Operation Wolf

n/a

Operation Wolf
System(s): Sega Master System
Publisher: Sega
Developer: Taito
Peripherals supported: Light Phaser
Genre: Arcade
Number of players: 1
Release Date RRP Code EU 1990 7039 FR 1990 329F329 7039 PT 1991 MSJ7039 UK 1990 £29.9929.99 7039 AU 1990 7039 AU (Light Phaser bundle) 199x FLIG02SEP AU (Action Pack) 199x FACT05SEC BR 1991-06
Non-Sega versions Amiga Amstrad CPC Arcade Atari ST Commodore 64 FM Towns IBM PC MSX Nintendo Entertainment System PC Engine ZX Spectrum

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Operation Wolf is an arcade game released by Taito in 1987. It was ported by Taito and published by Sega for the Sega Master System. Operation Wolf is a shooting game which makes use of the Light Phaser peripheral, however it can also be played by moving a cursor around the screen with a Control Pad.

Players will take control of former Green Beret-turned-Mercenary Roy Adams who is hired by US Government to save five US citizens who are taken hostage by the new communist government of fictional South American country named Cherigo. Unwilling to repeat the failure at "Taran" (obviously a reference to Vietnam), US President (who looks suspiciously like Ronald Reagan) decides to sent a mercenary instead of sending the regular army. In the European Master System manual, all references to United States is removed. US is replaced by another fictional country named "Carmea" and player is sent to rescue former "pro-Carmean" president of Cherigo and Carmean embassy staff.

Interestingly, Master System version uses cover art for the sequel, "Operation Thunderbolt". Adams' partner Hardy Jones can be seen in the cover art.

Gameplay

Levels

	Communications Center
	Soldiers: 55 Helicopters: 4 Tanks: 5 Completing this level will lower the amount of enemies player will face in the subsequent levels.
	Jungle
	Soldiers: 60 Patrol Boats: 8 Tanks: 8 Completing this level will reveal the location of the Prison Camp, which is normally not accessible at the beginning of the game. Helicopters are replaced with Patrol Boats in this level.
	Village
	Soldiers: 45 Helicopters:6 Tanks: 3 Completing this level will recover a large number of health.
	Ammo Dump
	Soldiers: 50 Helicopters: 7 Tanks: 5 Completing this level will refill the both ammunation and rocket supply.
	Prison Camp
	Soldiers: 75 Helicopters: 12 Tanks: 8 Primary objective. During this level, five hostages will attempt to cross the battle field. If they can reach leftmost part of the screen, they will be considered rescued. Saving the hostages is NOT necessary to finish the game but every dead hostage will lower the overall score at the end of the game.
	Airport
	Soldiers: 85 Helicopters: 11 Tanks: 4 Final Mission. Players will attempt to survive as hostages from previous levels will now attempt to reach the US Air Force transport plane on the left side of the screen. At the end of the level, a Mi-24 Hind attack helicopter will attack and players must shoot the heavily armed and armored helicopter to finish the game.

In addition to these levels above, player will be ambushed by Cherigo's anti-partisan forces randomly once between the levels.

Power Ups

Power ups can be acquired by shooting them.

	Magazine
	Acquiring these magazines will increase ammunation supply. If players run out of ammo, they will have fire single shots. Max: 9
	Rocket
	Fired using the 1st button, Rockets will cause heavy damage in a small area. It is recommended to spare rockets for helicopters. Max: 9
	Recovery Drink
	This pep drink will recover 5 blocks of health.
	Dynamite
	Not exactly a power up, shooting this dynamite will cause an explosion that will kill anything nearby. Useful for destroying tanks.
	"FREE" Bullet
	This power up will give player unlimited ammunation for a short time.

