6 /10 1 Votes
3.5/5 Emuparadise Initial release date 1986 Adapted from Rambo | 50% Remix64 Developer(s) Platinum Productions Series Rambo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Publishers Ocean Software, The Hit Squad Platforms Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC Similar Ocean Software games, Shoot 'em up games | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rambo (also known as Rambo: First Blood Part II) is a 1985 video game based on the film Rambo: First Blood Part II. It was produced by Platinum Productions and published by Ocean Software for the ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, and Commodore 64.
Contents
The Commodore 64 version's music is by Martin Galway, incorporating melodies from the film's score.
Several other games based on the film were also released, including Rambo for the Nintendo Entertainment System, and Rambo: First Blood Part II for the Sega Master System.
Gameplay
The game is viewed from a semi-top down perspective, and follows the movie's story. The player, controlling Rambo, has to find his lost equipment, locate the POW camp, rescue the hostages and make it back to the extraction point, while being pursued by constantly respawning enemies. Rambo starts off with just a Bowie knife and grenades (both of which have an unlimited supply, as with all the weapons), and gains points for killing the enemy, and for collecting the following equipment: Rocket Launcher, M16 Rifle, and Bow & Arrows (Explosive & Non Explosive).
The game was one of the first to feature controllable vehicles (a helicopter), and also one of the first to feature stealth elements.
Most of its gameplay style is strikingly similar to that of Ikari Warriors (although the Sega Master System version is well known for its same concept), but the levels are not as repetitive.
Reception and related releases
The game was well received. Your Sinclair described it as "a thinking man's Commando. That game starts fast and gets faster until you end up like a one-man whirlwind. Rambo develops into a solid shoot'em up".
The game went to number 2 in the UK sales charts, behind Winter Games. The Amstrad CPC and ZX Spectrum versions of the game was included on the 1986 compilation They Sold a Million 3, along with Fighter Pilot, Ghostbusters, and Kung-Fu Master.
As of 2008, there is a remake available for the PC, with enhanced graphics, sound and music taken from the film's theatrical score. Gameplay remains unchanged. Another difference is that the enemies are more plentiful than the original.