Time Pilot

Infobox VG
title = Time Pilot


developer = Konami
publisher = Centuri
designer = Yoshiki Okamoto
release = 1982
genre = Multi-directional shooter
modes = Up to 2 players, alternating turns
cabinet = Upright
arcade system = 2x Zilog Z80, 2x AY-3-8910
display = 19 inch, vertical orientation, raster, 224 x 256
input = 8-way joystick, 1 button
platforms = Arcade, Atari 2600, MSX, ColecoVision

"Time Pilot" is a 1982 arcade game by Konami and distributed in the US by Centuri, designed by Yoshiki Okamoto. It is a flying themed game debuting in the Golden Age of Arcade Games.

Overview

The player assumes the role of a pilot of a futuristic fighter jet, trying to rescue fellow pilots trapped in different time eras. The player must fight off hordes of enemy craft and defeat the mother ship (or "boss") present in every level. The background moves in the opposite direction to the player's plane, rather than the other way around; the player's plane always remains in the center.

Description

This game has the player travel through five time periods, rescuing stranded fellow pilots. The player must fight off droves of enemy craft while picking up parachuting friendly pilots. Once 56 enemy craft are defeated, the player must defeat the mothership for the time period. Once she is destroyed, any remaining enemy craft are also eliminated and the player progresses to the next level. All the levels have a blue sky and clouds as the background except the last level, which has space and asteroids instead. The specific eras visited, the common enemies and the motherships are:
#1910: biplanes and a blimp
#1940: WWII monoplanes and a B-25
#1970: helicopters and a large, blue CH-47
#1982 (Konami version)/1983 (Centuri version): jets and a B-52
#2001: UFOs

The mothership is destroyed with seven direct hits. Once all the eras have been visited, the levels start over again but are harder and faster. The Gameboy Advance version of Time Pilot in Konami Arcade Classics includes a hidden sixth era, 1,000,000BC, where the player must destroy vicious pterodactyls in order to return to the early 20th century.

Development

According to his account, Yoshiki Okamoto's proposal for "Time Pilot" was initially rejected by his boss at Konami, who assigned Okamoto to work on a driving game instead. Okamoto secretly gave instructions to his programmer to work on his idea, while pretending to be working on a driving game in front of his boss. When "Time Pilot" was a success, Okamoto's boss claimed credit for Okamoto's idea.cite web|url=http://web.archive.org/web/19981207033331/www.videogames.com/features/universal/okamoto/oktime.html|title=VideoGameSpot's Interview with Yoshiki Okamoto (Waybacked)|last=Kent|first=Steven]

Legacy

This game was one of the more successful games of the era. It spawned one sequel in 1984, "Time Pilot '84". Though a respectable game, it did not do nearly as well as the original. A special version named "Time Pilot '95" also appears in the Super Famicom game "Ganbare Goemon Kirakira Douchuu: Boku ga Dancer ni Natta Wake" (of the "Ganbare Goemon" series), and can be unlocked when the main game is completely cleared. A version of the game for Xbox 360 Live Arcade by Digital Eclipse features optional updated graphics, although the game plays identically (it is a port of the original).

License

The game was successfully licensed to both Atari and Centuri for global regions outside of Japan. Centuri obtained the license for North America, whereas Atari produced dedicated cabinets with the game for sale in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Ports

Like many games of the era, "Time Pilot" was ported to video game consoles for personal use.
* Atari 2600, MSX and ColecoVision in 1983
* PlayStation as part of the "Konami Arcade Classics" compilation in 1999
* Game Boy Advance as part of the "" compilation on March 18 2002. [cite web | url=http://uk.gameboy.ign.com/articles/694/694557p1.html | publisher=IGN | title=GBA Gems: Konami Collector's Series: Arcade Advanced | work=ign.com | accessdate=2006-09-01]
* Xbox 360 as part of Xbox Live Arcade on August 30 2006. [cite web | url=http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/11668/Time-Pilot-Flies-Onto-Xbox-Live-Marketplace/ | publisher=IGN | work=TeamXbox | accessdate=2006-09-01 | title=Time Pilot Flies Onto Xbox Live Marketplace]
* Nintendo DS as part of "".

References

External links

*KLOV game|id=10119
* [http://www.centuri.net/timepilot.htm"Time Pilot"] entry at the Centuri.net Arcade Database
*StrategyWiki
*moby game|id=/time-pilot