is a 1987 overhead run and gun

arcade game An arcade game or coin-op game is a coin-operated entertainment machine typically installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are presented as primarily games of skill and include arcade v ...

Data East , also abbreviated as DECO, was a Japanese video game, pinball and electronic engineering company. The company was in operation from 1976 to 2003, and released 150 video game titles. Its main headquarters were located in Suginami, Tokyo. The Am ...

Gameplay

left, Arcade screenshot Terrorists have seized the underground control complex of a

nuclear missile Nuclear weapons delivery is the technology and systems used to place a nuclear weapon at the position of detonation, on or near its target. Several methods have been developed to carry out this task. ''Strategic'' nuclear weapons are used primari ...

site, and it is up to the player to infiltrate the base and kill the enemy leader. Players begin armed with a gun with unlimited ammunition and a limited supply of grenades. Improved weapons and grenade powerups are made available within the game, either in plain sight or within crates that must be unlocked using keys. Additionally, crates may contain orbs or one of the six pieces of the Heavy Barrel superweapon. Like

SNK is a Japanese video game hardware and software company. It is the successor to the company Shin Nihon Kikaku and presently owns the SNK video game brand and the Neo Geo video game platform. SNK's predecessor Shin Nihon Kikaku was founded in 1978 ...

's ''

Ikari Warriors ''Ikari Warriors'', known as in Japan, is a vertically-scrolling, run-and-gun shooter arcade video game released by SNK in 1986. It was published in North America by Tradewest. The game was released at the time when there were many ''Commando'' ...

'', the original arcade version featured 8-way rotary joysticks. The name of the game is from an in-game weapon. The ''Heavy Barrel'' is found in six pieces and is an energy cannon capable of destroying any enemy in the game with a single shot (except the final enemy, and possibly one other boss that may have required two shots). The weapon has a wide arc of fire and can be fired as fast as the player's trigger finger permits, but after thirty seconds its use is exhausted, at which point the bearer reverts to his previous weaponry. The ''Heavy Barrel'' is best used to get past tough bosses, and the game only contains enough pieces to allow the weapon to be built three times in a single game. In a two-player game, whoever collects the sixth piece is equipped with the Heavy Barrel.

Ports

* ''Heavy Barrel'' was

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

ed by

Quicksilver Software Quicksilver Software may refer to: *Quicksilver Software, Inc. - Irvine, CA based developer of computer and video games and other software *Quicksilver (software) Quicksilver is a utility software, utility app for macOS. Originally developed as pr ...

to the

Apple II The Apple II (stylized as ) is an 8-bit home computer and one of the world's first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products. It was designed primarily by Steve Wozniak; Jerry Manock developed the design of Apple II's foam-m ...

and

DOS DOS is shorthand for the MS-DOS and IBM PC DOS family of operating systems. DOS may also refer to: Computing * Data over signalling (DoS), multiplexing data onto a signalling channel * Denial-of-service attack (DoS), an attack on a communicatio ...

in 1989. The

NES The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit third-generation home video game console produced by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan in 1983 as the commonly known as the The NES, a redesigned version, was released in American ...

port was developed by Data East and released in North America and Japan in 1990. All versions of ''Heavy Barrel'' were published by Data East. * In 1989, ''Heavy Barrel'' was contracted to be ported to the

Commodore 64 The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in the Guinness ...

by F.A.C.S. (Financial Accounting and Computing Software), a West Bloomfield Township, Michigan, West Bloomfield Township, Michigan company. The graphics engine and much of the game-play was in place, but the development company folded before the project could be finished. * In February 2010, Majesco Entertainment releasedMajesc
press release
, 16 February 2010 a port of ''Heavy Barrel'' for the Wii (as part of the ''Data East Arcade Classics'' disc) and for the Zeebo.

Reception

In Japan, ''Game Machine'' listed ''Heavy Barrel'' on their January 15, 1988 issue as being the sixth most-successful table arcade unit of the month. Both ''Computer and Video Games''s Clare Edgeley and ''ACE (magazine), ACE''s Andy Smith gave an overall positive outlook to the arcade original.

Gameplay

Ports

Reception

Notes

References

External links