Lethal Weapon (video game)

Last updated
Lethal Weapon
Lethal Weapon Coverart.png
Cover art
Developer(s) Ocean Software Eurocom (NES/Game Boy)
Publisher(s) Ocean Software, Nintendo (Arcade)
Composer(s) Neil Baldwin (NES)
Jeroen Tel (SMS)
Barry Leitch (Amiga)
Platform(s) Arcade, Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64, DOS, Game Boy, NES, SNES
Release1992, 1993 (NES/Game Boy)
Genre(s) Action
Mode(s) Single-player

Lethal Weapon is a video game based on the film series of the same name created by Shane Black. It was developed by Ocean Software and Eurocom and released in 1992 and 1993 by Ocean and Nintendo. It was released in conjunction with Lethal Weapon 3 , the third installment of the series.

Contents

NES and Game Boy version

Lethal Weapon is a side-scroller, in which the player chooses one of the two Los Angeles police partners from the film series, Martin Riggs or Roger Murtaugh, and battles it out with criminals around the city. Battles are resolved via fists, guns and grenades. It is considered by gaming enthusiasts to be extremely difficult and frustrating in the fact that punching an enemy is more effective than shooting an enemy. However, the NES version is praised for its colorful graphics for 1992, and both versions of the game are universally praised for the music by Neil Baldwin.

Arcade and Super NES version

There was another version of the game released for the day's arcade formats and the Super NES. It also is a difficult side-scroller where the user plays as either Riggs or Murtaugh and has to complete four missions in order to go on to the fifth and final mission. There is little difference between the two characters, other than Riggs having a faster rate of fire for his handgun, but at the cost of having a low jump height, while Murtaugh has a higher jump height at the cost of a low rate of fire for his handgun. The first four missions have the player trying to do things such as rescue their friend Leo Getz, defuse a bomb in a shopping mall, stop a dockside smuggling operation, and prevent terrorists from blowing up the city's sewer system. The final mission focuses on going after Jack Travis, the main villain of Lethal Weapon 3.

Unreleased Sega Master System version

A Sega Master System version was in development by Probe Software and supposed to be released alongside the various versions of the game, however, for unknown reasons, it was unreleased to the public. No ROM or any evidence of the game is known to exist online, aside from the music by Jeroen Tel. [1]

Amiga, Atari ST and PC DOS Version

The Amiga, Atari ST and PC DOS version was developed by Ocean and released in 1992. It is broadly similar to the game on Arcade and SNES, but features unique levels and different gameplay mechanics.

Commodore 64 Version

The Commodore 64 version was developed by Ocean and released in 1992. In this version Riggs or Murtaugh can only be selected at the beginning, the game is linear instead of allowing players to select their missions, and most importantly the levels were redesigned.

Reception

Super Gamer Magazine gave the SNES version a review score of 68%. [3]

Related Research Articles

<i>Batman Returns</i> (video game) 1992 video game

Batman Returns is a 1992 beat 'em up video game for various platforms based on the film of the same name. The Sega console versions were published by Sega while the NES and Super NES versions were developed and published by Konami. The MS-DOS and Amiga versions were also published by Konami, but were developed by Spirit of Discovery and Denton Designs respectively. An Atari ST version by Konami was also advertised, but never released. There is also an Atari Lynx version, published by Atari Corporation.

<i>Operation Thunderbolt</i> (video game) 1988 video game

Operation Thunderbolt is a light gun shooter video game developed by Taito and released for arcades in 1988. As the sequel to Operation Wolf, changes include two-player gameplay with two positional gun controllers mounted on the arcade cabinet, and a new forward-scrolling pseudo-3D perspective combined with side-scrolling sections.

Ocean Software Ltd was a British software development company that became one of the biggest European video game developers and publishers of the 1980s and 1990s.

<i>Turrican</i> 1990 video game

Turrican is a 1990 video game developed by Manfred Trenz. It was developed for the Commodore 64 by Rainbow Arts, and was ported to other systems later. In addition to concept design and character creation, Trenz programmed Turrican on the Commodore 64. A sequel, Turrican II: The Final Fight, followed in 1991 for the Commodore 64 and other platforms.

<i>Striker</i> (video game) 1992 video game

Striker is a soccer video game series first released by Rage Software in 1992.

<i>Super Off Road</i> 1989 racing video game

Ivan "Ironman" Stewart's Super Off Road is an arcade video game released in 1989 by Leland Corporation. The game was designed and managed by John Morgan who was also lead programmer, and endorsed by professional off-road racer Ivan Stewart. Virgin Games produced several home versions in 1990. In 1991, a home console version for the Nintendo Entertainment System was later released by Leland's Tradewest subsidiary, followed by versions for most major home formats including the Master System, Genesis, Super NES, Amiga, and MS-DOS. A port for the Atari Jaguar was announced but never released. Some of the ports removed Ivan Stewart's name from the title due to licensing issues and are known simply as Super Off Road.

