U.S. Navy - 1990 Developer Commentary
This US Navy (Carrier Air Wing in the West) developer commentary originally appeared in Gamest magazine. Although it is far from Capcom's most popular shmup, it is still fondly remembered by older arcade-goers. The comments here, many from otherwise unknown Capcom developers, offer some insight into its making and show the team's enthusiasm for the game.
Ohagi (Scroll Designer): Shooting games… I don't mind creating the characters for them, but when it comes to playing them I am trash!
Yoko Fukumoto (Scroll Designer): I don't know exactly why, but from the very start this has been a busy time for me (with work, silly). After a long day of working together, the whole development team would go out and party, and this was probably my one escape from the hustle. That made even the final crunch a lot of fun.
Yuki Kyotani (Scroll Designer): Please play 2P mode and enjoy blasting everything. P.S., the pilot's face in the demo screen was created by yours truly. I tried to make him handsome… how did I do?
MASAKORO (Scroll Designer): Be sure to kill the red enemies and get their power-up capsules (but be very careful of the other enemies when you go to pick it up)! Also be sure to remember the enemy weaknesses when they're displayed on the mission briefing screen. This game is fun in 1P mode, but it really takes off when you play 2P and start competing to see how many enemy fighters you can take down. Or you can just have fun helping each other out. The US Navy development was a collection of unique individuals, so it was a very fun project.
Hisashi Kisanuki (Scroll Designer): The normal shot, which was very popular among the developers, progresses from blue -> green -> red in that order. Once you've got that fully powered up red shot and you're clearing the screen, that's when you're really feeling the true power of the US Navy!
Sayuri Shintani (Object Designer): All three of the player ships were made with great love, so feel free to choose whichever you like... but don't hate them if you die!
Dodging the enemy bullets with quick, speedy movements feels wonderful. Even if you crash into an enemy while doing so it still feels pretty good! And when you crash into an enemy and destroy yourself and realize you need to go use the restroom, that feels good too.
Let's appreciate the backgrounds! The stages give you a little taste of going on a world tour. We put a lot of love into making the enemy characters too. Don't destroy them right away! Take your time and observe them a bit.
Shinji Sakashita (Object Designer): Here is how to enjoy US NAVY with two players: when the enemies appear, before you blast them away, recite the enemy's stats to each other (their make and model, abilities, countries of use…) If you can do this, you will have become a truly splendid maniac, a real Otaku.
Tanuki: Who is the leader of the merchant-of-death organization RABU, whose power exceeds the military might of any one country? After a late-night meeting, the U.S. Department of Defense reached a conclusion. Yes, it's none other than Sylphie, the woman who once awaited the arrival of the unknown super soldiers in that abandoned town.1 What changed her…!? The U.S. Department of Defense decides to destroy Rabu to save Sylphy from her evil ways! And they're going to do it with just three soldiers… Please make up your own story and get absorbed in it.
Tomiyan (Programmer): You should grab all the capsules you see in order to power up, even if it's a weapon you don't like. For the normal shot, the A-6 intruder's precision shot (blue) is strong if you power it up, but I personally like the F-14 Tomcat's wide shot (red). Signed the developer who's bad at games, who has never seen the "GOOD PLAY ENDING DEMO" even once.
Yokoyan (Programmer): Listen closely to what the old man (the commander) says!
Meijin (Programmer): If you're aiming for a high score, you've got to destro every enemy on-screen and get a perfect rating! That's relatively easy to do in Stages 3, 5, and 10, so make sure you get them there. There are a number of hidden items, so ferret those out and grab them whenever you can. Also, be sure to destroy the bosses' weakpoints for the clear bonuses… for those of you with that level of confidence, if you can make it to the end without buying any weapons at all you will get a special bonus.
Wakio: However you do it is fine, but definitely try and 1CC the game. If you can do that, a moving ending will be your reward! Now begins the age of the Navy!
Manami Matsumae (Sound): Writing the music for US Navy was very fun, and I'm extremely satisfied with the work. Actually, planner Shochan gave me a heavy metal tape as a point of reference, and I've now become a hopeless metal fan. Several of the stages feature metal-ish songs. Try and hum along to the tunes while you play!
Shoei Okano (Planning): My advice is to credit feed your first plays until you've memorized the different enemy patterns. If you do that, it will be much easier to get the 1CC. Once you've accomplished that, other score-related challenges await: you can try aiming for a perfect rating on each stage, or not buy any weapons, or search for the hidden items. The gameplay changes a lot depending on which player ship you choose, so be sure to try them all out and aim for a 1CC on each of them.
If you've enjoyed reading this interview and would like to be able to vote each month on what I translate, please consider supporting me on Patreon! I can't do it without your help!
This is all a reference to Forgotten Worlds. Sylphie is the name of the shopkeep in that game.↩