there were more hunting spies in this Spy Hunter video game.
Game #245
Game #245
I too love a driving game where I can never see what's ahead and ultimately crash into obstacles that were only on screen for a few frames.
Even though it was ported quite late to the NES, Spy Hunter is one of the games that predates the video game crash, which explains some of its archaisms, with respects to the second half of the 1980s. Created by Bill Adams, George Gomez and Tom Leon, the title was produced after the success of TRON (1982). Inspired by the chases of the James Bond films, Spy Hunter appears to be a synthesis of the driving games of that time.
The player controls a car, capable of shooting ahead, on a long highway. The game is never really clear why we are fleeing, as there is no ending, but it is all about surviving waves of vehicles that want to stop us. The player has to alternate between their machine gun and ramming the cars on the side of the road, while avoiding the civilians – destroying their vehicles doesn't stop the game, but it does freeze the score counter for a few seconds. Occasionally, a truck will spawn and the car can climb inside to get an extra weapon (oil, missile, smoke cloud). According to Gomez, this addition, inspired by the Knight Rider series (1982), provides a contextual justification for obtaining the arsenal, rather than an automatic upgrade at each checkpoint. The result is rather convincing, even if the controls remain – at least in the port – sub-optimal. It is only possible to push armoured cars to the side of the road and this mechanic remains rather capricious and unreliable; the missiles are of questionable use, as they generally fail to hit their target. The boat phases provide some variety, but the handling is such that it's generally best to stay on the road. The snow sequences also appear frustrating, as the car does not glide continuously, but only seems to alternate between invisible columns – deceleration is somewhat decentivised, both because of the lack of feedback and because it's done with the D-pad, which is not the most pleasant. All those elements prevent a granular control of the vehicle.
Nevertheless, the title is far from being unpleasant and offers some rather varied panoramas, from large plains to snowy areas, passing through canyons and seasides. It remains unfortunately a little too poor overall to hold one's attention for more than a few short minutes, especially as there are no objectives to complete. Interestingly enough, the title enjoyed enough success to have its own franchise, until Spy Hunter: Nowhere to Run (2006) sealed its fate by being particularly mediocre and an economic failure.
The player controls a car, capable of shooting ahead, on a long highway. The game is never really clear why we are fleeing, as there is no ending, but it is all about surviving waves of vehicles that want to stop us. The player has to alternate between their machine gun and ramming the cars on the side of the road, while avoiding the civilians – destroying their vehicles doesn't stop the game, but it does freeze the score counter for a few seconds. Occasionally, a truck will spawn and the car can climb inside to get an extra weapon (oil, missile, smoke cloud). According to Gomez, this addition, inspired by the Knight Rider series (1982), provides a contextual justification for obtaining the arsenal, rather than an automatic upgrade at each checkpoint. The result is rather convincing, even if the controls remain – at least in the port – sub-optimal. It is only possible to push armoured cars to the side of the road and this mechanic remains rather capricious and unreliable; the missiles are of questionable use, as they generally fail to hit their target. The boat phases provide some variety, but the handling is such that it's generally best to stay on the road. The snow sequences also appear frustrating, as the car does not glide continuously, but only seems to alternate between invisible columns – deceleration is somewhat decentivised, both because of the lack of feedback and because it's done with the D-pad, which is not the most pleasant. All those elements prevent a granular control of the vehicle.
Nevertheless, the title is far from being unpleasant and offers some rather varied panoramas, from large plains to snowy areas, passing through canyons and seasides. It remains unfortunately a little too poor overall to hold one's attention for more than a few short minutes, especially as there are no objectives to complete. Interestingly enough, the title enjoyed enough success to have its own franchise, until Spy Hunter: Nowhere to Run (2006) sealed its fate by being particularly mediocre and an economic failure.
~ Juegos que Hay que Jugar Antes de Morir ~
Parte 2 — Los 80: Caída y Resurgir
Juego 54: Spy Hunter (1982)
No sé cómo lo hago pero, por lo general, soy incapaz de mantenerme en la carretera más de 30 segundos. Eso sí, cuando aguanto 31, me siento como si me hubiera pasado un boss.
Parte 2 — Los 80: Caída y Resurgir
Juego 54: Spy Hunter (1982)
No sé cómo lo hago pero, por lo general, soy incapaz de mantenerme en la carretera más de 30 segundos. Eso sí, cuando aguanto 31, me siento como si me hubiera pasado un boss.