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#674 – Top Gun

The need for speed, etc.
If you look closely into the cockpit, you still won’t see any of the movie’s lovable characters.
That’s a lotta alt!

PLAYERS: 1

PUBLISHER: Konami

DEVELOPER: Konami

GENRE: Flight sim

RELEASE DATE: November 1987

Mav, Goose, Iceman, Cougar and the boys are nowhere to be found in Konami’s name-only 8-bit interpretation of Top Gun. In place of these hunks of beef is an average flight simulator, more known for its difficult landing procedures than stellar gameplay. First the missions. There’s only four of them, with one of them being a “training” mission; or, as I like to call it, a “figure out the controls” mission. Controlling your plane in the air is simple compared to other 8-bit flight sims: Up steers you down, Down steers you up, ‘A’ shoots your birthday pellets, holding down ‘B’ fires missiles, ‘Start’ brings out the Re-fuel plane (there is no pause feature – unfortunate, as the game could really use one). There’s a map grid on your plane’s dashboard that’ll show you incoming bogeys and such. Planes are but one enemy: you’ll also have to deal with subs, battleships, aircraft carriers. Once you carry out the goal of the mission, the game will initiate the landing sequence. Your plane will begin to descend on its own, but as you approach the aircraft carrier, your dashboard will shout instructions at you: “Right, right!” “Speed up!” “Blast Kenny Loggins!” If you don’t follow the instructions to a fault, your plane will crash into the water and you’ll lose a life. You’re still able to proceed to the next stage, but with your three-life supply, you won’t make it past stage two or three if you can’t land your plane. The landing sequence is unforgiving, but it’s also the most interesting portion of an otherwise forgettable flight sim. Save your breath (away) for a better game. Top Gun‘s all business, no party.

C-

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5 replies on “#674 – Top Gun”

This game was made by Satan. Landing, refueling. I could never get anything right. This game is the reason I am a mild-mannered office drone instead of a fighter pilot. This game crushed my ability to hope and dream at a tender age…nevermore.

No, canovaccio! Don&#039t give up. Konami&#039s poor development skills shouldn&#039t deter you from your dreams!

I just came across this review today, and I would like to point out that TopGun was the *best* game for the PowerGlove (if you happen to have access to one). The Glove really made it feel like you were flying – or at least, really controlling the plane. If you have a chance to try it again that way I would *highly* recommend it.

Conversely, arguably the *worst* game for PowerGlove was Punch-Out (with or without Mike Tyson). Don&#039t ever play that game unless you really enjoy fighting only the first guy over and over as you&#039ll never make it beyond that. Whoever set that up should be beaten by Iron Mike in person; punching works correctly but pulling your arm back to punch again? That will cost you your power punch.

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