Retro Game Lookback: Operation Thunderbolt for C64

“Take what comes… & hit ‘em with double”.

Ocean Software released Operation Thunderbolt, the follow up to its earlier success in porting Operation Wolf, for the Commodore 64/128 in 1990. The game arrived in a non-standard, larger than the norm, cardboard box with the tape cassette itself protected in a little Ocean emblazed plastic bag.

The game is based on the arcade hit from Taito, which was converted to a number of different platforms including C64, ZX Spectrum, and the Amstrad CPC 464. The game box tells us “Bringing you enhanced shoot-em up with action for one or two players. Thunderbolt not only reproduced the horizontally-scrolling game play of Wolf, but adds 3D action to the scenario as you test your nerve against the swooping jets, helicopters, tanks and many more awesome adversaries! Use the laser sight, or the bulletproof vest, but watch out for those air-to-ground missiles!”.

Selling itself in the style of many action films of the day including Rambo, Command, Red Scorpion, and Delta Force, Operation Thunderbolt goes for the first person target shooter format. Two players could play simultaneously but one of the hardest things in the game is understanding where your gun sight is aimed, as you only find out by letting off a few rounds – pretty problematic for a target based shooter with limited ammunition. Also, the colours don’t contrast too well so it feels like everything blurs together – added to the fact that you have little idea of how long you have to go or what the real objectives are it’s hard to keep at it. Nonetheless, it does allow for a few minutes trigger happy action – just keep an eye on your limited ammunition.

The music is pretty good though, typical of the synthesiser style of the time, and it takes you right back down memory lane – I think have the ZX Spectrum version laying around here somewhere so it will be interesting to see how the two versions compare.