Rolling Thunder: The Complete History - SGR

[@munnypantz]

I believe this game is greatly influenced by the 80s manga/anime series City Hunter.

[@slopesgameroom]

+munnypantz oooooo thanks for clearing that up. Can anyone else confirm?

[@RexVergstrong]

Could be either City Hunter or Lupin III. I'd say it's an amalgamation of those two and maybe a little bit of Golgo 13.

[@RexVergstrong]

Namco released a Lupin III game afterwards which plays a lot like this. It was called "Lupin III: Pandora no Isan"

[@Wartooth91]

very striking resemblance to the manga series Cobra.

[@C0ldIron]

That's what I was thinking. Cobra as a lot of the same feel as this. In fact when you look at the player characters art and a picture of Cobra you can see a lot of similarities. There is also the fact that you use two guns which cobra had. Even the captive girl looks like one of the girls of the week from it.

[@ScottWozniak]

Namco made Rolling Thunder after being inspired by Taito's Elevator Action, and then Taito made Elevator Action Returns which definitely looks inspired by elements in the Rolling Thunder games. If you've never played Elevator Action Returns, definitely give it a try. There was a brilliant port for Sega Saturn. The game oozes quality. Love your channel, Daniel! 👍🏻

[@slopesgameroom]

+Scott Wozniak thanks scott i really appreciate it. And defo gonna chexk that one out :D

[@SevenForce1]

The arcade original Elevator Action Returns was part of the Taito Legends 2 compilation. Came out on both ps2 and Xbox.

[@HOGuru]

One of my all-time favorites. Such lush animation for the time - and that little detail of him grabbing the railing while vaulting over it. It's just gorgeous.

[@slopesgameroom]

+The Hidden Object Guru i know exactly what u meen. And fair play to the home computter releases for at least trying to emulate that style

[@friendlyoctopus3512]

This is one of my fav series on youtube, keep up the great work.

[@n64glennplant]

Saw title, hit liked, that's how I roll...ing thunder. Loved rolling thunder 😍

[@slopesgameroom]

+N64 Glenn Plant you are to kind my good sir

[@5HlNOBI]

I too found Rolling Thunder decades after I was a Shinobi fan. These games are awesome! Brilliant video, Daniel!

[@Ben-rb4sz]

Another fine addition to the series Daniel! Would love to see a complete history of Paper Boy or Outrun games if there's enough content to fill a video. Paper Boy was the first game I couldn't find due to it being sold out in the shops. Massive success, least I thought it was but I found it so god damn hard.

[@GrappleVision]

R&R with SGR... Perfect time for an upload man. Thank you.

[@slopesgameroom]

+GrappleVision got a couple more lined up :)

[@FallicIdol]

I'm like you. I didn't pay much attention to these games growing up, but found this on an arcade machine a couple of years ago and was instantly hooked.

[@slopesgameroom]

Check the rest of the complete history series here... goo.gl/JjBIHi

[@davejohn3600]

I had Rolling Thunder 2 for the Genesis. Great two player game! I finally played the first one years later on a collection of games for the PS2.

[@saturncrush]

That game got crazy burn in my genesis. Instant classic. For some reason, I could play that game over and over and it feel fresh every time.

[@onaretrotip]

Loved Rolling Thunder back in the day, but knew very little about it, so that was really interesting! Great video, Dan.

[@bartoman2]

Awesome video as usual, I really like your retrospectives. I remember I could beat Rolling Thunder with one credit when I was a kid, good times ;)

[@slopesgameroom]

+bartoman2 really??? 1 credit??? All salute bartoman2 Thats damn impressive

[@bartoman2]

ahah, well, as you said, back then I trained by playing it a lot and spending lots of credits ;)

[@Larry]

The closest manga I can think of that this was based on would be Lupin III, but he's a gentlemen thief, rather than a spy persay. Oh, maybe Golgo 13 or Crying Freeman.

