Beat Communists. Run Long Distance. Be Awesome.
NES Catalog #041-42
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Rush’n Attack
PUBLISHER/DEVELOPER: Konami
RELEASE DATE: April 1987 (US), June 8th, 1989 (EU)
ALSO AVAILABLE ON: Atari 8-Bit, Arcade, BBC Micro, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, Famicom Disk System, MSX, Nintendo Switch (via Arcade Archives), PC, PlayStation 4 (via Arcade Archives), Windows Mobile, Xbox 360, ZX81/Spectrum
Rush ‘N Attack releases a renegade soldier off into the wilds of enemy territory with nothing but a knife. Now that’s ballsy.
You control a Green Beret, otherwise known as The Soldier Without a Face, and he’s armed with his trusty knife and a weak constitution. Despite his Special Forces status, anything can take this guy out, from a bullet to a light pat on the shoulder. He’s a one-hit kinda fella, but he’s got spirit at least. The enemy opposition is strong, but he won’t give up until he’s well and truly dead.
There are several types of Soviet Armed Forces to stab repeatedly, including the walking soldier who couldn’t be bothered to carry weapons, the nimble jumping/ kicking soldier whose boot can crush a man’s skull, and the run-and-shoot soldier who actually knows how to handle a firearm. Paratroopers sail down from the sky, shooting gleefully at you, while artillerymen hide safely and cowardly in watchtowers and barrels.
On occasion, you’ll run into a soldier with tan threads lying on the ground. Deal with him, ‘cause he’s got your secondary weapons. Weapons like a pistol (in a warzone, fancy that), an RPG, some grenades, and even an invincibility star. All these weapons have limited rounds or time with which to use them. Once they’re gone, it’s back to stabbin’.
Rush ‘N Attack is a tentative step forward for the NES, away from the one-screen titles that peppered the console’s first two years. The environments are well-rendered, the music is propulsive and catchy, and the action, while unbearably hard at times, is addictive and leaves you wanting more, even as your poor Beret’s corpses litter the ground. More engaging action games would quickly appear, but even today, Rush ‘N Attack is fun to play, ridiculous premise and all. Seriously, who brings a knife to a gun fight?
Straight From the Arcade
*images from eBay, Launchbox Games Database, The Arcade Flyer Archive, MobyGames
Other Versions
ATARI 8-BIT
BBC Micro
COMMODORE 64
DOS (CGA)
ZX SPECTRUM
*all images from MobyGames
Track & Field
PUBLISHER/DEVELOPER: Konami
RELEASE DATE: June 21st, 1985 (JP), April 1987 (US), Feb. 2nd, 1992 (EU)
ALSO AVAILABLE ON: Atari (2600, 5200, 8-Bit), Apple II, Arcade, Commodore 64, Game Boy, MSX, Nintendo Switch (via Arcade Archives), PlayStation 4 (via Arcade Archives), Windows Mobile, Xbox 360, ZX81/Spectrum
Track & Field is a spiritual journey disguised as a video game. What do the world’s best athletes look like when they practice? Goofy sprites with mustaches that probably should get trimmed to cut down on wind resistance, apparently. Could you be one of these giants of skill and resolve? Maybe, in your own way. Maybe you’re not running the 100-meter Dash, but what is it you’re called to do and to be? Go do that thing, practice the hell out of it, and contribute to the world.
Unlike many NES games of its day, Track & Field doesn’t pummel you over the head with difficulty. Sure, certain events, like Archery, Skeet Shooting, and the High Jump are challenging, but you can usually qualify without too much of an issue. No, the real goal is to keep improving on your time, get a higher score, and believe in yourself and your abilities.
The game shows you the beginning, not the end. Its eight events are invitations to grow. Even if you conquer them and become overqualified, that doesn’t mean you’ve arrived. That means you’re ready to go deeper.
In Track & Field, you compete against time and your own inadequacies. The goal is to get better, to overcome, to be a champion. But as with all life struggles, you can’t do it on your own, nor should you. You might be the one in the limelight, racing towards qualification and the chance for medals, but your family, friends, trainers, and God all got you to where you are. When you’re out there running, jumping, practicing, whatever, you represent them and their belief in you. And if you mess up along the way, so be it, it’s part of the journey. Just learn from mistakes, try again and always, always keep pressing ‘A.’
Straight From the Arcade
*images from Escape Pod Online, The Arcade Flyer Archive, and MobyGames
Other Versions
APPLE II
ATARI 2600
MSX
ZX SPECTRUM
*all images from MobyGames
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These are two more games about which my first reaction is to ask, "Why oh why are there so many ports for such mediocre games?" I also had this reaction to Ghosts n' Goblins, which in my view is a more memorable and distinctive title than either of these, but mostly in a bad way.
I guess a number of Japanese developers like Konami and Capcom experimented with the idea of porting even the most mediocre titles to every variety of Western PC when they were first exporting games to the West in 1986-87. They apparently figured out this was a bad idea pretty quickly. I don't know anyone who owned anything like Rush'n Attack for DOS, I can't imagine it sold well.
As for playing them on NES, I rented both of them way back when and found both of them OK. I agree that Rush'n Attack has aged reasonably well. But I've definitely always noticed the main character's fragility and remember it really bugging me as a kid. In Super Mario Bros., those are at least monsters running into you. But why (I ranted to my friends) should a man die instantly from being touched by another, unarmed man?
I remember contrasting this to Legend of Kage, which I guess we would say was a bad game. But as a kid I thought it was such a breath of fresh air that your enemies (also humans attacking a human) actually had to swing at you in that game; a mere touch did nothing.
I do miss this 1980s movie trope of the one man army. And Rush’n Attack seems to be one such example of it..