Platoon
System: NES
Release Date: December 1988
Developer: Sunsoft
Publisher: Sunsoft
Genre: Action
Were you fan of the movie Platoon? I’ve never seen it and it’s not on any streaming services, but it warranted an NES game. Was it any good? We’ll see… Platoon is based on the award winning movie of the same name. You’re deep in the jungles of Nam and you need to win the war for ‘Merica! There are four different levels that play completely differently to one another. In each, you play as a member of the Platoon. If you die, you are replaced by another member of the platoon until they’re all done for.
The first level takes place in the Jungle and following village. You have to find some explosives and then blow up a bridge on the way to the village. You shoot with the B Button, which will be your main attack and throw grenades with the A Button. I think the grenades clear the screen, but they take too long to throw. The jungle is a maze, and enemies will either run on the screen without any warning, or jump from the trees. I hope you like looking for tripwires, because if you accidentally run into one, you’re dead. Once you make your way to the village, you need to find the map and torch and then you can move to level two.
Level two are the tunnels beneath the village. Here you are in a first person maze. You have to find a set of flares and a compass in order to move along to the next level. As you move about the maze, enemies will pop up and attack you and you have to aim the cross hairs at them and defeat them quickly. The items you need are hiding in rooms, as well as medical supplies and ammo. Once you have all you need, look for a ladder to escape to level three.
Level three is the bunker. You need to last the night without dying. You look out into the dark and see shadows moving up and start shooting at you. This makes you realize that you need to shoot the shadows before they can kill you. There is a flare gun that you can use in order to light up the enemy, but it’s unnecessary. Just shoot the shadows for long enough to move to level four.
We finish things off in the 3-D jungle. You have to find your way to a foxhole being occupied by Staff Sergeant Barnes. In order to do so you have to take out guerrillas and move to the top of the screen, then exit left or right. As long as you keep moving north, you’ll find your way to the foxhole. Then you have to throw five grenades in to subdue Barnes and beat the game.
Graphics: 1.5
Do you like brown and green? There’s a lot of it!
Sound: 1.0
The music and sound is pretty poor coming from Sunsoft.
Gameplay: 1.0
Jumping in the first level is bad. Getting stuck and not being able to turn and shoot sucks. The cross hairs aren’t so responsive in the second level. The third level is quick and boring. The fourth level is annoying with odd bullet spray.
Difficulty: 1.5
Level four is very annoying. If you die twice, it’s game over and you have to start again. Save states are the only way to do it without wanting to murder everyone.
Fun Factor: 1.0
It’s not a particularly fun game. It’s nearly competent.
Overall Grade: 1.2
Platoon earns a D+. I hear the movie is good, but the game is a garbage cash in. Shame on you Sunsoft!