~ KNIGHT RIDER SPECIAL ~
Pack-in Video
HuCard
1989
I think there are two reasons this chip frequently gets ripped on: many people don't understand the control scheme and dismiss the title before figuring it out, and some are predisposed to hate the game because it's a Pack-in Video product.
KRS is very reminiscent of fellow "car-action" games Chase H.Q. and S.C.I. in both style and feel. Funnily enough, PCE S.C.I. seems to receive praise whenever it comes up in conversation, even though it has a control scheme similar to KRS's and places players in more situations where such a scheme can feel irritatingly inadequate. KRS, on the other hand, regularly receives lashes for "poor gameplay." In actuality, it plays how a good, solid driving game should (if not quite as well as Chase). You get to perform wild leaps with your vehicle, blast your foes with machine-gun fire and laser beams, and fight bosses such as helicopters and dual motorcyclists. I don't know about anybody else, but I think all of that stuff is pretty darn cool.
Enemies hinder you on the road and bomb you from above.
Blast up the end-of-level bosses.
Jumping allows you to avoid obstacles on the road and is essential for defeating the helicopter boss. If you find that your car "jumps randomly," you're not using the controls properly.
Okay, the intermediary screens aren't much to look at.
Don't fret when you find that you're unable to destroy this armored vehicle. You're actually not supposed to wreck it.
