Crime City

"Chase HQ is back!! But this time they forgot the car..."

The city is in chaos. The bank has been robbed. Criminals are escaping from jail. The mayor has been kidnapped. Smuggling activity has been reported the harbor. Who are you gonna call?

Tony Gibson and Raymond Broady!!

These police officers are more known as the drivers in the classic Sega arcade racing game ''Chase HQ'', ''Special Criminal Investigation'' and ''Super Chase: Criminal Termination'' (The game probably takes place between S.C.I and Super Chase: Criminal Termination, judging from the Taito chronology) and they are back to clean up the streets once again from criminal activity, but this time they are not out on the road chasing criminals as they have been doing in all other games. This time, they are walking on the streets, shooting and killing (almost) everyone they see on the street. And that's it. A fine classic 2D platform game, jump and run, kill everything that moves. Plain and simple.

Graphics: 8

The graphic is plain and simple, nothing extra-ordinary, but much more is not needed from this classic Taito game from 1989. The arcade graphic standard was very much like this in those days, so there is nothing to complain about. It isn't all that difficult to see who is friend or foe. The cut-scenes between each stage are also very clear. The graphic really smells of the 80's, considering how everyone is dressed, the hair-styles etc.

Sound: 8

The music in the game is overall pretty nice, but once again, nothing special about it. The melodies are nice to have a listen to, and the Stage 2 music is of some reason stuck in my head, and I can't get it out, no matter how much I try... :) Sound effects, and voices are standard.

Control: 10

When you press the fire button, you will indeed fire, and when you press the jump button, you will indeed jump. No really, the control is perfect as it is. The control is reacting smoothly, and the jumps between platforms are usually not that hard to perform.

Fun factor: 10

I can't explain why, but of some reason I feel something addicting about this game, which makes me playing it over and over again. It is probably that I'm getting nostalgic from the Chase HQ series... :)

Difficulty level: 7

10-20 credits could be needed in order to complete this game. Some bosses are really hard, and will probably cost you a lot of lives, but the stages are not that cruel.

Replay: 10

This game is representing very well what standard 2D arcade games looked like in the late 80's, with its graphic and sounds. A game with a simple story, with lots of jump and running, shooting bad criminals...oh joy! :)

And yes, the car from Chase HQ is visible in the game as well, in the intro sequence...But beautiful Nancy (who is giving the missions to Tony and Raymond in the other games) is sadly not a part of this game. :)

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 08/25/02, Updated 08/25/02