[@slopesgameroom]

+Larry Bundy Jr yep all these have been suggested. In all honesty retro manga stuff isnt really my thing unless its unjected into the games i play. Might need to check these out tho :)

[@johndewberryiii9925]

Some great anime there. I agree it’s definitely got some influences some 007 the enemies look a lot like foot soldiers on TMNT not sure what predated. I can feel some City Hunter Golgo vibes for sure. Lupin was a thief but I could totally see him and his team in a game like this.

[@johndewberryiii9925]

I actually just played rolling thunder at an actual arcade. Only got to level 3 but the animations are beautifully done the action is smooth. I can see where sunset riders got its influence at least one. I didn’t even make the connection to shinobi though partly because I had never played prior but I enjoyed it a lot more.

[@snkfan7506]

Great video. BTW - That Robert Garcia background from Art of Fighting 2 looks good at 1:24.

[@MrLondonGo]

great video, kudos for researching so well on a franchise for which you didn't have nostalgia. Just needed a Guru Larry cameo to make me cuppeth runneth over.

[@slopesgameroom]

+mrlondongo he will make an appearence in the comments hahaha

[@davidkoblentz]

I loved this game and played it back in the day... the timing was such a pain in the ass (jumping etc) !!!! great video man

[@MorrisseyMuse]

Rolling Thunder 2...I swear the devs of Dark Souls took notes from that! lol Great vid as always thanks Daniel! love the nostalgia!

[@slopesgameroom]

+CEWIIH huge thanks buddy. So glad u enjoyed it

[@BlastProcessing]

Great video! Played the hell out of Rolling Thunder on my uncle's Amiga as a kid, nice to learn more about the franchise.

[@slopesgameroom]

+Blast Processing glad ya liked it mate

[@pferreira1983]

I need to play the Amiga version. I'll take the slow framerate.

[@billdagrasshawking]

the local grocer had rolling thunder, altered beast an space invaders....they were the first cabinets I ever played. I'm kind of amazed they never reskinned it for Austin powers.

[@charlesajones77]

Played this a LOT in my arcade gaming days. Never could beat it though. The music in this game is iconic.

[@JLOCLamborghiniFan88]

Amazing video! I freaking love the Rolling Thunder series of games. The original is my favorite but I also love Rolling Thunder 2!

[@Arcadiality]

Good work Dan. Showing peeps how a well tuned vid should be put together. Played the game a shit tonne on MAME many years ago.

[@slopesgameroom]

+Arcadiality thanks buddy :) its taken a long time to perfect my style and i think there is still plenty of room for improvement

[@fmsyntheses]

Now this is the sort of game we need to be making into a movie

[@patrickwebb7311]

Great video as always Mr. DJ Slopes.

[@mikearanelli2392]

Awesome 👍 you nailed it again! Great job bro such a blast from the past!

[@drewknee7381]

I'm surprised Counter Spy wasn't (at least) mentioned here. Great video all the same. Thoroughly enjoyed this one!

[@akathesk]

I never realized rolling thunder had so much in common with early shinobi... Rolling thunder 2 on the genesis was hard as fuck T.T gave me early castlevania feelings ESPECIALLY the bats part

[@slopesgameroom]

+SKay yeah i think #3 is the easiest to just pick up n play. Just so sad about the 2 player option

[@salliewagenblatt5188]

Absolutely love these complete game history series hope you still do mortal kombat resident evil and street fighter history's at some point

[@onldhes]

is Lupin the 3rd the inspiration?

[@AcidRP]

My thoughts too, at least the main character is based on him.

[@theivace9705]

When I first saw the first game, I thought it was Lupin. lol

[@AcidRP]

namco had already released a golgo 13 game for the sg-1000 at this point. still possible though

[@theivace9705]

I'd say Lupin because of the red shirt and scrawny character design.

