Agree - gave these a fair bit of play and they’re not bad but also very far from the pinnacle of their genres on NES.
I actually owned 1942 for a time but traded it in for a used copy of Bubble Bobble (might have been some cash involved also). No regrets there, I came out way ahead, but I also hold no ill feelings towards 1942.
A friend owned Commando and we definitely found it the more challenging of the two. But I did really enjoy that music.
Never got to play either in the arcades but I enjoy those images of other versions that I had never seen before. I do remember playing 1943 in the arcades once and going forever on a single quarter, as my skills were evidently honed by 1942 on NES.
Commando is definitely the... more polished of the two, I suppose? 1942 feels like it's being held together by tape and glue and ol' fashioned gumption. Yet it works!
I don't blame anyone for trading 1942 in for a superior game, though.
Yeah I think I was a wee too young to find either of these games in the arcades in the early 90s. By then, beat-em-ups and Street Fighter II ruled the landscape. Would have been cool to play 1943, though! Definitely the better of the two games.
I suppose that's true about Commando, but just barely. It definitely has a duct tape feel to it as well!
I was thinking for a moment about why I even owned 1942. I was too young to ask for it at that point, it was definitely a very early purchase by my parents. I have to imagine my father said to my mother, "Look, at least get the kid this game about World War 2. We can't just fill his head with nothing but turtles and mushroom men."
I keep wondering if anyone who developed 1942 felt awkward given who the enemy was, lol
It’s interesting to see pretty much straight arcade ports like 1942 and Commando given how lots of other arcade games (like Capcom’s own Strider) were pretty different when they came home to the NES.
Agreed. I think arcade-to-NES ports really started to shift around '87/'88 with NES Rygar and Double Dragon being different to their arcade counterparts.
Agree - gave these a fair bit of play and they’re not bad but also very far from the pinnacle of their genres on NES.
I actually owned 1942 for a time but traded it in for a used copy of Bubble Bobble (might have been some cash involved also). No regrets there, I came out way ahead, but I also hold no ill feelings towards 1942.
A friend owned Commando and we definitely found it the more challenging of the two. But I did really enjoy that music.
Never got to play either in the arcades but I enjoy those images of other versions that I had never seen before. I do remember playing 1943 in the arcades once and going forever on a single quarter, as my skills were evidently honed by 1942 on NES.
Commando is definitely the... more polished of the two, I suppose? 1942 feels like it's being held together by tape and glue and ol' fashioned gumption. Yet it works!
I don't blame anyone for trading 1942 in for a superior game, though.
Yeah I think I was a wee too young to find either of these games in the arcades in the early 90s. By then, beat-em-ups and Street Fighter II ruled the landscape. Would have been cool to play 1943, though! Definitely the better of the two games.
I suppose that's true about Commando, but just barely. It definitely has a duct tape feel to it as well!
I was thinking for a moment about why I even owned 1942. I was too young to ask for it at that point, it was definitely a very early purchase by my parents. I have to imagine my father said to my mother, "Look, at least get the kid this game about World War 2. We can't just fill his head with nothing but turtles and mushroom men."
Haha, yeah, I can see parents thinking along those lines. Get the kid a "realistic" game, maybe he'll learn something.
I keep wondering if anyone who developed 1942 felt awkward given who the enemy was, lol
It’s interesting to see pretty much straight arcade ports like 1942 and Commando given how lots of other arcade games (like Capcom’s own Strider) were pretty different when they came home to the NES.
Yeah... I've wondered that myself too.
Agreed. I think arcade-to-NES ports really started to shift around '87/'88 with NES Rygar and Double Dragon being different to their arcade counterparts.
I am excited to give Bionic Commando another go. I don't think I ever got to those bonus stages, alas.
Totally agree about the POW, very similar font. Capcom, you rascally devils!