Front Line (arcade game)
Encyclopedia
Front Line is a military
combat
-themed arcade game
released in 1982 by Taito Corporation
.
The original arcade version consists of a joystick, a single button (other than the "player one" and "player two" start buttons), and a rotary dial
that can be pushed in like a button, which fires the weapon. The single button is used to throw grenades, and to enter and exit the tank.
into the enemy's fort by first fighting off infantry
units, then battling an armada of tank
s before finally reaching the opponent's compound.
The player begins with two weapons: a pistol
and grenades. The ammunition
supply for both items is unlimited, so there is no need to acquire ammunition during gameplay. Once the player has advanced far enough into enemy territory, there's a "tank warfare" stage in which the player commandeers tanks to fight off the enemy.
There are two types of tanks available: a light tank armed with a machine gun and a heavy tank armed with a cannon. The light tank is more nimble, but can be easily destroyed by the enemy. The heavy tank is slower, but can sustain one hit from any tank. Once the damaged tank is evacuated, the player can jump back in and resume normal operation without any deadly consequence. If a heavy tank is by struck another mortar round, it will be destroyed. With either type of tank, the player must exit the vehicle within a few seconds of being struck by a fatal shot. The tank quickly explodes, and if the player is still occupying it, he loses a life.
The tank battle continues up until the player reaches the enemy's fort. The fort is a brick-barricaded tank which fires mortar rounds while the player attempts to take it out. In order to destroy this tank, the player must toss a grenade over the brick barricade. This requires them to be on foot instead of manning a tank. Once the player has successfully lobbed a grenade into the tank fortress, the tank will explode and an enemy soldier will wave the white flag, signaling surrender
. The game then starts over with the infantry level, but enemy soldiers become much quicker and deadlier in successive rounds.
centered around battling aliens in space (e.g. Space Invaders
, Galaxian
), eating up dots (e.g. Pac Man and its descendants), or shooting centipedes (e.g. Centipede
, Millipede). Military-themed video games before Front Line usually involved vehicular combat, such as tanks or naval vessels, but did not include infantry in its gameplay. Front Line was therefore a pioneering title in the now-popular military gaming genre.
, ColecoVision
, and Nintendo Famicom
home
consoles in 1984
. The NES version was released for Wii
's Virtual Console
service in Japan on June 5, 2007.
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...
combat
Combat
Combat, or fighting, is a purposeful violent conflict meant to establish dominance over the opposition, or to terminate the opposition forever, or drive the opposition away from a location where it is not wanted or needed....
-themed 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...
released in 1982 by Taito Corporation
Taito Corporation
The is a Japanese publisher of video game software and arcade hardware wholly owned by publisher Square Enix. Taito has their headquarters in the Shinjuku Bunka Quint Building in Yoyogi, Shibuya, Tokyo, sharing the facility with its parent company....
.
The original arcade version consists of a joystick, a single button (other than the "player one" and "player two" start buttons), and a rotary dial
Rotary dial
The rotary dial is a device mounted on or in a telephone or switchboard that is designed to send electrical pulses, known as pulse dialing, corresponding to the number dialed. The early form of the rotary dial used lugs on a finger plate instead of holes. Almon Brown Strowger filed the first patent...
that can be pushed in like a button, which fires the weapon. The single button is used to throw grenades, and to enter and exit the tank.
Description
Playing as a lone soldier, the player's ultimate objective is to lob a hand grenadeHand grenade
A hand grenade is any small bomb that can be thrown by hand. Hand grenades are classified into three categories, explosive grenades, chemical and gas grenades. Explosive grenades are the most commonly used in modern warfare, and are designed to detonate after impact or after a set amount of time...
into the enemy's fort by first fighting off infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
units, then battling an armada of tank
Tank
A tank is a tracked, armoured fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat which combines operational mobility, tactical offensive, and defensive capabilities...
s before finally reaching the opponent's compound.
