Overview
Fighter & Attacker, known in Japan as F/A, is a vertical-scrolling modern-military shoot-'em-up developed and released by Namco for arcades on October 1992.
A traditional shoot-'em-up, Fighter & Attacker features 16 total aircraft to choose from, each of which are based on real-world fighter jets and have their own unique weaponry and playstyle. Similar to the developer's earlier game Xevious, the game features both air-to-air combat and air-to-surface combat, with several stages having players dropping missiles at ground targets.
Unlike most shoot-'em-ups at the time, it includes no power-up drops, screen-clear Bombs, nor player lives, the latter of which instead give players "Armor" for sustaining three hits before losing their credit (which can be replenished through high scores). It also features a techno soundtrack that was unique for its time by Shinji Hosoe and Takayuki Aihara.
The game has received no home ports at the time, nor was included in any of Namco's arcade compilations. It will receive a digital home release on May 15, 2024 for the PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch, both as part of HAMSTER's Arcade Archives series.
Gameplay
Surface
The second Shot button is used for air-to-surface attacks, with three different types to choose from:
- 1000lb B. / 2000lb B. / 3000lb B. - Launches a powerful close-ranged cluster barrage of missiles that explode in a forward arc. Ranges from a 4-missile cluster to an 8-missile one.
- A.S.M. - Launches a single long-ranged missile from each side of the aircraft that lock onto targets. Up to two can be on the screen at once.
- Vulcan / Gatling - Launches a quick-firing mid-ranged barrage of shots. Can be fired in quick succession. It is unknown what the difference between "Vulcan" and "Gatling" is.
In stages that have no air-to-surface capacity (such as being far up in the second level), the second Shot button instead mirrors the main Shot button (allowing faster shots when tapping both buttons rapidly).
Aircraft
There are 16 aircraft to choose from, each categorized based on their air-to-air weaponry. Each of them also has their own air-to-surface weapon choice and different-sized hitbox.
Although the game shows multiple air-to-air weapon types (A.A.M. and Vulcan/Gatling) and configurations, it is unknown what these difference are (or if they're a development placeholder). In addition, each aircraft also has a "Speed" stat (from 6/8 to 8/8), although there is minimal difference (if at all) in movement speed.
Shot types are categorized as either "Single" or "Rapid", with Single types firing in a single-row barrage (for better coverage) and Rapid types firing in multiple rows (for better accuracy).
6-Way (Single)
These aircraft fire six shots per blast in a single-row spread pattern.
5-Wave (Single)
Despite the name, these aircraft fire four shots per blast in a single-row spread pattern. Unlike other shot types, it can be fired consistently with quick taps (with a minimal cooldown, which is based on the amount of shots on-screen).
Straight (Single)
These aircraft fire four shots per blast in a single-row straight pattern. Unlike other shot types, the shot is fired both on both button presses and button releases.
Semi-Auto (Rapid)
These aircraft fire six shots per blast, with four inner shots in a 2-row straight pattern and two outer shots in a spread pattern (on the second row).
Auto (Rapid)
These aircraft fire six shots per blast in a 3-row straight pattern.
Full-Auto (Rapid)
This aircraft fires nine shots per blast in a 1-2 alternating straight pattern. Unlike other shot types, the shot button can be held down for auto-firing.
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