Remakes
Information
- Author: Franck Vandystadt
Pros
- Good conversion
- Easy to get into
Cons
- Plodding gamepley
- No auto-fire
Links
1942 Advance
Who'd be a video game character? They always seem to get themselves into the most appalling of situations. Take our hero in 1942 Advance: to say the odds are stacked against him is something of an understatement—after taking off from an aircraft carrier, he has to take on legions of enemy airplanes alone, all of which are intent on his destruction. Well, fairly intent—after all, many of them don't seem to fire back, but their sheer number ensures the battle is a fairly big challenge.
As this vertically scrolling shoot 'em up is set in the 1940s, there are no massive weapons upgrades available—in fact, aside from your pea-shooter gun, you merely have three 'rolls', which temporarily remove you from harm's way. Other than that, you just have to use your wits and hope for a little luck to achieve your goal.
This remake is a fitting tribute to Camcom's mid-1980s blaster, and the graphics, sound, controls and gameplay initially brought us a little fit of smiley nostalgia, sending us back a couple of decades (if not quite back to 1942). However, reality soon sets in, and, frankly, 1942 was never the most exciting of games. So, what we have here is an excellent conversion of an aging and mediocre shoot 'em up—good for a few games, but lacking in long-term appeal. Oh, and an autofire option would have been nice, to avoid your thumb seizing up! Still, tally-ho, chocks away and all that!
CG
