Who’s ever heard of a video game named after a date in time. I for sure haven’t I won’t lie to you. However, the game 1942 by Capcom is a prime example of just such a game. Created in the year 1984, 1942 is what you’d call a “vertically scrolling” shooting game. The goal of the game, surprisingly, is to destroy the Japanese air fleet using the main character’s “Super Ace” or Lockheed P-38 Lightning.
Video of 1942 gameplay
Download a 1942 ROM here
History
This is yet another short one. Why? Well, there simply isn’t too much to discuss with this particular video game. !942 was created to focus on WW2 and the various fighter jets that were used in that period. It was created in the year 1984 (as I mentioned above) and was created, mainly, by Yoshiki Okamoto as well as developed by the major gaming producer Capcom.
*Ayako Mori was the genius behind the creative soundtrack used in the game.
Gameplay
There are in total 32 stages included in the game, each of which must be finished in sequence (lowest difficulty to highest). There are 7 different stages that must be completed in the game (each of which represents a different area in the game). Not only that, but there are also 4 different bosses included in the game who must be destroyed/beaten before you can move forward in the game.
*to beat the boss fighter planes it’s a rule of thumb that you must hit them at least once or twice more than you would a standard plane to beat them. Not only that but, when you do manage to beat the boss planes you are rewarded with up to 50,000 bonus points.
Standard Planes
The standard planes in the game are all designed to model a WWII fighter jet. All enemy planes are placed into 3 categories depending on how large or small they are. For the biggest planes, you can expect to receive a base payout of 2000 points. After that, players are able to receive an additional 500 pts all the way to 9000 pts (which is the cap)
If you shoot down small to medium-sized planes you’re able to receive up to 1500 points with 1000 being the lowest (for medium planes). You can point out the smallest fighter jets because of their bright red paint – they are worth up to 100 points but can lead to some decent sized bonuses.
*if you manage to destroy a large formation with a large number of small enemy planes you receive a bonus of 1000 points. If you destroy a small formation of small planes you receive a 500 point bonus.
Power-Ups, special features, and bonuses
The vast majority of the difficult missions are/can be finished by using things in the game called “power-ups”. There are 6 of these different power-ups, each of which will be listed below:
- Escort Planes
- Additional Loops/rolls or quad fire
- Extra lives
- Cease enemy fire or shoot all opponents
- Every player who manages to beat the game receives a bonus of 10 million points at the end of the game
- If you/the player has a high shooting accuracy you receive a bonus of 20000 pts after every level in the game
- Yashichi: You get this bonus when an enemy plane is eliminated (must be small-sized) and you see the yashichi icon on the gaming screen. The only thing you need to do after you see this logo is wait for it to rotate, disappear and give you your 5000 point bonus.
Important gaming icons
- Power-Ups: You’ll find a different power-up in nearly every level and they’ll appear randomly
- Super Ace: This is the default plane you’ll use in the game. It’s colored bright green and has red accents. It can only move left and right and up and down. It can also shoot in a single direction.
- Escort Planes: These are 2 smaller planes who you’ll find tailing your plane, the super ace. They will also fire on the Super Ace when you press the shoot button.
- Enemy Planes: These are planes that can be either large or small and will always usually be found in groups. All enemy jets you find must be taken down.
To play the game online you can go here
Fun Facts about 1942
- There are weapons included in the game that weren’t used in WWII.
- 1942 has 32 stages which means that if you plan on playing it on one credit you have to make sure you use the restroom in advance
- After you complete a stage in 1942 all the enemies on the screen will disappear.
Conclusion
And there you have it, all you need to know about the game 1942. For more information, all you need to do is check out the resources listed below.
This information was taken from Wikipedia (as well as from a few other sources)
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1942_(video_game)
English 
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