Technocop
System: Genesis
Release Date: January 1991
Developer: Gray Matter Inc./Imagexcel/Punk Development
Publisher: RazorSoft
Genre: Action
Bring the wasteland back from savage lawlessness in Technocop! A gang of mutated goons branded as the D.O.A. have taken over and are committing crimes ranging from stabbings to drug deals to babies being crushed! You’ve got to bring in our put down 10 D.O.A. generals before you can tackle the Kingpin himself. But you’re not alone, you have your souped up VMAX Twin Turbo Interceptor with you to get you across the emptiness.
There are two portions to each mission of the game. The first portion has you driving in a behind the back view of your Interceptor a certain amount of distance to the place where a crime has been reported. Other vehicles get in your way and try to stop you from reaching your destination, but you can blast them with the B Button. You also gain some nuclear launch ability with the A Button, but I never really found a need to use them. The road bends and curves, but doesn’t really force you to turn your wheel. If you do happen to get pushed into the trees, you spin out and lose some health. As long as you make it to the scene before your time runs out, you’re fine.
The main action of the game is once you reach the building the criminal is holed up in. You have a very fast timer counting down. You have to find the perp and either blast away with your .95 AutoMag until he’s dead, or catch him with your Snare Gun. If you run out of time, or he can find a way to impede you for a moment, or knock you down, he’ll escape. Don’t that happen. These levels are a maze of floor, holes, and elevators. Sometimes you need to fall through a hole in the floor to find your way, but you don’t want to fall more than one story or you’ll take damage and potentially die. Moving up and down elevators is also a giant pain in the butt. You only have five lives for the entire game, so don’t lose them on something dumb.
Your rank and file enemies pop up in the levels and attack you with whips, axes, throwing stars, and more. I found myself in the pattern of walking up to them, kneeling, and unloading all of my lead into them. The controls were a bit finicky, as if this was a port of an Amiga game. Oh, wait, it was. You can do this amazing front somersault jump as long as you have the stamina to do so. You move faster with a jump than walking, so you’ll want to use it strategically. You’ll also use it to jump over holes in the floor. Hope you’re precise!
There are other hazard in the levels outside of the goons. Rats of unusual size scurry across the floor and cause you to hold your foot and hop in place for a moment. There are also bundles of dynamite laying around all sorts of places. These do big damage if you step on them, so don’t. Shooting old ladies or children is bad and will subtract from your points. There are also items laying around like bags of money, TVs, and stereos that you can pick up for extra points. Once you find the boss and neutralize him, make it back out to your car and move to the next mission.
Graphics: 2.0
Graphics are adequate, but everything moves very jankily.
Sound: 1.0
No music and sound effects that aren’t quite up to snuff.
Gameplay: 1.0
The game is lackluster and extremely repetitive.
Difficulty: 1.0
Five lives and a fast ticking clock will make it difficult to achieve your goals.
Fun Factor: 1.0
It’s not the worst time I’ve ever had, but it’s not something I’d ever want to go back to again.
Overall Rating: 1.2
Technocop earns a D+. I can’t recommend this one at all. It’s a crappy PC port that really isn’t worth your time.