The articlegameplay, story, development, reception
Gameplay
The player controls Albatross, a member of the WCPO's (World Crime Police Organization) "Rolling Thunder" espionage unit. Albatross's mission is to save a missing female agent named Leila Blitz from a secret society named Geldra located in New York.
Albatross must travel through two different segments or "stories", each composed of five stages, for a total of ten stages. Depending on the DIP switch settings, the player has the option to skip any of the first four stages and start at any point in "Story 1". On each stage, the player can enter doors to hide and take cover from enemies, and he can use crates or other obstacles to take cover from enemy fire. The player can jump over crates or jump up to higher or lower floors with rails, including stairs.
Reception
In Japan, Game Machine listed Rolling Thunder among the most popular arcade games in February 1987. In the United States, the game was one of the top four highest-grossing arcade games of 1987. The arcade game was a commercial success in Europe.
Upon release, Clare Edgeley wrote a very short review of the arcade game in Computer and Video Games, saying that the gameplay in Rolling Thunder is "rather slow" and that she wouldn't recommend it to anyone "keen on a bit of fast action".
Legacy
Rolling Thunder was followed by a sequel for the arcades titled Rolling Thunder 2 in 1990. A port for the Sega Genesis and Mega Drive was released in 1991, followed by Rolling Thunder 3 for the Genesis in North America in 1993.
A theme based on Rolling Thunder, featuring several characters from the game is featured in Pac-Man 99, as special DLC.
