- Release Date: 1996
- Genre: Shooter
- Style: Shooter with Weapon Peripheral
- Similar Games: Area 51 (IBM PC Compatible), Area 51 (Sega Saturn), Revolution X (Sega Saturn), Area 51 (PlayStation), Lethal Enforcers (Super Nintendo Entertainment System), Revolution X (Super Nintendo Entertainment System), Revolution X (IBM PC Compatible), Revolution X (Sega Genesis), Revolution X (PlayStation), Lethal Enforcers (Arcade), Revolution X (Arcade), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (Arcade), Lethal Enforcers (Sega CD), Lethal Enforcers (Sega Genesis), Time Crisis II (Arcade)
Game Description
Gunblade NY is a 3D shooting game which puts the player in a first-person perspective on the action. Two gamers can team up with their light guns to take on the bad guys. As a gunner on the chopper Gunblade, your job is to take out as many of the terrorists as you can before they get you.~ Brad Cook, All Game Guide
Roots & Influences
This game is a more sophisticated take on the gun-based shoot-em-ups which have always been an Arcade staple. Gunblade NY takes the action one step further by swinging you around a full 360 degrees to take on the bad guys, and it makes full use of the technology which was available in the mid-90s.~ Brad Cook, All Game Guide
Review: Overall
Gunblade NY is a really good game, albeit a very tough one. Like a lot of these kinds of first-person shooters, the premise is a little flaky: you're told something about terrorists taking over Manhattan while a UNGA session is being conducted, and you're a gunner on Gunblade, which is a chopper in the Special Air Assault Force (if such a thing exists). You have two missions to choose from: in the first, you must regain the UN; in the second, you must liberate New York. There's also something called a "score attack re-mix." What it is isn't entirely clear (the explanation of it on the start-up screen is very confusing), but apparently you are awarded points for each of the bad guys who you kill.No matter which session you choose, the bottom line is this: kill or be killed. That's the whole point of this game, and it's actually a pretty hard objective to obtain. The kicker comes when the guys with the anti-aircraft missiles on their shoulders show up. It only takes a few of those to end your game. You can shoot them down, but there are a couple places where you've got three or four guys firing them at you at once. And that was on the easy level.
Difficulty aside, the game plays well. You've got the perspective of the gunner as he sits on the back of the chopper and fires; the gun actually shakes in your hand as you shoot, which is a great touch. If you've ever had problems with motion sickness while playing a game like this, stay away from this one: it swings around in a wild manner. The graphics are well done and, while the characters are a bit too polygonal for my tastes, a quick glance at the release year (1995) will tell you that they're right on par with what game developers were capable of then.
Overall, Gunblade NY is definitely a game worth your time and money. Check it out the next time you're at the Arcade.
~ Brad Cook, All Game Guide
Review: Enjoyment
This game is very tough; your personal enjoyment will vary.~ Brad Cook, All Game Guide
Review: Graphics
Excellent.~ Brad Cook, All Game Guide
Review: Sound
Also excellent; very realistic effects.~ Brad Cook, All Game Guide
Review: Replay Value
Worth playing several times.~ Brad Cook, All Game Guide
Review: Documentation
Everything is explained pretty well except for the "score attack re-mix;" I played the game several times and still don't know what that is.~ Brad Cook, All Game Guide
