Raid On Bungeling Bay

James V. Trunzo

Requirements: Commodore 64, a disk drive, and a joystick.

Home arcade games face a tough fight in today's software wars. After two years of being saturated with a variety of shoot-em-ups and maze games, a more sophisticated—and somewhat jaded—game player has emerged. And that player is a difficult customer to satisfy. But Raid on Bungeling Bay possesses all the virtues necessary to appease the demanding gamer.

The theme is simple. The Bungeling Empire is preparing the ultimate weapon of war for conquering the world. Its six war factories, each located on an industrialized island, are preparing for the invasion. Only you, a highly skilled helicraft pilot, have a chance to prevent the unthinkable. You must bomb the war factories and destroy the Bungeling war machine.

But your mission is about the only thing in Raid on Bungeling Bay that is ordinary. From the moment your highly mobile, heavily armed helicraft takes off from its aircraft carrier, there's enough action to please even the hardest-core arcade addict. Flying over beautifully rendered, 360-degree scrolling screens, you attack the Bungeling factories. They are guarded (of course) by tanks, boats, fighter planes, bombers, and radar. In addition, somewhere among the islands, the Bungelings are building a battleship complete with heat-seeking missiles that, if launched, are sure to spell your doom.

Is it necessary to destroy everything or just the factories? Everything! All elements have their purpose in this game. Radar, for example, helps enemy planes locate your position and attack. Tanks and artillery defend the factories. Boats carry supplies to help rebuild what you have destroyed.

The graphics are amazingly detailed. Smoke pours from the stacks atop the factories, helicraft blades whirl, heat-seeking missiles are propelled on shafts of flame, and radar installations explode like fireworks. If you're skilled enough to complete your mission (I never was), you are rewarded with more graphics—a hero's welcome in the form of a victory parade and a newspaper account of your raid.

Learning to control your helicraft takes some practice, as it is extremely sensitive and maneuverable. You are given five helicrafts at the beginning of the game. Each craft can absorb 100 points in damage before being destroyed, and the craft can return at any time to its carrier for a new bomb load and repairs—that is, if the carrier isn't under attack. Didn't I mention that possibility before? Well, it doesn't matter. You'll find out about this and other surprises when you play Raid on Bungeling Bay yourself.

Raid on Bungeling Bay
Brederbund Software Inc.
17 Paul Drive
San Rafael, CA 94903
$29.95