OVERVIEW
Probably by far one of the best and most original games to appear at the time for the Atari ST and Commodore Amiga, Hostage: The Rescue Mission was one of the best Infogrames titles to ever come out.
This game upon boot up started out with heart pounding music, featuring heavy bass and drums, showing a vehicle pull up to an embassy (no specific country was ever named for the embassy), and six terrorists jump out of the van and each run up into the building. Once this completes, then a heavy guitar kicks in, and the game officially starts.
You lead a team of three SAS style guys that must infiltrate the embassy, kill the terrorists, and rescue the hostages before time runs out.
THE GAME
What
makes this game unique? The variety of game play. The first mission (out of three total missions that make up the entire game) has the player moving his SAS team in position. The player can only move one team member at a time, but toggling between members is what makes the game possible. You can only move each member so far, all the while spot lights are moving about the screen. If your character is in the spot light at any time (whether running or hiding), the terrorists open fire and you could lose one of your three men. Once all three men are in place, the game moves onto the second mission.
The second mission has you taking one of your two SAS members and scaling down the side of the embassy. Care must be taken not to scale too fast or your SAS member falls off. You must also not be seen by the terrorists, or you could be shot and killed.
While this is happening, you also maintain a marksman who can shoot through the windows at shadows (who may be terrorists or hostages). Care must be taken here not to shoot the wrong person including your own guy.
Once at an appropriate window with no terrorists in view, mission three begins with you bursting through the window and going into a pseudo first person mode where you traverse the embassy and shoot terrorists but not the hostages.
If you lose all of your men at any point or kill a hostage on accident, the game ends.
By far and away a great game that should have been longer and produced sequels.
The game was ported to the Atari ST, Commodore 64, PC and NES.