<i>Hudson Hawk</i> (video game) 1991 video game

Hudson Hawk is a platform game developed by Special FX Ltd. for the Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum based on the film of the same name. It was released in 1991 and published by Ocean Software. Sony Imagesoft released it in the US for the Game Boy and NES. In Spain it was published as El Gran Halcon, the Spanish title for the film. An SNES version was in development, but was cancelled when the film flopped.

<i>Double Dragon</i> (video game) 1987 arcade game

Double Dragon is a 1987 beat 'em up video game developed by Technōs Japan and distributed by Taito for arcades across Asia, North America and Europe. It is the first title in the Double Dragon franchise. The game's development was led by Yoshihisa Kishimoto, and it is a spiritual and technological successor to Technos' earlier beat 'em up, Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun (1986), released outside of Japan by Taito as Renegade; Kishimoto originally envisioned it as a direct sequel and part of the Kunio-kun series, before making it a new game with a different cast and setting.

<i>Hook</i> (video game) Video game based on the eponymous 1991 film

There have been several video games based on the 1991 film Hook. A side-scrolling platform game for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and Game Boy was released in the United States in February 1992. Subsequent side-scrolling platform games were released for the Commodore 64 and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), and an arcade beat ‘em up by Irem later in 1992, followed by versions for the Sega CD, Sega Genesis, and Sega's handheld Game Gear console in 1993.

<i>Techno Cop</i> 1988 driving game

Techno Cop is a 1988 action video game for the Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari ST, Commodore 64, DOS and ZX Spectrum. It was subsequently ported to the Sega Genesis in 1990. The gameplay combines pseudo-3D driving in the graphical style of Out Run with side-scrolling action as the player controls a police officer driving to and then moving through various seedy locations in a one-man war against crime. The game was the first game on the Genesis to have a warning label due to its violent content.

<i>Joe & Mac</i> 1991 video game

Joe & Mac, also known as Caveman Ninja and Caveman Ninja: Joe & Mac, is a 1991 platform game released for arcades by Data East. It was later adapted for the Super NES, Mega Drive/Genesis, Nintendo Entertainment System, Game Boy, Amiga, Zeebo, Nintendo Switch, and PC.

<i>RoboCop 3</i> (video game) 1991 video game

RoboCop 3 is a video game based on the 1993 film of the same name. Amiga, Atari ST and DOS versions were developed by Digital Image Design beginning in September 1990, and published by Ocean Software in December 1991. The Digital Image Design version includes multiple gameplay styles. During 1992 and 1993, other versions consisting of side-scrolling platform gameplay were released for the Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, NES, Super NES, Game Gear, Master System, and Sega Genesis.

<i>Alien 3</i> (video game) 1992 video game

Alien 3 is a run and gun video game based on the 1992 film of the same name. The game was released for the Sega Genesis and Amiga in 1992, with additional versions being released in 1993 for the Commodore 64, Game Boy, Game Gear, Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), and Master System.

<i>The Untouchables</i> (video game) 1989 video game

The Untouchables is a video game released by Ocean Software in 1989 on ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, MSX, Atari ST, Amiga, DOS, NES, and SNES. It is based on the film The Untouchables.

<i>The Addams Family</i> (video game) 1992 video game

The Addams Family is a platform game based on the 1991 film of the same name and developed and published by Ocean Software. It was released for home consoles such as the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, computers such as the Amiga, and handheld consoles like the Game Boy.

Barry Leitch is a Scottish video game music composer, responsible for the music in many games spanning multiple consoles and personal computers. Most notable is his work from the Lotus Turbo Challenge, TFX, Gauntlet Legends, Gauntlet Dark Legacy, Top Gear, and Rush video game series.

Phillip Nixon is a British composer and graphic designer for video games. His most notable role was as a member of Flair Software during the 1990s, as an artist, musician and game designer. More recently, he had been part of Rage Software plc until the company went bust in 2003. Nixon has also had other roles working with Millennium Interactive, Hirographics and Horror Soft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flair Software</span>

Flair Software was a British video game developer and publisher of the 1990s that developed and published games for the Amiga, Amiga CD32, Atari ST, Commodore 64, DOS, PlayStation, Sega Saturn and SNES. The developer is mainly associated with popular and colourful Amiga games as Elvira: The Arcade Game, Trolls, Oscar and Whizz . In 1993 platformer Oscar was bundled with Millennium's Diggers as launch bundle for the Amiga CD32 and it was considered one of the mascot games for the failed system. Flair Software's 1994 fighting game Dangerous Streets is generally considered one of the worst games of all time.

References

  1. "Lethal Weapon 3". Smspower.org.
  2. "Lethal Weapon SNES Review Score". Archived from the original on 2019-05-13.
  3. "Lethal Weapon Review". Super Gamer. United Kingdom: Paragon Publishing (2): 123. May 1994. Retrieved March 9, 2021.