RETRO REVIEW: Thunder Fox

Thunder Fox might be one of the most under-rated gems in the retro scene.

Arcade | MegaDrive/Genesis | Xbox | PS2

[Please note: this review is based on the console port]

Originally an arcade game, Thunder Fox was ported to the Mega Drive / Genesis and whilst it doesn't hold up to the original release, it's worth playing due the sheer amount of fun to be had.

In a world now full of terrorists who's mission it is to destroy all peace, it's up to two men simply known as Thunder and Fox to bring a sense or order back to civilization. To do this, they must take on violent enemies wielding all types of weapons ranging from simple knives to gigantic tanks and helicopters.

Honestly, there's not much to the narrative, but it doesn't really matter - games like this don't need a strong storyline to push the player forward. It's purely fast-paced action with an intent on giving the player a good time through addictive and often-challenging gameplay.

The first level, showcasing the machine-gun and some
 of the more easier to kill enemies.

You have the option to choose between Thunder or Fox - it doesn't matter who you pick, there's no real difference except the colour of their clothes. Essentially, Thunder Fox is a side-scrolling shooter with hints of platforming - as soon as you start the game, you're put straight into the action - wielding just a knife you must take on hordes of enemies coming from both sides of the screen, much like Kung Fu on NES.

An encounter with Gonza, a pike-wielding
boss who gives you no mercy.

The knife is the only weapon that you can use throughout the entire game without having to worry about ammo, although it would be nice to give players the option to throw the knife instead of using it as purely a melee weapon, which can often be dangerous as you have to go (extremely) close up to an enemy to effectively stab them.

However, every level offers various guns at some point, whether it be from an enemy drop or hidden in a wooden box - these weapons include a machine gun, a flamethrower, a rocker launcher, and grenades. Each weapon has its advantages, for example the machine gun's bullets can travel far, making it easy to dispose of those pesky shooters hiding behind cover, whilst a blast from the rocket launcher will easily blow up a group of enemies.

Escaping an exploding "Air Fortress" - lots of
explosive sprites included.

All weapons come with a certain amount of ammo, so it's advised to tactically use the bullets when you really need them - it's not worth wasting ammo on one-hit enemies that could easily be killed with your knife or jump attack. The jump attack is actually an extremely effective way of getting through the game - during a jump, you become almost invincible for some reason, making it easy to plant your feet into the face of terrorists whilst taking no damage what so ever.

With a total of six stages, Thunder Fox is generally short, and it's to be expected considering it was originally an arcade game. Each stage is accompanied with a boss battle including a helicopter, a tank, a spear-wielding maniac, and so on - each subscribe to a certain attack pattern, which when memorised, can make these encounters fairly easy to overcome.

You'll have a lot of fun playing this game, and if you're up for a real challenge, it's worth cranking up the difficulty to the max - no matter how you play, Thunder Fox offers gameplay that resembles a combination of Contra and Altered Beast. This is one of those games that didn't get much attention when released due to other more popular titles taking up the limelight, but it's certainly worth playing - you won't regret it.  retroreview

7/10