Cabal (arcade game)

Infobox VG
title = Cabal


developer = TAD Corporation
publisher = Fabtek
release = vgy|1988
genre = Shooting gallery
modes = Single-player, 2 player Co-op
platforms = Arcade, MS-DOS, NES, C64, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Amiga

"Cabal" is a 1988 arcade game by TAD Corporation (licensed to Fabtek for US production). In this game, the player controls a commando, viewed from behind, trying to destroy various enemy military bases. Though typical for games of this era, the game did respectably in the marketplace.

Description

The player assumes the role of an unnamed commando trying to destroy several enemy military bases. The player's character is seen from behind and initially starts behind a protective wall (the wall can get damaged by enemy fire). The player must use a limitless ammunition gun and a limited number of grenades to fend off enemy troops and damage the base. At the successful completion of a level, all the buildings onscreen collapse and the player progresses to the next stage. Boss fights however, start from beginning if player dies. (A feature criticised for many players. It can be circumvented, however, if two players play simultaneously and at least one stays alive at a given moment.)

Power-ups appear from time to time, being released from objects destroyed onscreen. Some power-ups give special weapons, many of which are formidable: One of them is an extremely fast machinegun and other one is an automatic shotgun which has a larger crosshair. (Which strangely enough, fires nearly as fast as default assault rifle)

Two players could play this game, cooperatively, simultaneously.

The game's cabinet is a standard upright. Each player uses a trackball to move the player from side to side. On later board revisions, a joystick was installed instead with an optional sub-pcb for use with a trackball.

Ports

"Cabal" was ported to several home computers of the era, including the PC (under DOS), Commodore 64, Atari ST and Amiga. It was also ported to the Nintendo Entertainment System console, which was ported by Rare. The quality of these ports varied based on the target system's capabilities.

There is a simple cheat code to automatically win the stage, the cheat code is as simple as pressing Spacebar.

Legacy

"Cabal" was somewhat innovative in that it featured a 3D perspective in which the player was situated in the foreground, similar to modern FPS games except with an over-the-shoulder camera view. Although it is sometimes compared to contemporary games such as "Commando" and "Ikari Warriors", it differs in that the player cannot move forward of his own volition; an area would first have to be cleared of enemies before advancing. Another interesting twist was that players could either move their character or move their aiming cursor, but not both at once (aiming was accomplished by holding the fire button and moving the joystick). This meant that gameplay became a careful balance between offensive and defensive tactics, separating it from simple "platform" shooters which relied more on reflexes. Overall it was somewhat popular and did respectably well in the arcades.

"Cabal" was followed in vgy|1990 by "Blood Bros.", though the sequel had a western theme as opposed to "Cabal"'s Vietnam-era theme.

External links

*KLOV game|id=7252|name=Cabal
*moby game|id=/cabal|name="Cabal"
*WoS game|id=0000780|name=Cabal
* [http://www.gamesetwatch.com/2007/02/column_arcade_obscurities_mitc.php Cabal compared to its 2002 spiritual successor, Gamshara]