The Speed Rumbler gives the run and gun genre a set of wheels
One of my favourite things about compilations like the two Capcom Arcade Stadium bundles is coming across games I’ve never heard of at all. There was a time when I didn’t feel this way, instead preferring to have new versions of games I already knew well, but in more recent years it’s the thrill of the unknown that really excites me. So when titles like 1986’s The Speed Rumbler (also known as Rush and Crash in Japan) reveal themselves to me, I know I’m in for at the very least an interesting time.
In The Speed Rumbler, you take on the role of an individual who may or may not be Super Joe from Commando and the arcade version of Bionic Commando; indeed, he is only mentioned by name as Super Joe in the documentation and promotional material for the North American release of the game, and is referred to as “Top” in the Japanese original. The European release didn’t give the poor chap a name at all.
The writers of the Capcom 30th Anniversary Character Encyclopaedia from 2013 posit that The Speed Rumbler’s protagonist being Super Joe was “likely fabricated by the localisation team; it’s hard to believe that the developers intended for all three games [Commando, Bionic Commando and The Speed Rumbler] to star the same guy, as The Speed Rumbler is a sci-fi game that appears to take place several decades after Commando.”
Ultimately, of course, it doesn’t really matter, because this is a game about driving a car and shooting things, but it’s an interesting bit of trivia nonetheless. But what of the game?
Well, it’s a rather interesting affair. Your goal as (possibly) Super Joe is to rescue your family, who have been kidnapped by terrorists known as Zapper. In order to do so, you’ve been provided with a Pursuit Vehicle AMT (or Armour Transom) and given pretty much free reign to cause as much destruction as you please on the route to the baddies’ hideout.
Technically I guess you’d call The Speed Rumbler a “top-down run and gun”, because it shares many similarities with classics of the genre such as the aforementioned Commando and SNK’s Ikari Warriors. There’s one key difference, though: for the majority of the game you’re in a car. You can get out of the car and go on foot, yes — indeed, if your car catches fire you will need to do this to avoid becoming a fine paste on the road — but for the most part, this is a game about rumbling through the levels at speed. You see what they did there?
Your only real aim in each stage is to get from the starting point to the ending point, but along the way you have the opportunity to blast various types of enemies ranging from troops on foot to large armoured vehicles and static installations. You don’t actually have to destroy anything for the most part — save for a few situations where the road is actively blocked by a structure or vehicle — but you’ll almost certainly find that you have an easier life if you blow at least a few things up.
Notably, there are a number of small prisons around each map, and blowing them open reveals a hostage inside, who is inevitably carrying something useful. Sometimes they’ll upgrade your weapons, sometimes they’ll allow you to take a bit more damage, sometimes they’ll repair all your car’s damage immediately. And sometimes they’ll just give you 2,000 points, which is less useful, but this is an arcade game after all, and the pursuit of high scores is supposed to be the main goal here besides clearing the damn thing.
The path through each stage is pretty linear, but it doesn’t feel that way thanks to the way in which the stages are designed with deliberately circuitous and winding routes. Sometimes there are hints of branching paths, but these usually end up simply allowing you to go around an obstacle from one side or another; for the most part, you’re gradually working your way from the bottom of the level to a top, occasionally pausing to go sideways when the direction of the road demands it.
Although linear, the twisty-turny nature of the routes helps The Speed Rumbler’s stages feel interesting to navigate, as well as quite a bit more realistic than the settings of many other games of the period. The opening stage feels like you’re driving around a besieged city, for example, even though you don’t have the freedom to truly explore; likewise later stages where you’re driving through a wasteland on the way to the next settlement.
There are also plenty of fun setpieces in The Speed Rumbler that break up the simple shooting and driving action. In one stage, you’ll have to drive over conveyor belts dropping rocks into a pit; in another, some unseen forces will be rolling explosive barrels out of an ancient temple, demanding you either shoot or dodge your way through. It’s all very “action movie”, and it really works for the game.
The controls are fun, too. The original game had an eight-way joystick for controlling your car, with the car gradually turning towards the direction you push rather than immediately changing direction. If you’re going at a decent speed already, this can even result in a drift.
This control scheme translates extraordinarily well to modern analogue sticks and has a pleasingly smooth feel; it might take a bit of getting used to for those more accustomed to the immediate responsiveness of on-foot run-and-gun games, but it definitely highlights how The Speed Rumbler is a distinct experience from many of its peers.
The nature of the game also means that you can approach it in a variety of different ways. Do you charge through in an attempt to simply get through the levels as quickly as possible, hoping the majority of your score will come from time bonuses? Do you take your time and systematically eliminate the enemies ahead of you to make the path safe for you? Do you deliberately hop out of your car and pick off enemies from afar? All of these are valid approaches to The Speed Rumbler, and that makes it highly replayable.
Oh, and the music is absolutely delightful, if rather incongruous for the intense rescue mission you’re supposedly participating in. Highly tuneful, jazzy numbers accompany the action, and I guarantee you’ll be humming them to yourself long after your play session has finished. Definitely one of Capcom’s most underappreciated soundtracks, for sure.
Despite never having come across this game prior to trying it in Capcom Arcade 2nd Stadium, I’m now very much convinced that this is a proper hidden Capcom gem. Like most arcade games from the era, it’s got a bit of a learning curve — but stick with it and you’ll find an interesting, rewarding and enjoyable game that is quite unlike anything else from this period in gaming!
Capcom Arcade 2nd Stadium is available now for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox hoojimaflips and PC via Steam.
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