How to play Commando online
- Move in eight directions: arrow keys
- Fire the machine gun: press Space; you shoot in the direction you are moving
- Throw a grenade: hold Space down; grenades fly up the screen
- Start a new game: F12 (Reset)
- One or two players: F11 (Select)
Gameplay
Your job is to wipe out the enemy army across eight levels. Soldiers come at you from all sides, and the ground is full of palm trees, barricades, bridges and foxholes. Trees can be shot down or used as cover, barricades have to be walked around, and foxholes are best avoided. At the end of each level stands a fortress. Once you have killed enough of its guards, you enter it and it is destroyed, and the next level begins. After level eight the game starts again from level one, but faster and harder.
The machine gun never runs out of ammunition. Grenades are limited: you start with three and get four more from each grenade box you pick up. You start with three lives and earn an extra one for every 10,000 points.
| Action | Points |
|---|---|
| Soldier shot with the machine gun | 200 |
| Soldier hit with a grenade | 500 |
| Tree destroyed | 500 |
| Grenade box collected | 1,000 |
Tips
- Tap, don’t hold, for the gun. Holding Space throws a grenade, so short taps keep you from wasting them.
- Use grenades on groups ahead of you. They only travel up the screen and are worth more than bullets, so save them for soldiers bunched in front.
- Always grab grenade boxes. Each gives four grenades and 1,000 points.
- Shoot trees when it is quiet. A tree is worth as much as a grenade kill, but it also removes cover you might need later.
History
The arcade Commando was designed at Capcom by Tokuro Fujiwara, and its hero is a soldier called Super Joe. The 2600 manual does not use that name or tell any story; it simply sends you in to destroy the enemy. Activision released this version in 1988, when it was bringing several arcade licences to the ageing console. An Atari 7800 version by Sculptured Software followed in 1989.
Similar games to play next
- Ikari Warriors – another scrolling arcade shooter where you fight on foot
- Front Line – Taito’s arcade shooter about a lone soldier on foot
- River Raid II – also released by Activision in 1988 and programmed at Imagineering
- Double Dragon – a later Activision arcade conversion