Operation Wolf consists of six stages, as shown on the screen.
In the arcade, the default configuration is set to medium difficulty, with the difficulty setting adjusting how frequently enemies appear on screen.
The following enemies appear:
- Soldiers, which are killed in one hit.
- soldiers with bullet proof vests, appearing in stage 4, 5 or 6. They resist bullets to the main body, requiring a precise shot to the head.
- Ground vehicles, which take 5 shots to destroy.
- Helicopters, which need 10 shots to destroy.
Stages
There are six stages in the game:
- Communication Facility. Clearing this stage prevents enemy counts from increasing as you clear other stages.
- Jungle. Clearing this stage allows you to access the concentration camp
- Village. Clearing this stage recovers 20 units of damage (in addition to the three removed on each stage)
- Ordinance facility. Clearing this stage resupplies your magazines and mortars.
- Concentration camp. You must rescue at least one hostage to clear this stage.
- Airport. You must rescue at least one hostage to clear this stage.
The manual implies that it may be possible to play stages in any order. Even if it is possible, it is not recommended to do so.
In stages 5 and 6, you need to ensure that hostages are not killed. In addition to making sure you don't accidentally hit them, you need to look for a single soldier that approaches these hostages from behind with a knife. If all five hostages are killed, the game will terminate at the end of the stage.
Powerups
As the screen scrolls, a powerup will appear at the side. There is a slight audio cue when one is about to appear on screen. It is selected from one of the three following choices, skipping those which do not appear necessary:
- Magazine: Provides you with 30 additional bullets. Even if you run out, you can still fire but at a reduced rate.
- Mortar Rocket: Adds one mortar. Referred as mortars in the manual, but Rocket Bombs in-game. The explosion covers a wide area, destroying helicopters and soldiers in one hit - even targets that you should not attack.
- Power Drink: Recovers 5 units of health.
- Super Machine Gun: For 10 seconds, the machinegun does not consume ammo. In addition, its firing rate is increased.