Mechanized Attack
System: NES
Release Date: June 1990
Developer: SNK
Publisher: SNK
Genre: Light Gun Shooter
Shoot everything that moves in Mechanized Attack. A rebel army is amassing on a secluded island. There are rumors that those aren’t men, but machines disguised as men! Head in alone and wipe out everyone and everything on the island, but be careful, those things want you dead.
You can choose to play with the controller or the Zapper on the title screen. Starting with the controller, you move the crosshairs around the screen with the d-pad. Your gun shoots with the B Button and can be held down for rapid fire action. The A Button throws a grenade, assuming you have any in stock to do some heavy damage.
The screen slowly scrolls horizontally and you have to shoot everything before it shoots you. Your ammo is limited to 40 shots per clip. You can pick up more clips by shooting them, but if you run out of ammo, you’re a sitting duck. Some enemies go out in one shot, but others take many shots to take down. These are typically robotic enemies, who present as people until they are hit, then reveal their robot form. Even dogs can’t be trusted, as they will shoot missiles at you.
Trying the light gun was a frustrating experience. I tried emulating with the mouse first and the shots weren’t even close to where I clicked, so I quickly moved to the real thing. Much to my chagrin, the actual Zapper didn’t fare much better. Shots were consistently registered nowhere near to where I was aiming. Instead of a machine gun, the Zapper is semi-automatic, one shot per pull of the trigger. You can still throw a grenade by pressing the A Button, but I tend to support my shooting arm so as not to lose all my arm stamina.
After a few levels, you can choose one of two options for the next level. One level went dark with the only way to see enemies was their muzzle flash or the sporadic flare power up. There are bosses that consist of having to shoot sweet spots when they are opened. If you run out of ammo, dying is your only true recourse, though it seemed I could still fire a single shot occasionally. I did better with the Zapper, but that’s not a good thing.
Graphics: 1.5
The best part of the game is the graphics, the backgrounds are good.
Sound: 1.0
The music isn’t good and the sound effects aren’t pleasant.
Gameplay: 1.0
Neither the controller nor the Zapper work particularly well.
Difficulty: 0.5
Because the controls don’t work well, the overall game is unfair.
Fun Factor: 0.0
Normally you can snag a bit of fun from Zapper titles, but not this one.
Overall Grade: 0.8
Mechanized Attack earns a D. SNK serves up another stinker for me to dislike. One of these days, they hit their stride, but not yet!