[@TheT3rr0rMask]

Namco made a Lupin game for the Famicom called Pandora's Legacy, which had the same platforming and shooting elements from Rolling Thunder. You could pick Lupin(shoots slow, limited range but can use gadget pick ups), Jigen(rapid fire, shoot while jumping and far range) or Goemon(runs faster, uses his sword, plays like Ninja Gaiden). As for Rolling Thunder, I'd say the inspiration was James Bond- the music is very classic spy movie compared to Lupin's more jazzy sound, and it has a ridiculous main villain. The sequels have even more Bond similarities in them. And you guys mentioned Golgo 13- definitely possible. I love Golgo 13 to death and besides guy with gun it's not so Golgo. The MD cover art of the main character looks a lot like Golgo though

[@NatashaOConnor1980]

I love your videos, darling. Your voice is captivating and very interesting to listen to. Fabulous work

[@slopesgameroom]

ahhhhhhhhhh cheers natasha

[@karaslam]

Great episode Daniel! I want to learn more about the Onimusha franchise as (like Rolling Thunder) I've never got round to playing any of the games yet!

[@TheT3rr0rMask]

I love the original arcade and NES game. Briefly played the sequels and they were awesome too! Rips offs like Codename Thunder and Lupin: Pandora's Legacy(also by Namco I should add) are also fun as hell! Then as a Bond fan I love an action game with a spy flare! Another awesome video, man!

[@hollywood21639]

I had the Tengen NES version, the artwork for the cartridge is burned into my brain forever.

[@zkc8]

Great video, the third part reminds me of Sly Spy, also a classic arcade game.

[@htak2010]

Oh my. This game. This game. So many feels. Thank you so much for the video, my nostalgia bones are rightfully ticked. To explain: growing up, aged around 5-9, the one console I had was the NES (well, the Brazilian offshoot called "Phantom System" - maybe you could do a complete history of NES offshoot consoles? that would rule). And to play on that, I had a grand total of a half dozen games: the crappy Ghostbusters game; the crappy Pacman port; the rather fun Super Sprint racing game; a zapper game (Crimebusters); and Rolling Thunder (only later I'd get a Dizzy game - I fully expect to see a Dizzy complete hiostory from, ya, ya hear?!?) So, imagine this little boy, playing one of the hardest games on the NES. Over and over again. For about five years. I was eventually able to reach the third level, but never further. The music is ingrained in my mind forever. Probably the enemy patterns, too. The grenade-throwing guys in the start of level 2 were probably my #1 personal trainers for timing and hand-eye coordination to this day. I remember trying this again in an emulator, some ten years ago.... and it was still hard as hell, as an adult. Other highlights of my NES childhood: Battletoads (rented several times), no need to comment on the jetski level. Mega Man 3 (rented multiple times), don't think I was ever able to defeat even a single boss. With bad games and great but awfulyl hard games being practically my entire experience gaming as a toddler, I suppose it's either a miracle, or pure masochism, that I stuck with videogames all the way to getting my SNES at age 9. Then Super Mario World happened, and the rest is history.

[@electricdreamschiptune]

They had Rolling Thunder in my local liesure center in 1986 along With Salamander and Side Arms. All classics that I have liked ever since.

[@SwankeyMonkey]

Rolling Thunder = James Bond vs Cobra in Shinobi-world.

[@WhiteTigerlilyFilms]

Thank you Daniel, used to see this on London Bridge station inside the sandwich shop on the platform back when I was a kid. I believe the Manga is the Lupin the 3rd series. Awesome vid fella.

[@slopesgameroom]

+WhiteTigerlilyFilms not a problem buddy :) glad it was able to bring back those classic arcade vibes

[@RonnieBarzel]

Thanks for this video, Daniel! I love these videos about topics I'm only vaguely/superficially familiar with (esp. with your European viewpoint). EDIT: And a "second!" vote for a video on "Elevator Action"!

[@Drewbe821]

Maybe Golgo 13?

[@IAmKenkira]

That's what I was thinking to

[@johnnyjohnson3215]

I recall seeing someone say exactly that in a youtube review - i don't remember who it was and which video though. But yeah, it makes sense. The whole style and movement of the protagonist looks A LOT like golgo 13. And he is also a boring blank slate, just like golgo. :p

[@redcrimson1028]

Andrew Beasanski Golgo 13 was another good game

[@HHog]

I think the protagonist has more of a resemblance to Lupin III than Duke Togo, if you ask me.

