GunForce

GunForce is Irem's answer to Contra, and possesses the coolest subtitle of any video game ever: Battle Fire Engulfed Terror Island.

Overview

GunForce was originally released in 1991 for arcades, subtitled "GunForce: Battle Fire Engulfed Terror Island." Developed and published by Irem, GunForce was ported to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System sans subtitle. This version was released in November of 1992. GunForce is very similar to the Contra series, and essentially follows the same formula as other side scrolling action platformers of the time. The Arcade original is featured in Irem Arcade Hits for Mac and PC.

The player takes control of an unnamed super soldier, protecting Earth from an undetermined menace. This soldier provides ample commentary in between stages, stating exactly what he is doing and why (e.g. "I am going into this base to destroy the enemies!").

Gameplay

Some bosses appear to be directly out of Contra...
Some bosses appear to be directly out of Contra...

GunForce's gameplay is very much akin to Contra III: The Alien Wars, another action game released around the same time. The player takes control of a super soldier, shooting away enemies in each of GunForce's five stages, while simultaneously dodging enemy fire. However, GunForce is substantially easier than Contra III, due to continues which place the player directly back into the action and scant enemy fire.

As well as merely shooting away enemies, players can pick up power-ups either dropped by enemies or found in destroyed crates. There are a few different types of gun, each of which replaces the previously held gun. The laser fires through enemies, and is one of the more powerful weapons. The flamethrower is short range, with a high ammunition count, and the bazooka is powerful, long range, but has low ammunition.

The game gives the player five lives. After these lives are lost, the player is prompted to continue. Continuing merely respawns the player in exactly the spot that their death occurred in, rendering the game significantly easier than other similar side scrolling action games of the time.