Commando is one of the few games for
the 7800 with a “Pokey” chip hidden away inside
the game cartridge, which means it has much better sounds
than virtually all of the other 7800 games (except for
Ballblazer, which also has a Pokey).
It is also distinguished by being one of the few games
with a non-black background, in this case colorful battlefields
that scroll vertically. While it's not the only game for
the 7800 to use this effect, I think it does it well.
The control is pretty good...your soldier is responsive
and moves around well, but he's a bit slow and the diagonals
can be a little hard to get right sometimes. You need
to keep a little distance from the edge of the screen
since you can get fired on from a soldier just coming
into view.
This game is a lot of fun for awhile, but there aren't
that many scenes (4), and with a little practice and technique,
the game gets way too easy. I used to play it all the
time but I haven't picked it up for awhile because the
challenge is gone for me, and I'm not someone who usually
plays games enough to reach that point. I picked it up
for this review for the first time in a year and managed
to get through the boards the first time without losing
any men.
I wouldn't call this a must-have for everyone. It is a
very good game, it really shows off what the 7800 can
do. It is also quite a few hours of fun. But the rarity
of this cartridge is also something of a detraction, since
it can get expensive. I would recommend this for people
who like Commando in the arcade and on
other systems (it is one of the better home versions),
and for people who like to show off their 7800 to Nintendo-heads,
as well as serious collectors.
2008 ben langberg, all rights reserved.