[@VulpesHilarianus]

My thought as well. Though it does feel more like Go Nagai than Takao Saito or Kazuhiko Kato what with the ridiculously outfitted enemies and tech heavy environment. Might be they pulled inspiration from all three.

[@Randomgamingplus]

Great video. Been a long time since playing Rolling Thunder. Inspiration? I was thinking Golgo 13 myself. Brought back some great arcade frustration but it was fun. Can' t wait for Elevator Action History.

[@slopesgameroom]

+Random Gaming Plus i am not sure if i will do elevator action anytime soon due to talking about it in this and the fact it would be a crazy long episode

[@KiddKhao5]

We need a reboot of Shinobi and Rolling thunder for 2021

[@fuzzmountain7583]

Great stuff. Really enjoy your videos.

[@slopesgameroom]

+Steve Floyd cheers steve

[@HossTheSlop]

Elevator Action! Man...that's a blast from the past. Dropped many a quarter on that one back in the day!

[@orllyfools14X8]

My aunt bought this for me on NES and i loved it. Then when i was like 12 i played this on an arcade cabinet at a legion hall during a wedding. It was so good.

[@cup_noodls]

the soundtrack of a secret agent rolling thunder 3 where 90% of the song names start with "DAMN"

[@SupremeNerd]

I enjoyed that. Thank you for this history

[@RealziesCuts]

Tough games, ❤️ the series 💫

[@VJFranzK]

The Lupin III movies "Mystery of Mamo" as well as "Castle of Cagliostro" seem to be strong influences. (This is even more evident in RT 2, with Leila dressed exactly like Fujiko.)

[@SpoonyHou]

The first game was clearly inspired by Lupin the 3rd series. Check it out (at least the Miyazaki movie, Castle of Cagliostro).

[@valgalder]

I'm glad Code Name: Viper got a mention.. definitely also an underrated and overlooked game itself.

[@strain42]

My only real connection to this series came from the official Mappy web cartoon that was done by Scott Kurtz and Kris Straub where Albatross was a spy who threw on a pigtail wig and told everyone his name was Codename Albatross and he was from Chicago, Michigan. It was a good time.

[@YuukiTakemoto1996]

Oh, yeah. That. That ruined my childhood.

[@illzeeski]

nice, rolling thunder is in my top 5 of arcade games, played it all the time growing up. however, i was unaware that the famicom version had additional sound processing, i've only played the tengen version. so thanks for that info, i picked up a copy for the fc! :)

[@Wardner213]

Loved this game back in the 80's. Easily one of my top 10 of all time.

[@126Face]

Excellent, as always.

[@slopesgameroom]

+Gevans cheers buddy

[@designatedpiledriver8216]

I had this on the speccy and currently on a mame emulator. love this game. brings back good memories everytime.

[@slopesgameroom]

+hand pump a bloody great game

[@danmanx2]

I always enjoyed this game. It used to be at my local Jamesway store way, way back. It was a ton of fun!

[@saintjasin]

used to ride my bike to the next city to play this in the late 80's... Great video. But honestly, for the people new to this title, just play the OG on MAME and all the praise Daniel gave will be well understood.

[@chrisw5654]

I miss Rolling Thunder 2. I used to enjoy playing it on my Sega Mega Drive. It a shame the Rolling Thunder trilogy series has never been released in a Namco videogame collection whereas Sega's Streets of Rage series has featured in various Sega videogame collections and have even been standalone games on modern systems.

[@dextrodemon]

i had a look on the japanese version of internet, and there's no rumors of it being based on a manga there, so rumor is probably just a mix of it looking kinda like all those 70s manga in the genre, lupin III etc. (was a popular genre in hong kong cinema too) and that old boxing manga where the main characters signature move is called rolling thunder.

