Falcon (video game)

Falcon is a combat flight simulator video game and the first official entry (not counting the 1984's F-16 Fighting Falcon) in the Falcon series of the F-16 jet fighter's simulators by Spectrum HoloByte. Originally developed by Sphere for Macintosh and MS-DOS in 1987 and ported to several platforms between 1988 and 1992, the game earned commercial success and critical acclaim.

Falcon
DOS cover art by Chris Butler and William Ervin
Developer(s)Sphere, Inc.
Rowan Software (Amiga, ST)
Turbo Technologies (TG-16)
Publisher(s)Spectrum HoloByte
Mirrorsoft (Amiga, CDTV, ST)
Designer(s)Gilman Louie
Mark Johnson
Artist(s)Bob Coston
Jody Sather
Jeff Stokol
SeriesFalcon
Platform(s)Macintosh, MS-DOS, Amiga, Atari ST, PC-98, Commodore CDTV, TurboGrafx-16
Release1987-1992
Genre(s)Combat flight simulator
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer
(up to two players via link-up)

Gameplay and development history
The Atari ST version of Falcon

The game was originally developed by Sphere, Inc. for the Macintosh and PC in 1987. Rowan Software ported Falcon for Spectrum HoloByte to the Atari ST in 1988 and Amiga in 1989, and the version for the CDTV was also published by Spectrum HoloByteand Mirrorsoft in 1992. A Sega Genesis version intended to be compatible with the unreleased TeleGenesis Modem peripheral was planned but never released.[1][2] Turbo Technologies furthermore developed a less complicated version for the TurboGrafx-16 published by Spectrum HoloByte in 1992. A canceled Super NES version was also planned for early 1993.[3] An Atari Jaguar version was also in development and planned to be published by Spectrum HoloByte in 1994 but it was never released for unknown reasons.[4][5][6] A version for PC-98 was released in 1988 titled F-16 Fighting Falcon 2.

In the original Falcon, the players have their choice of flying one of 12 missions - with awards for flying missions at higher skill levels. There is a choice of different ground attack and air-to-air weapons, although these are also limited by several factors. For dogfighting, AIM-9J missiles are not as reliable as newer AIM-9L missiles - and are useless for head-on attack - but were typically the only missiles available. Because they are guided, AGM-65 missiles are easier to use than "iron dumb bombs" like the Mk 84, but ineffective against strengthened targets. An ECM pod provides defense against enemy missiles, but occupies an external hardpoint that can be used for additional weapons or fuel. The enemy occupies the western areas of the game's playable map - itself a large square divided into 9 smaller squares. Enemy targets were fixed sites on the ground. For defense, the unnamed enemy was limited to MiG-21 interceptors, and ground-launched missiles - either the SA-2s, which are launched from identified and fixed sites on the ground, or the SA-7s, which could be fired from portable launchers and can therefore appear anywhere.

Compute! joked in 1989 that Falcon "seemed harder to fly than the real plane". That year Spectrum Holobyte released an update that reportedly made control and landings much easier.[7]

The Atari ST and Amiga versions of Falcon feature a semi-dynamic campaign where the player can roam the airspace, sweep for hostile aircraft, and attack ground targets. Destroyed buildings and SAM sites remain destroyed for fixed period of time, and hostile and friendly forces engage each other on the ground back and forth. Both of these versions have two expansion sets for them, Falcon Operation: Counterstrike and Falcon Operation: Firefight (released in Europe as Falcon Mission Disk Volume 2) in 1989-1990.

Reception

Computer Gaming World in 1987 called Falcon "one of the most detailed and accurate flight simulators on the microcomputer market today." It reported that an F-16 pilot with the 474th Tactical Fighter Wing "gave it good marks for accuracy".[13] Dragon gave the DOS version 5 out of 5 stars,[8] and 4 out of 5 stars for the MS-DOS version.[9] Compute! praised Falcon's graphics, realism, and documentation.[14]

Falcon won the 1987 Software Publishers Association awards for Best Action/Strategy Program, Best Technical Achievement, and Best Simulation.[12] It was voted the "Best 16-bit Simulation Game of the Year" at the Golden Joystick Awards 1989.[11] Falcon was ranked as the Amiga's eighth best game of all time by Amiga Power in 1991.[15]

The four reviewers of Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the TurboGrafx-16 version a 4.5 out of 10, opining that the conversion was over-ambitious, since the compromises which were made in order to fit the game into a 4 MB cartridge made it unenjoyable. They particularly criticized the awkward and difficult controls and the limited amount of action.[10]

Reviews

References
  1. "The Video Game Update - Sega Genesis: 16-Bit Sophistication for Gamers - Gaming-by-phone / Third-Party Support for Genesis". Computer Entertainer. Vol. 8 no. 3. June 1989. p. 11.
  2. Harris, Steve (September 1989). "Outpost: Genesis — GENESIS SIZZLES AT CES!!! A Dozen New 16-Bit Game Titles Debut at Summer Show - Will the Momentum Continue?". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 3. Sendai Publishing. pp. 64–67.
  3. Nintendo Power 38, July 1992, p.113.
  4. "News - La Jaguar ronronne - On attend sur Jaguar". Génération 4 (in French). No. 64. Computec Media France. March 1994. p. 33. Archived from the original on 2018-09-22. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
  5. "Warpzone - Demnächst für Eure Konsolen". Video Games (in German). No. 30. Future-Verlag. May 1994. p. 79. Archived from the original on 2018-08-04. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
  6. "Warpzone - Jaguar - Angekündigte Jaguar-Spiele". Video Games (in German). No. 32. Future-Verlag. July 1994. p. 32. Archived from the original on 2018-08-04. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
  7. Atkin, Denny (November 1989). "Compute! Specific / Amiga". Compute!. p. 18. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
  8. Lesser, Hartley; Lesser, Patricia; Lesser, Kirk (April 1988). "The Role of Computers". Dragon (132): 80–85.
  9. Lesser, Hartley; Lesser, Patricia; Lesser, Kirk (February 1989). "The Role of Computers". Dragon (142): 42–51.
  10. "Review Crew: Falcon". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 36. Sendai Publishing. July 1992. p. 24. Archived from the original on 2018-07-29. Retrieved 2018-03-03.
  11. "Archive - Magazine viewer". World of Spectrum. Retrieved 2014-02-04.
  12. "Computer Entertainment Industry Shines in 1987 Excellence in Software Awards" (PDF). Computer Gaming World. No. 47. May 1988. p. 8. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2016-12-23. Retrieved 23 April 2016.
  13. Carey, Regan (February 1988). "Falcon / Spectrum HoloByte's F-16 Fighter Simulation" (PDF). Computer Gaming World. No. 44. p. 28. Retrieved 23 April 2016.
  14. Hudson, Steve (July 1988). "Falcon". Compute!. p. 56. Retrieved 10 November 2013.
  15. Amiga Power 0, May 1991.
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