Enemies

	Enemy Infantry
	Cherigo maintains a small and somewhat poorly trained infantry force. Many enemy soldiers can be killed with a single shot.
	Paratroopers
	Cherigan Airborne forces appearently trained in the ways of firing their weapons while landing with a parachute.
	Artillerymen
	These troops will throw grenades at you. Grenades can be shoot while they are in the air.
	Handgunners
	These "brave" (read: stupid) troops will appear in front of you and shoot you from the close range with their pistols.
	Special Forces
	These gray-clad elite troops will roll around, making them harder to hit. They also take two hits to kill.
	Executioners
	These soldiers will attempt to kill the hostages with the knives they are carrying. They must not be allowed to reach hostages. They pose no threat to the player.
	Russian Soldiers
	"Advisors" from Soviet Union, these large, blonde soldiers wear body armor and can only be killed with head shots. They spray the player with light machineguns that can cause serious damage. They only appear in Ammo Dump level.
	BRDM-2 "Tanks"
	Even though manual calls them tanks, these are 4W armored vehicles with machinegun turrets. While not as much as a serious threat to the player compared to the helicopters, they can still cause significant damage.
	MD 500 Helicopters
	Either purchased by previous Pro-US government of Cherigo, or perhaps unlicensed North Korean copies, these fast and suprisingly well armored helicopters will swoop down from the air and spray the player with bullets. They are biggest threat players will face.
	Patrol Boats
	In the Jungle level, helicopters are replaced with these fast boats. They are easier to destroy compared to the helicopters.
	Trucks
	These 6W truck are not a threat to the player and only there for points.
	Mi-24 Hind
	A gift from Soviet Union to their new Cherigan allies, this flying monster will be the final enemy player will face. Its 12.7mm machinegun can kill player within seconds.

Magazine articles

Main article: Operation Wolf/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

Print advert in Computer & Video Games (UK) #103: "June 1990" (1990-05-16)
also published in:

• ACE (UK) #33: "June 1990" (1990-05-xx)

Print advert in Computer & Video Games (UK) #104: "July 1990" (1990-06-16)

Print advert in Computer & Video Games (UK) #105: "August 1990" (1990-07-16)
also published in:

• Computer & Video Games (UK) #106: "September 1990" (1990-08-16)

Print advert in Cumhuriyet (TR) #1991-03-09 (1991-03-09)

Physical scans

Sega Retro Average

Publication Score Source Ação Games (BR) 75 Complete Guide to Consoles (UK) 89 №2, p94/95 Complete Guide to Consoles (UK) 88 Computer & Video Games (UK) 90 Game Mania (UK) 88 The Games Machine (UK) 90 Joystick (FR) 78 №8, p115 Micromanía (segunda época) (ES) 80 №29 Mean Machines Sega (UK) 88 Player One (FR) 74 S: The Sega Magazine (UK) 91 S: The Sega Magazine (UK) 90 Sega Power (UK) 100 Sega Pro (UK) 80 Zero (UK) 82

	86
Based on 15 reviews

Sega Retro Average

Publication Version Score Ação Games (BR) 75 Complete Guide to Consoles (UK) 89 Complete Guide to Consoles (UK) 88 Console XS (UK) PAL 73 Computer & Video Games (UK) 90 Game Mania (UK) 88 The Games Machine (UK) 90 Joystick (FR) 78 Micromanía (segunda época) (ES) 80 Mean Machines Sega (UK) 88 Player One (FR) 74 S: The Sega Magazine (UK) PAL 91 S: The Sega Magazine (UK) PAL 90 Sega Power (UK) PAL 100 Sega Pro (UK) 80 Sega Pro (UK) PAL 73 Zero (UK) 82

	84
Based on 17 reviews

Operation Wolf

Master System, EU
Cover
Cart Manual

Master System, EU ® variant
Cover

Master System, EU (8 languages)
Cover

Master System, PT
Cover

Master System, PT (Tec Toy)
Cover

Master System, AU
Cover
Cart

Master System, AU (Hotline sticker)
Cover

Master System, AU (Light Phaser bundle)
Cover
Cart

Master System, AU (Action Pack)
Cover
Cart

Master System, AU (Action Pack; Barcode sticker)
Cover

Master System, AU (Sega Promo)
Cover

Master System, BR
Cover
Cart

Technical information

ROM dump status

System	Hash	Size	Build Date	Source	Comments
?	CRC32 205caae8 MD5 2ca2064302f51f724e1f2593369a0696 SHA-1 064040452b6bacc75443dae7916a0fd573f1600d	256kB		Cartridge (EU)

References

NEC Retro has more information related to Operation Wolf