Bloody Wolf
System: TG-16
Release Date: 1990
Developer: Data East
Publisher: NEC
Genre: Shoot ‘em Up
Save the president from danger in Bloody Wolf! Somewhere over the jungle, Air Force One is shot down and the president is kidnapped by a deranged warlord. You were recruited from the very best the US Military has to offer. Now you’ll have to go in alone to kill all the bad guys and extract the president alive.
We’ve got a top down free movement shoot ‘em up at hand and spoiler alert, it’s pretty good. Jumping and diving under the water is handled by Button I. Button II does your shooting, whether it’s a machine gun, shotgun, bazooka, or your trusty knife. Grenades and their family, as well as the flamethrower can be used with the RUN Button. You can only have one shooting weapon and one throwing weapon at a time. Anything new you pick up replaces what you had.
Levels are a linear affair that has you killing bad guys, opening crates for items, and rescuing hostages. You may even be able to commandeer a motorcycle. This gives you invulnerability until a grenade takes it out or you run out of fuel. Enemies have different attack patterns depending on their color. Blue guys are machine gunners and should be given priority. Level five is different in you are required to walk around and rescue a dozen hostages.
Half way through, you switch from one commando to another to finish things up. Gameplay is the same. If you can stay alive, each muscle emphasis tablet will add to your life bar. Load up on steroids, kids! If you die, you come back with three life bars and the default weapons. Luckily, you get unlimited lives, so you can keep trying, but that does require perfection on the final boss, who hurts you significantly on each hit.
Graphics: 3.0
It’s not the best looking game I’ve played to this point, but it looks very good.
Sound: 3.0
Music and sound are above average. There weren’t any ear worms, but nothing was offensive.
Gameplay: 3.0
You don’t get more powerful as you go along, but you learn the enemy patterns and tactics and can enjoy the power of some temporary weapon upgrades.
Difficulty: 3.0
Levels can be challenging, but you have unlimited attempts, even if they get more difficult when you lose your powerups.
Fun Factor: 3.5
I enjoyed my playthrough very much. I would have enjoyed a two player mode if I had someone to play with.
Overall Grade: 3.1
Bloody Wolf earns a B. This is a very good game that I suggest you try if you have access to a TurboGrafx-16. You won’t be disappointed… well, unless you’re paying over $100 for it.