Bally Sente teamed up to release Night Stocker in 1986. This game had nothing to do with their previous collaboration which was named Stocker. Although now that I think about it, the colors of the car were carried over, but that was about it. This game was a science fiction first person racer. The bold graphics of the attract screen were what initially drew me to this game. Look at that car, with a crazy frame and smoking gun sticking out of the windshield. Who wouldn't want to play it?
It was among the first titles set in an off road environment. The levels were quite bizarre as was the format of the game. Players had to drive their car across a wasteland. Collecting energy crystals with some calipers sticking out of the bumper. At the same time alien bugs would fly down and try to land on the car. Damaging it as they dug into the frame with their pincers and mandibles. If the car suffered too much damage before reaching the checkpoint then it was game over. To help the game from ending prematurely players were equipped with a laser gun that they could use on the aliens.
The combination of driving and shooting was manic. Some stages set the car in front of an alien outpost where the player had to shoot aliens that popped out from windows or doors. All the while knocking down swarms of bugs as well. Unless you had multiple eyes and sets of hands then you couldn't progress far into the game. Thankfully my brother was always available to help me get through the levels.
A game like Night Stocker could only have come from the Americans. The mixing of formats, presentation and artistic stylings were very western. However in Japan the best version of an arcade sci-fi racer-meets-shooter was with Night Striker.
Released in 1989 this title was a very good blend of multiple formats. The car and setting was very much inspired by the film Blade Runner. Taito combined the futuristic stylings of Syd Mead with an anime influence and mechanics of the classic arcade shooter Space Harrier. The result was sublime. Japanese arcade designers knew just the right amount of balance to make for a fun game while also immersing the player into the fantastic world they created. They created a car combat game where the vehicle could drive and shoot, like Spy Hunter, but could also fly like a jet.
The Japanese had taken the formula into 3D without making it very complicated. They became masters of design by providing us just enough visual cues while still funneling players through the experience they wanted to deliver. They created the illusion of depth and movement through a shooter by keeping it on rails. This was much easier to get into and play than the frenetic driving and shooting of Night Stocker. Night Striker was not as highly regarded in the US as was Spy Hunter. I was a great admirer of the gameplay, design and transforming car. Few games ever captured a great sci-fi atmosphere well, let alone made a fun game out of it as well. If ever there were to be a successor to the Interceptor G-6155 it would probably be this car...
Perhaps some day Taito might revisit the IP one day. I think there is still plenty of life left in these old games. Some of my oldest arcade memories were not built on the fantastic drivers but on the games that recreated the daily driver experiences. Tomorrow we'll look at the penultimate chapter in this car series.
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