[@Yusuke_Denton]

Had fun with this game as a bored child waiting at the laundromat. They had this, Ninja Gaiden arcade, and Ninja Gaiden NES on a PlayChoice-10 machine. I forgot about it for a long time until MAME came into existence and I rediscovered it. And funny you mentioned Elevator Action - was going to suggest you take a look at Elevator Action 2. Thanks for the complete history!

[@slopesgameroom]

+Zabeus not a problem dude :) had a lot of fun with this one

[@NouveauArtPunk]

This gives me such a Bond meets 70's/80's Seinen Manga feel. Really neat looking game.

[@BurnRoddy]

This franchise had a huge impact in the gaming industry first inspired many many games from Lupin the 3rd to Golgo 13 which are basically other spy games. And then branched into other formats like Data East Robocop and Bad Dudes, SpartanX2, Shinobi, etc. AndI know Data East's Sly Spy came out before the second game even but I consider it part of the franchise: 1 - Codename Viper 2 - Rolling Thunder 3 - Sly Spy 4 - Rolling Thunder II 5 - Rolling Thunder III

[@SirRosser]

Hey, cool! For a while, there, I thought I was crazy thinking this looked similar to Code Name: Viper! Thanks for clearing it up!

[@TheBigDynamo]

You know what the most amazing thing about Rolling Thunder is? It has three other games that play just like it: Arcade Batman Arcade Shinobi NES Codename Viper

[@Lord_Deimos]

How about some Sunset Riders love?

[@slopesgameroom]

+Tyrant quite a few peeps have asked for this :)

[@JohnDoe-fi9li]

Tyrant I consider Wild West COW Boys of Moo Mesa part of if because of how similar they are, haha.

[@FallicIdol]

It basically is the spiritual successor with a license nobody cared about.

[@sylvestercrowley8909]

Sunset rider's is the shit!🤘

[@johndewberryiii9925]

I love sunset riders I wish an arcade port was released for current consoles

[@karaslam]

It's the game series I wanted reviewed next in your series of game series reviews.

[@LastGamer]

Namco staff saw A view to A Kill in the movies then made rolling thunder a few months later, I had first hand information on this.

[@slopesgameroom]

+Last Gamer ahhhhh wow. Thanks bud :D

[@YouOpaOpa]

Funny how later Elevator Action Returns seemed to take inspiration on Rolling Thunder with their character designs and settings.

[@mdh2os7]

I have the original Arcade game with service and operation manuals. Even the coin slots still work.

[@sams1170]

The Sega Mega Drive version of this game was hard as balls, i could never get past the second level lol.

[@pferreira1983]

You're telling me.

[@Blurgleflargle]

An Elevator Action episode would be much appreciated, esp. considering that for the sequel, Elevator Action Returns, Taito pretty much turned the tables on Namco and liberally took inspiration from Rolling Thunder.

[@mr_beezlebub3985]

I used to play Rolling Thunder on one of Namco's arcade collections on PS2. I loved it

[@slopesgameroom]

+Mr_Beezlebub my understanding is that there ate 2 slightly different arcade releases and that is the 2nd one. I think its only the audio and title screen that has changed tho

[@reagandow850]

I lost a lot of quarters as a kid in the arcades to this machine. It ate a ton of my allowance each week!!

[@MrLondonGo]

Thank You! Being a few years older, I do actually get nostalgic with this. Arcade memories!! Yours a Rolling Thunder fan!!

[@nayyarrashid4661]

One of the first games i played on arcade when it came to our village in early 90s

[@Cornerdweler]

Rolling thunder for nes was definitely a hidden gem back then. I remember it was always available at the rental store. No other kids I knew played it. It was extra special to me. Still a great game to play.

[@MinecraftSteveTVShow]

wasnt ever reallly a fan of this series of games but this was a great video to watch yet again. bot long bow till the gta history!!

[@respect4all759]

Please please keep doing these videos!

[@slopesgameroom]

+Raw Chita got another lined up for sunday

[@megaben99]

Time crisis is not a sequel to rolling thunder but a spiritual successor to rolling thunder

[@JomasterTheSecond]

The manga might be Golgo 13, City Hunter or Lupin the 3rd, not sure... They're all givin' me those sort of vibes.

