Commando

Commando was originally released in Japan as Senjou no Ookami (translated as "Wolf of the battlefield"). It is a vertically scrolling shoot'em up arcade game developed by Capcom, and released in 1985. Its influence can be seen in several later games in the genre such as Ikari Warriors.

It was released for several platforms, including the Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, MSX, ZX Spectrum, Intellivision, Atari 2600, Atari 7800, Commodore Amiga, NES, Acorn Electron, BBC Micro and PC. Versions of the game also appear on Capcom Classics Collection for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and PSP, and Activision Anthology for the PlayStation 2. All versions of the game are very similar, with the same graphics (taking into account the various limitations of the platforms).

Story
As the crack shot Commando, your mission is to move forward into enemy territory. You must destroy the enemy and their base by passing through the Iron Walls.

Gameplay
The player (Super Joe) starts by being dropped off in a jungle by a helicopter, and has to fight his way out singlehandedly, fending off a massive assault of enemy soldiers wearing German WWII-era uniforms.

Super Joe is armed with a sub-machine gun (which has unlimited ammunition) as well as a limited supply of hand grenades. While Joe can fire his gun in any of the eight directions that he faces, his grenades can only be thrown vertically towards the top of the screen, irrespective of the direction Joe is facing. Unlike his SMG bullets, grenades can be thrown to clear obstacles, and explosions from well placed grenades can kill several enemies at once.

At the end of each level, the screen stops, and the player must fight several soldiers streaming from a gate or fortress. They are ordered out by a cowardly officer, who immediately runs away, although shooting him in the back awards the player bonus points. Along the way, one can attempt to free prisoners of war as they are transported across the screen by the enemy.

Legacy
The hero Super Joe is also the main character of the early games in the series: The Speed Rumbler and the first Bionic Commando. Then, starting from the second Bionic Commando (NES), Super Joe becomes the man to be rescued.

The gameplay of Commando becomes fully integrated in the second Bionic Commando (NES). In particular, it becomes the encounters with enemy trucks.

Commando (originally "Wolf of the Battlefield") spawned two direct sequels: Mercs (originally "Wolf of the Battlefield 2") and Wolf of the Battlefield: Commando 3.