U.N. Squadron - Ports

Ports

U.N. Squadron (known as Area 88 in Japan) was ported to the SNES in 1991. The principal difference between the SNES version and the arcade version is that in the SNES game each pilot can use a range of planes. All pilots start out with $3,000 and the basic F8 Crusader and can buy other aircraft as they progress. Other differences include:

• Single player only.
• Unlike the arcade version, where the player only has one "life" per credit, the player now begins with two lives, and extra lives can be earned. Upon losing all lives, the player can continue—but only three times.
• Different planes may be used by each pilot in contrast to the arcade version, where each pilot is tied to a particular aircraft.
• More weapons are available in the between-level shop, however, shields can no longer be purchased—they must be found in the levels.
• Missions can be tackled in any order chosen by the player (as long as that mission has been reached on the overhead map shown before choosing the pilot's plane and weapons).
• "Shin increases his firepower the most quickly, Mick can shoot two special weapons at the same time, and Greg recovers from being damaged twice as fast as the others" is what the manual states. In actuality, this means that Shin requires the least power ups to increase the vulcan cannon level, Mick benefits the most from ammo pickups, and Greg's description is self-explanatory.
• Mickey Simon is known as Mickey Scymon.
• If a player takes damage, his/her plane will temporarily fall into critical condition --
  "DANGER" flashes on the energy meter. During this condition, any hit will destroy the player's aircraft. However, each plane is equipped with a fire extinguishing system—when the plane recovers, albeit with less energy, he/she is safe again. If the player allows his/her energy meter to drop too low, the player's aircraft will remain critically damaged, and will be destroyed with the next hit unless he/she finds an energy recovery item.
• In addition to not having the same levels as the original version, some of the levels on the SNES version were heavily modified. Certain bosses are replaced by new ones, and some bosses' weapons and attack patterns were modified.
• The SNES version had "Quartermaster Corps" sub-levels that appeared as green truck convoys on the map screen. Here, the objective is to simply destroy the enemy supply trucks, but there is a time limit of forty-three seconds. If all trucks are destroyed within the time limit, the player earns $20,000. It is possible to beat this stage while only destroying the trucks, and not all the enemy weapons. Doing so will reduce the bonus money won at the end of the stage.
• The stage and boss background music are different from those in the arcade version (e.g. the theme from the "Canyon" stage would be used for the "Battleship Minks" stage in the SNES port), though most of the arcade music was rewritten for the SNES version. Toshio Kajino, Mari Yamaguchi and Yasushi Ikeda ported many of the pieces from Manami Matsumae's original score.

The SNES version also includes more aircraft than the arcade version:

• F-8E Crusader: This is the aircraft that players start with. The ceiling for the Crusader's gun power is average, and the aircraft can only carry three types of special weapons.

• F-20 Tigershark: The cheapest aircraft that can be purchased after completion of the third mission. This aircraft has mediocre weapons capability but it is well suited to both air and ground attack.

• F-14D Tomcat: The F-14D Tomcat is intended primarily for air-to-air combat and carries no real ordnance for attacking ground targets. It is the most maneuverable of all of the aircraft.

• A-10 Thunderbolt II: Intended for ground attack, the A10 fires two shots for every gun burst. One travels forward and the second (slightly weaker) shot travels at a downward 45-degree angle. However, the gun has a low power ceiling.

• YF-23 Stealth Ray: Capable of carrying a wide range of armaments, the YF23's primary attribute is that of stealth. As such, the enemy's guided weapons, such as missiles, will not track the plane.

• F-200 Efreet: The best fighter available in the game. The Efreet has the highest weapon power ceiling, can carry all of the special weapons, can carry more special weapon ammo than any other fighter and is tough to destroy. As such, it is the most expensive fighter available in the game and it is easy to play the whole game without ever having enough money to purchase it. (The EF-200 Efreet is nearly identical in appearance to the MIG-31 Firefox from the movie of the same name.)