Assault Plus

Before I started buying video games, I did a lot of research on the web. Assault isn't a real common game, which made finding information rather hard. On two different occasions, I spotted a reference to a game called "Assault Plus". Odd... I'd never heard of such a thing. Stranger still was that the only information out on the web was an entry in database of video games. (This list later evolved into the site CoinOp.org)

Weeks go by. Slowly I learn that the Playstation version of Assault has a secret area with a Assault Plus hidden there. Very odd- why hidden?

More weeks go by. I've now learned that Assault Plus was released in 1988, the same year as Assault. The reason information was so hard to find is that the game was released only in Japan!

Months go by. Requests for information sit lifeless in the expanse of the Internet. Nothing. Then one day I notice another arcade fan who was looking for a game that was also released in Japan - Crazy Climber 2. A few E-Mails later, and I was in touch with a company in Canada with connections in Japan. (Don't ya just love the Internet?) A very helpful guy named John Robertson was able to track down a circuit board for Assault Plus, and had it shipped to me from Japan.

I received the board, and noticed right away that it look exactly like the classic Assault board. I took this to be a good sign. I opened up my Assault, plugged in the new board, and bingo! Assault Plus was alive and well in my living room!

To my knowledge, I'm the only person outside of Japan to own this game!

What's the cabinet look like? What's the marquee look like? I have no clue. All I received was the game board and a fuzzy photocopy of a Japanese manual. I need help translating the manual!

What's the game like? (section to be finished)

-Two level groups
-Different colors
-minor enemy changes (strength, colors)
-intermission screen
-intro has new music, which can be found unused in the ROMS for the original Assault
-Zero Points Bonus is gone.
-Cocktail mode now works
-Two player mode now works
-The manual describes how to enable stereo sound!

Back to the main page