Taito Rail Shooter ‘Operation Wolf’ gets a brand new game 35 years later
Register this as “something we didn’t expect” – Microids has announced that it will be releasing Operation Return of the Wolf: The First Mission, which is the officially licensed “new vision” of Tatio’s “Wolf” series of operations that started on the NES back in 1987. The original was followed by three sequels, Operation Thunderbolt in 1998, Operation Wolf 3 in 1994 and Operation Tiger in 1998.
Operation Wolf is a light gun rail shooter that was one of the most popular arcade games in the 80s, and Microids continues the legacy of the series. You will be able to play Operation Wolf Returns: First Mission both solo and in co-op, but we hope to use motion controls so we can use our Joy-Cons to aim and take out enemies.
Here are all the details from the Microids press release:
Microids is pleased to announce Operation Return of the Wolf: First Mission with a few screenshots. Discover or rediscover Operation Wolf, the cult classic arcade game developed and published by TAITO in 1987, one of the first games to offer side-scrolling rail shooting.
Developed by the French studio Virtuallyz Gaming. Operation Return of the Wolf: First Mission stays true to the original game while offering a completely new art style. Players are invited to plunge into the atmosphere of the action movie of the 80s through non-stop frenetic gameplay!
In the game campaign, play alone or in co-op as special agents tasked with fighting a criminal organization. In addition to the drug and weapons trade, an organization led by the mysterious General Viper seems to have developed weapons of mass destruction! After discovering several group bases, agents are dispatched to the site to dismantle the consortium, destroy weapons, and free hostages from various POW camps.
Operation Wolf Returns: First Mission will be released Fall 2022 both digitally and retail as a Day One Edition for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch, and digitally only for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and PC.
The VR version of the game for Meta Quest 2 will be released in 2023.
Game facts:
– The return of the iconic arcade game from 1987!
– New art style
– Continuous action
– Campaign for one or two players
– Survival mode (endless waves of enemies)
– Full arsenal (smg, shotgun, grenade launcher…)
– Leaderboard
This new game is due out sometime this fall on Switch, so we’ll likely find out about a release date soon. In the meantime, can we start praying that this will bring the rail shooter genre back?
Are you ready to return to Operation Wolf? Grab your NES Zapper and let us know in the comments!
