"One man vs. An entire army! Courage or stupidity? You decide!"

Airway Bowl... Our local bowling alley. Every Thursday night was the time for my parents to go out and bowl with their friends and for me to either get stuck in the nursery (which I was about 8 at the time and I hated the nursery unless one of my friends happened to be in there) or run and play arcade games for as long as you could. Hmm... Guess which one I picked! There were two games there in particular that were extremely hot for a while: Robocop and Operation Wolf. Operation Wolf was different from most other games because you actually had a gun there to shoot with rather than a joystick and some buttons. Most of the kids that had to hang out there played either that or Robocop (Heavy Barrel was popular for a little while, too). At the time, did I ever stop to think how many other games I'd seen with guns mounted in them? Sure, there was Duck Hunt which had the gun attached by a cord, but it wasn't actually mounted on there. On top of that, we had a huge level full of enemies that scrolled horizontally; a change of pace from a still screen that had regular targets on it. No one knew that this would be the beginning of the evolution of shooter games through time as they eventually split up, making light gun games and FPS's. To that, I gladly tip my hat to the arcade version of Operation Wolf, a classic in its category.

Ahh... Back When Games With Guns Were Not Blamed For Anything!
Before there was Solid Snake or Ashley Riot, there was another single soldier who thought he could take on a horde of enemies and win. His name is... Good lord, I don't know! I don't think the game even specified a name. I think it's just supposed to be... Well, you! Anyway, you're supposed to infiltrate this enemy territory and rescue some POW's. Unfortunately, as the ratio goes, there's about 1 of you and probably along the lines of a few hundred of them. Yep, and you have to take them all out!

This looks a lot like the FPS games that came later with a few minor differences. First, you can't control the movement. The game side-scrolls on its own. The only thing you can do is fire your gun or throw grenades. There are enemies all over the screen you have to defeat which are mostly soldiers, tanks, boats, and helicopters. There are also characters you're not to kill like nurses, refugees, and children Killing them lowers your life. You have a life bar at the bottom of the screen and as you get hit, it goes down. As soon as it gets down far enough, it'll make this weird ''dun... dun... dun'' sound that'll speed up as you take more and more damaged. Once in a while, you'll see an animal run/fly across the screen. If you shoot it, it'll give you ammunition. To put it lightly, if you're energy runs out or you run out of ammo, you're finished. On the brighter side of death, when you lose there is a voice that actually speaks and tells you of the fate you've procured. How's that for putting the bad news bluntly?

Rather basic gameplay when compared with everything today, isn't it? Taito did deliver well in one area for this game in that they did supply it with plenty of action. At first, you'll be presented with a few soldiers here and there, but as time goes by more and more will appear. This not only increases the pace of the game, but forces you to react quickly lest you be damaged. Each level ends when you've exterminated everyone in the level- every soldier, tank, helicopter, boat... So, you really have to pull a Hot Shots Part Deux with the killing.

Of course, gratification doesn't come without pain. What can make the game really bothersome is that you almost can't avoid being damaged. The enemies will eventually flood the area, and strangely enough they're all very good aim. All they have to do is fire and you take damage. Of course, while you're trying to taken out the big guns or even just some of the soldiers, there are other targets out there exploiting your opening (not in that way, you sickos!). This can generally make the game irritating and next to impossible. Think of it as playing a first person version of Smash TV, only you're not totally surrounded by enemies 100% of the time.

Graphics
The graphics, taking the times into consideration, are very good. The environment is full of detail that most games at this time were actually missing. While most game hadn't progressed beyond basic environments just yet, Operation Wolf actually had full environments (or as full as they could get). They also put good work into enemy designs. Every now and then, an enemy would pop up in front of the screen. That was where you could see an excellent utilization of color and texture. Every level also seemed to set a mood that was well conveyed through the color tones used. The swamp, for example, was incredibly dark and put out that moody feeling. The first level was incredibly bright. It almost actually felt they were trying to convey the feeling of a triumphant beginning, almost trying to over trying to overplay the powers of the hero (a la Rambo).

Sounds
The voices didn't sound too bad. It was kind of sad (considerably) to hear voices when you accidentally (unless you're that sadistic) shoot the nurses and hear them cry, ''No!'' Not to sound like I was a demented little kid, but now and then I would shoot them just to hear them cry, ''No!'' Yeah, you're probably sitting there and wondering if I should get counseling. Not to worry, I took my pills today. twitch Anyway, on to other sounds... Well there was a general lack of music in the game. There was music here and there like before you land in the camp and during the title screen, but that really seemed to be the only necessary music. Honestly, I think level music would have killed this game and Taito made the right decision to cut the level music. On the other hand, we also could have done without the ''dun... dun... dun... dun'' that plays when your life gets lower. That was incredibly irritating and almost insulting [cries]. Sorry about that... As for sound effects... They are just what you would expect. When I put my quarter into an action game, I better damn well get sound effects the complement the action... OR ELSE! Or else what, you ask? I'll cry some more... Well, not to worry. Taito delivered there, too. The bangs and clanks in the game sound fairly well put together (although the clanks could use just a little work).

Final Word

Operation Wolf: A legacy that would lead to good games (Area 51 and Jurassic Park 3) and bad games (Mutant Night). This didn't start the shooting genre, at least I don't think it did. It did, however, take it to the level it really needed to go to. This game brought an experience to shooting games that would open new perspectives and possibilities. Many non-RPG titles would eventually appear in first person. Some of them you would have to allow the game to move you (and would become more elaborate with better level designs and arcade gimmicks) while others relied on the player to move the character through the environment. All that coming from just a few different games. It almost makes you think where Sonic and Spyro would be if not for Donkey Kong, Super Mario Bros., or Pit Fall. For that, Taito's little classic will be forever remembered by this gamer...

FINAL JUDGMENT
Graphics: Very well done 9/10
Sounds: The ''dun... dun... dun...'' is very annoying, but the sounds otherwise are very good and fit with the theme of the game 8/10
Control: Works good if it's still in good shape 8/10
Plot/Storyline: Nothing special, but it'll do 5/10
Gameplay: Fairly fun to play. Worth a good quarter, in my opinion. 8/10
All Together: 8/10

Perks
*Great graphics
*Good sound effects
*One of the first games, if not the first, to have a gun mounted in the actual machine
*Fun gameplay

Downers
*Dun... dun... dun...
*A bit unfair at times

Hilarity: Apparently, killing nurses, children, and refugees damages you as well. It's like... your spiritually linked!!!

Recommendations
If you like action/shooting games, check this one out. However, don't play it if the aiming has been shot to crap. None of the shooting games are really all that fun once the aiming has gone bad.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/09/01, Updated 12/03/02