[@kenwheeler3637]

I've been playing the NES port a lot lately. I love that the second time through the levels are a bit different but damn they are super challenging.

[@malant2719]

Been playing rolling thunder 2 via the Nintendo switch. Plus i downloaded the ost. Im baffled.....the fact that it originated in the arcades makes me wonder if any one got far enough to hear the full songs on any given stage without eventually dying

[@billbillings913]

Definitely cover Elevator Action at some point. I played a ton of it in the arcades in the 80's. Probably one of my top 3 arcade games.

[@Tool0GT92]

Every new complete history video spawns 10 new ones.

[@MellowGaming]

Nice stuff. The similarities with Shinobi are so obvious now. Doubt I even clocked that as a kid. Playing the 2nd and 3rd Rolling Thunder games on the Mega Drive are some proper good nostalgic memories for me. Was always terrible at them but they were great. Had some nice animation for the time too. This is one of those games that should get a modern HD remake/reboot done. Just got outbid on the Xbox 360 Namco Museum collection that has the original on it. Now I'm a little annoyed at myself for not bidding higher.

[@malant2719]

Namco museum is finally released today. Bought it with rolling thunder 2 in mind. While I like the megadrive version alot but the music wasn't as good as the arcade soundtrack. The first game is also on the compilation

[@ЧеширКотовский-к1х]

Excellent video, as always) I like the idea of this games, but difficulty is brutal. You either know them inside out, or you are dead! And BTW, Code name Viper made by Capcom, not Namco

[@KesMonkey]

Great video. I love Rolling Thunder (not quite as much as Shinobi though). Subscribed. BTW, the "ai" in Taito sounds like "eye" not "ay". :)

[@malant2719]

rolling thunder 2 arcade is coming to the nintendo switch via a namco museum compilation which includes the first game. Plus dig dug, pacman etc....

[@tonilarios]

Please, whenever u can, talk about Mr. Nutz. I had no idea of its existance untill i played the gameboy color port on a bootleg 33 in 1 cartridge i bougth the other and i was amazed. Its simply one of the greatest obscure gems ive ever seen in my life and im sorry i never knew about it when i was a kid.

[@CrossoverGameReviews]

I second this.

[@slopesgameroom]

+Toni Larios #WatchThisSpace

[@pferreira1983]

Mr Nutz? Play the MD game, it's better than the GBC version.

[@SeekerLancer]

One of my favorite franchises that definitely doesn't get the love and respect it deserves. I only wish it had gotten a better port back in the day. At least 2 and 3 were phenomenal on the Genesis. Props for suggesting the Famicom version over the Tengen NES one. I'm always informing people of how much better the music is. Codename Viper is a solid game, one of the best shameless clones of Rolling Thunder. It's a NES hidden gems nobody talks about.

[@SwainyAtRetroAsylum]

It's a pitty that you didn't mention Thunder Jaws which was the un-official sequel by Atari who set to work on their own game after they published the original Rolling Thunder arcade machine in the USA and Namco decided to publish Rolling Thunder 2 without them. Anyway, a great video as always.

[@slopesgameroom]

+Dean Swain i didnt know ghis huge thanks for the tip :)

[@SwainyAtRetroAsylum]

Daniel Ibbertson No worries, like I said it's not a official sequel so most people don't realise.

[@jeffdavis6657]

I know this is an old post, but Rolling Thunder was always to me a James Bond game.

[@KeithMyers2022]

my first time with this game was on the Namco 40th anniversary complation for PC

[@FirstNameLastName-kt3zn]

I love Elevator Action. I was introduced to it by my uncle.

[@devjock]

Oh yeah I'm definitely an Ayako Saso fanboy. So many good music scores!

[@slopesgameroom]

+devjock probably my fav female chiptune artist

[@Ziko577]

Here's her whole discography: vgmdb.net/artist/298

[@pasmater3286]

The inspiration must be Archer... Oh wait, it might be the other way around?!