The player begins with two weapons: a pistol
Pistol
When distinguished as a subset of handguns, a pistol is a handgun with a chamber that is integral with the barrel, as opposed to a revolver, wherein the chamber is separate from the barrel as a revolving cylinder. Typically, pistols have an effective range of about 100 feet.-History:The pistol...
and grenades. The ammunition
Ammunition
Ammunition is a generic term derived from the French language la munition which embraced all material used for war , but which in time came to refer specifically to gunpowder and artillery. The collective term for all types of ammunition is munitions...
supply for both items is unlimited, so there is no need to acquire ammunition during gameplay. Once the player has advanced far enough into enemy territory, there's a "tank warfare" stage in which the player commandeers tanks to fight off the enemy.
There are two types of tanks available: a light tank armed with a machine gun and a heavy tank armed with a cannon. The light tank is more nimble, but can be easily destroyed by the enemy. The heavy tank is slower, but can sustain one hit from any tank. Once the damaged tank is evacuated, the player can jump back in and resume normal operation without any deadly consequence. If a heavy tank is by struck another mortar round, it will be destroyed. With either type of tank, the player must exit the vehicle within a few seconds of being struck by a fatal shot. The tank quickly explodes, and if the player is still occupying it, he loses a life.
The tank battle continues up until the player reaches the enemy's fort. The fort is a brick-barricaded tank which fires mortar rounds while the player attempts to take it out. In order to destroy this tank, the player must toss a grenade over the brick barricade. This requires them to be on foot instead of manning a tank. Once the player has successfully lobbed a grenade into the tank fortress, the tank will explode and an enemy soldier will wave the white flag, signaling surrender
Surrender (military)
Surrender is when soldiers, nations or other combatants stop fighting and eventually become prisoners of war, either as individuals or when ordered to by their officers. A white flag is a common symbol of surrender, as is the gesture of raising one's hands empty and open above one's head.When the...
. The game then starts over with the infantry level, but enemy soldiers become much quicker and deadlier in successive rounds.
Pioneering game
Front Line was one of the first video games to feature a ground combat theme and grenades. Most video games in the early 1980s1980s
File:1980s decade montage.png|thumb|400px|From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, Columbia, lifted off in 1981; American President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev eased tensions between the two superpowers, leading to the end of the Cold War; The Fall of the Berlin Wall in...
centered around battling aliens in space (e.g. Space Invaders
Space Invaders
is an arcade video game designed by Tomohiro Nishikado, and released in 1978. It was originally manufactured and sold by Taito in Japan, and was later licensed for production in the United States by the Midway division of Bally. Space Invaders is one of the earliest shooting games and the aim is to...
, Galaxian
Galaxian
is an arcade game developed by Namco in 1979. It was published by Namco in Japan and was imported to North America by Midway in 1980. A fixed shooter-style game in which the player controls a spaceship at the bottom of the screen and shoots enemies descending in various directions, it was designed...
), eating up dots (e.g. Pac Man and its descendants), or shooting centipedes (e.g. Centipede
Centipede (video game)
Centipede is a vertically-oriented shoot 'em up arcade game produced by Atari, Inc. in 1980. The game was designed by Ed Logg along with Dona Bailey, one of the few female game programmers in the industry at this time. It was also the first arcade coin-operated game to have a significant female...
, Millipede). Military-themed video games before Front Line usually involved vehicular combat, such as tanks or naval vessels, but did not include infantry in its gameplay. Front Line was therefore a pioneering title in the now-popular military gaming genre.
Ports
Following its release in the coin-op arcade platform, the game was ported to both the Atari 2600Atari 2600
The Atari 2600 is a video game console released in October 1977 by Atari, Inc. It is credited with popularizing the use of microprocessor-based hardware and cartridges containing game code, instead of having non-microprocessor dedicated hardware with all games built in...
, ColecoVision
ColecoVision
The ColecoVision is Coleco Industries' second generation home video game console which was released in August 1982. The ColecoVision offered arcade-quality graphics and gaming style, and the means to expand the system's basic hardware...
, and Nintendo Famicom
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
home
Video game console
A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...
consoles in 1984
1984 in video gaming
-Notable releases:* May 10, King's Quest , the first animated adventure game, the first in the King's Quest series, and the first to use the AGI engine.* June 4, Nintendo releases Donkey Kong 3...
. The NES version was released for Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
's Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
service in Japan on June 5, 2007.