Developer: Konami Publisher: Konami Release: 01/94 Genre: Rail Shooter
Light gun games were a staple of the arcade. Some might even say they were a cornerstone of the arcade industry like racing games and shooters. But for a time they were all sprite based and featured cartoon art styles. But the advent of the 90s brought FMV and digitized graphics that made the games a little too real for some. Lethal Enforcers lead the charge in this regard and caused quite a stir. Behind the fancy photographs of real people was an excellent game which is why it endured. Most major consoles of the time received a home port and the SNES version is solid with a few flaws.
For its time Lethal Enforcers was controversial. The digitized graphics and the fact the light gun resembled a real revolver were a step too far for the pearl clutching crowd. Even American Laser Games were pumping out FMV rail shooters like Mad Dog McCree and Who Shot Johnny Rock left and right at the same time there was no blood and the cheesy production values made them just as silly as the games they were trying to surpass. To please the censors for the home versions the pack-in Justifier was colored blue instead of black which I guess meant the violence was not as real. As silly as it sounds it worked allowing gamers to play in the comfort of their home instead of spending a fortune in the arcade.
The various home versions of Lethal Enforcers all came packaged with the Justifier. This goofy multicolored gun allowed the control to mimic the arcade perfectly but also raised the game’s price at the time. But you can also use the standard controller as well. Surprisingly it works extremely well. The cursor moves fast enough that you can reach the vast majority of targets before they attack. As well the pace of the game is slow enough that the game is still enjoyable if you do not have the ideal setup. You are not going to break any high scores this way but it is manageable.
As a rookie you have your choice of six missions you can tackle in any order. Each mission is a series of set pieces in a given scenario topped off with a boss battle at the end. Your goal is to take out the criminals without shooting innocent civilians. Occasionally a fellow police officer will pop out and……do absolutely nothing but get in your way, the useless bastards. Avoiding unnecessary bloodshed sounds simple in principle but in the heat of the moment an itchy trigger finger will lead to many an unfortunate death. But I like it that way. I put the lethal in the title.
Lethal Enforcers nails the feeling of being a cop in a hostile environment. Although each set piece is small they use the environment well. Criminals can pop up anywhere; some hiding spots are obvious while others will take you by surprise. Environments are highly destructible and yield valuable items like health and more powerful weapons. The pacing of each segment is also great. They are long enough that you might start sweating about making a mistake but know when to end to give you a brief breather.
Each of the different missions presents new challenges. The bank robbery is a simple introductory level with low stakes and a slower pace. China Town Assault is more action heavy with more frequent waves of targets. It makes sense as you are in gang territory. The Hijack has the densest collection of civilians and is probably where you will lose the most lives unintentionally. For what is essentially a shooting gallery the variety is high. The only weak point would be the bullet sponge bosses. Outside of that the challenge is moderate which is surprising given that this is an arcade port. Even with the controller I was able to roll the credits with little frustration. I rarely played this one in the arcade, light gun games were always more expensive and tuned high to drain quarters. I like that they balanced this one properly.
This SNES version of Lethal Enforcers suffers in a few areas compared to its Sega counterpart. Nintendo had yet to relax their censorship restrictions and so all blood has been removed. Not that Lethal Enforcers was leaking the red stuff left and right but it did sell the idea that you were shooting real people. Aside from that the animation is choppy as though it is missing a few frames. The overall game speed is a little slower as well. So while the Genesis game is ugly as sin the gameplay is closer to the arcade experience and more enjoyable.
In Closing
The SNES version of Lethal Enforcers is a solid port with room for improvement. It nails the general gameplay and only misses in a few key areas. Despite that it is still entertaining if this is your only option but there are better ports out there.
