World Combat
Encyclopedia
World Combat is a military
themed first-person
light gun
rail shooter. The arcade game
comes in two types of cabinets
, one for four players and one for two players. The game possesses many similarities to Namco's
Time Crisis
series, not the least of which is the ability of players to take cover at will. Each player character comes equipped with a large, portable metal shield
that can block incoming projectiles. Unlike the Time Crisis games, however, this shield is not activated by a foot pedal, but rather by pointing the gun outside the screen (like many classic first-person rail shooters, shooting off-screen also reloads the player's weapon). The game also features a mechanic similar to Time Crisis's "Crisis Sighting," where most enemy projectiles miss the player harmlessly, but those that are an immediate threat slow down and are much larger than normal, giving the player a small window to react.
Though the game is cooperative
, there are a few light competitive elements. For one, players start at a rank of Private Second Class
and are allowed to ascend in ranks (all the way to Field Marshal
) at the end of each mission depending on how well they play. The player with the highest rank (or score, if the ranks are equal) is called the "leader" and is awarded an extra life.
Each player takes control of a soldier involved in a massive conflict against an army of undead
equipped with modern weaponry. The game features enemies such as rifle toting skeletons, tanks, jets, and helicopters. Weapons include a semi-automatic rifle
, which the player starts with, a machine gun
, and a rocket launcher
.
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
themed first-person
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
light gun
Light gun
A light gun is a pointing device for computers and a control device for arcade and video games.Modern screen-based light guns work by building a sensor into the gun itself, and the on-screen target emit light rather than the gun...
rail shooter. The arcade game
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
comes in two types of cabinets
Arcade cabinet
A video game arcade cabinet, also known as a video arcade machine or video coin-op, is the housing within which a video arcade game's hardware resides. Most cabinets designed since the mid-1980s conform to the JAMMA wiring standard...
, one for four players and one for two players. The game possesses many similarities to Namco's
Namco
is a Japanese corporation best known as a former video game developer and publisher. Following a merger with Bandai in September 2005, the two companies' game production assets were spun off into Namco Bandai Games on March 31, 2006. Namco Ltd. was re-established to continue domestic operation of...
Time Crisis
Time Crisis
Time Crisis is a light gun shooter arcade game produced by Namco in 1995 and released in early 1996. It was later ported for the PlayStation in 1997, bundled with the G-Con 45 controller.-Gameplay:...
series, not the least of which is the ability of players to take cover at will. Each player character comes equipped with a large, portable metal shield
Riot shield
Riot shields are lightweight protection devices deployed by police and some military organizations. Most are a clear polycarbonate, though some are constructed of light metals with a view hole. Riot shields are almost exclusively long enough to cover an average sized man from the top of the head to...
that can block incoming projectiles. Unlike the Time Crisis games, however, this shield is not activated by a foot pedal, but rather by pointing the gun outside the screen (like many classic first-person rail shooters, shooting off-screen also reloads the player's weapon). The game also features a mechanic similar to Time Crisis's "Crisis Sighting," where most enemy projectiles miss the player harmlessly, but those that are an immediate threat slow down and are much larger than normal, giving the player a small window to react.
Though the game is cooperative
Cooperative gameplay
Cooperative gameplay is a feature in video games that allows players to work together as teammates. It is distinct from other multiplayer modes, such as competitive multiplayer modes like player versus player or deathmatch...
, there are a few light competitive elements. For one, players start at a rank of Private Second Class
Private (rank)
A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career...
and are allowed to ascend in ranks (all the way to Field Marshal
Field Marshal
Field Marshal is a military rank. Traditionally, it is the highest military rank in an army.-Etymology:The origin of the rank of field marshal dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses , from the time of the early Frankish kings.-Usage and hierarchical...
) at the end of each mission depending on how well they play. The player with the highest rank (or score, if the ranks are equal) is called the "leader" and is awarded an extra life.
Each player takes control of a soldier involved in a massive conflict against an army of undead
Undead
Undead is a collective name for fictional, mythological, or legendary beings that are deceased and yet behave as if alive. Undead may be incorporeal, such as ghosts, or corporeal, such as vampires and zombies...
equipped with modern weaponry. The game features enemies such as rifle toting skeletons, tanks, jets, and helicopters. Weapons include a semi-automatic rifle
Rifle
A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
, which the player starts with, a machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
, and a rocket launcher
Shoulder-launched missile weapon
A shoulder-fired missile, shoulder-launched missile or man-portable missile is a projectile fired at a target, small enough to be carried by a single person, and fired while held on one's shoulder...
.