This arcade classic stumbles drunkenly onto the NES.
PLAYERS: 1-2 simultaneous
PUBLISHER: Data East
DEVELOPER: Data East
GENRE: Arcade
RELEASE DATE: December 1988
Rampage‘s building-smashing ethos isn’t the most cultured or open-minded, but it does appeal to the destruction-loving child inside. Play as George, King Kong’s more aggressive younger brother, or Lizzie, the self-titled “American Godzilla,” (Ralph the giant wolf is missing from the NES version) and get to work destroying the cities of America. Climb buildings, smash windows, eat people, punch helicopters, collapse bridges – all in a day’s work for these two thug monsters. There are 128 levels in the NES version. Each level takes place in a city and consists of one day. Collapse all the buildings in the level to progress to the next (every city in America looks exactly the same, according to Rampage). If you die in the arcade version, you have to insert another quarter. On the NES, you have as many lives as you can handle. Purists might be frustrated by the lack of difficulty, but I appreciated not having to worry about a certain amount of deaths. The NES version’s production values are crappy, at best. The graphics, music, and sludge controls reek of an Atari or perhaps Commodore 64 port. Co-op destruction is available, though it was not readily apparent. The second player has to join in after the game has already started. If you can ignore the cart’s physical defects, missing character, and embrace the beast within, Rampage will satisfy, but it’s not the essential home version.
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5 replies on “#518 – Rampage”
Ummm…this is a two player game. How is co-op missing?
You’re right, however, it’s not visible on the menu screen. I’m assuming the second player just has to press start then?
You know, this was one of those games I had heard almost nothing about, rented it on a whim one time, and totally enjoyed blowing a weekend on it. Something about it just kept me playing. However, I did finally hit that ‘point’ on like the third day where I was like: huh. Did that. Done that. Nothing left to do – and just moved on.
Great co-op arcade game, but yeah, it gets old pretty fast. Watched Wreck-It Ralph this past weekend and this game immediately came to mind.
One afternoon my friend, my brother and myself played this game for HOURS! It was so long ago I can’t remember the ending, but I am pretty sure we beat it.
Fun for a while, but rather repetitive… Could be a blast with newer graphics and a little more challenge.
Sleepyweasel