Welcome to Level 1. Every week we look at a random game's very first level. It doesn't matter what kind of game it is or what system it's for -- we're here to dissect the game's first level and see what it tells us about the rest of the game. I promise you an eye-opening experience in each episode! Last week Konami released Rush'n Attack: Ex-Patriot on the Xbox Live Arcade and PSN. To celebrate this long-overdue sequel, Defunct Games is taking a look at the original game. Is this action game worth remembering? Find out when we tackle Rush'n Attack's first level!
The original Rush'n Attack is a relic of the past. This late 80s arcade game perfectly mimicked the insanity of the macho action films of the day. It played up the fears of the Cold War and let us be the one guy who single-handedly took down the Commie bastards. Recently Konami stunned the world by releasing a brand new sequel. For now we're going to stick with the NES port of Rush'n Attack. Let's push start and let the testosterone suffocate us.

Objective 1 - Enemy Compound: I have my orders and I know my mission. I've been training for just this moment my entire life. My job is to infiltrate the enemy compound and locate the secret weapon. I pushed my body through excruciating torture for a year straight, constantly running obstacle courses and going head-to-head in close quarters combat. I have been given the finest weapons training and am the ultimate killing machine. Somewhere out there is a secret weapon with my name on it, and I plan on using my special skills to destroy it once and for all. This is my job.

I'm told that I need to pack light, so I opt for my military issue knife and nothing more. Everybody piles in the airplane to wish me luck. I plead with them that going in alone is the wrong course of action; I'm just a sitting duck out there. I tell them that it would make more sense to use our entire squad of trained fighters. But they don't listen. They tell me how I'm the only one equipped for the job, but I don't believe their lies for a second. They're afraid of getting their hands dirty. All talk and no rutabaga, as my mother would always say.

I brace for my jump. Already my adrenaline is rushing and I'm prepared to kick some enemy butt. My team suggests taking a spare gun, but I refuse knowing that it will only slow me down. I look at my watch, it's 0100 hours, the darkest of nights. The darkness is my friend, my plan is to sneak past most of the guards and make my way through the enemy compound without making a sound.

I successfully touch down right inside the wall of their compound. The patrols are light; it's going to be easy to take these guys by surprise. My orders are to find a hiding place, watch the troop movements and then strike when the sun comes up. Wait ... that can't be right. Let me read that again. Those are my orders, so I hold tight and plan my stealthy attack.

The moment I saw the sun peak over those mountains, I leapt into action and made my way into the enemy base. Instantly my cover was blown. I pull out my knife and take them all down. Every last one of them. I stabbed soldiers in black holding muskets, jumping ninjas dressed in orange and the very sneaky rifleman adorned in tan camouflage. Very stylish.

From my time scouting the base, I can tell that this is a formidable opponent. They have tanks everywhere, highly trained guards and plenty of missiles pointed directly at the United States. If I had a bigger squad I might have a chance to disable all of these powerful weapons, but they insisted I go it alone. Instead of dealing with the missile problem, I find myself simply running past and dealing with the onslaught of bad guys. This secret weapon better be worth it.

Eventually I get to a set of landmines. I note that the enemies are able to simply run over the visible mines, but I'm not going to take my chances. I don't have a weapon to disable them, so I'm forced to simply jump over these deadly traps. I pass the first two, but already I can see bad guys charging me from behind. One wrong step and I'll be reduced to a thousand very patriotic pieces of hero. I can't let my country down, so I make the final jump and run. To hell with these guys, they already know I'm here. So instead of turning around and taking them on, I charge forward and never look back.

Eventually I make it to their fleet of fire trucks. I'm able to hide in the cab for a few hours, long enough to get the scent off my trail. As night approaches I creep out of my hiding spot. I look around and can see that I'm not being watched. I make a run for it and climb the chain-linked fence. I radio in and report that I've overcome the first target. I take a deep breath and let out a deep sigh of relief. I have come this far, there's no reason I can't go all the way.

What Have We Learned Today: This may not be valuable to everybody, but apparently the villains in Rush'n Attack have atrocious security. You mean to tell me that nobody noticed the large airplane flying above the compound? And even if they somehow missed that, wouldn't you think one of the guards would see the man slowly parachuting to safety? Shouldn't this be the kind of thing that is detected on radar? If one man can single-handedly take down your entire evil empire, then you might as well turn in your villain card.

What Did We Miss: Well, we still don't know what the secret weapon is! Had we continued our quest we would have uncovered the mysteries and dealt with thousands more brain dead guards. Objective 2 has us battling the forces in the airfields, a dangerous location full of twists and turns. Actually, it's really just a straight trip from left to right, so don't expect too many twists or turns. If we survive the airfields we will be one step closer to finding out what the secret weapon is. My guess? Exploding sharks!

What the Commander Should Have Said: "Okay, here's what's going to happen. First I want Steve to parachute in and take out the night guards. Smith will follow close behind disabling their computer and internal security. While this is going on we'll have Stewart come in from behind, taking out all incoming backup. That's when Serge strikes. He's our explosives expert. Assuming we take the right amount of firepower and have luck on our side, it shouldn't take more than ten minutes total. This is a simple in and out mission, boys. It's the type of thing you've been trained for. Don't let me down!"