When I found out the Capcom Arcade Cabinet gave me two bonus games for downloading the
entire cabinet, I was pretty freaking thrilled. I�ve loved revisiting these games after
the last few months, and two more sounded good to me. So I started with Vulgus...because
I�d heard of Vulgus.
But 1943 Kai?
What is that? Some kind of...old fish?
No, turns out...it�s an enhanced Japanese version of Capcom�s 1943. Which was a game
about World War II. In which your objective...is to attack...Japan.
Well, this is awkward.
Anyway, it was 1987, Capcom had just released 1943, it would become an arcade classic...and
then they realized, �Hey! This is the gaming industry. And young though it may be, we foresee
a time when rereleasing existing games will be commonplace.� So they did. Just a year
later, they released 1943 Kai in Japan...basically a �turbo� edition of the original 1943.
And to be fair, it is quite a bit different. I mean, it�s still 1943...but with an even
less realistic tone. The new weapons, for starters...kind of a stretch for the 1940s.
You have lasers, for example. So any pretense that this is...even a slightly realistic game
pretty much goes out the window. With the spread-shot lasers.
The graphics have been tweaked a bit, too...but it�s nothing dramatic. Perhaps the biggest
aesthetic difference is that you�re flying a different plane. In the original 1943, you�re
flying a P-38. In Kai, you get a biplane. And unless you�re an airplane person, you
probably won�t notice.
But the lasers.
Those you�ll notice.
To be honest, I�d rather have had a different game joining Vulgus in the bonus. With 1943
already in the cabinet, having Kai feels kind of pointless. Like it was added by the Redundancy
Department. Of Redundancies. But it is more challenging, and it does feel more fast-paced
than the original. And hey, it�s a free bonus game.
And if there�s one thing I�ve learned in life...
Never say no to free Kai.