Capcom made many great titles for the arcades over the years, including some great shmups. One of their best-known series in this genre is the 1942 series of games, which has had several entries that have been well regarded. 1942 was a landmark title for Capcom but those who played the NES port were instead subjected to one of the worst porting disasters on the NES. However, it is the sequel, 1943: The Battle of Midway, that I want to discuss today, as it is a game that I have enjoyed far longer.
1943: The Battle of Midway built on what was done with 1942, with better visuals, better audio, and an overall bigger sense of excitement. The enemies were more intense and it seems Capcom experimented with more visual tricks this time around. The game maintains much of what came before still, and rather than replace, simply adds on to the gameplay formula. The game was enjoyable in single or two-player mode, and most of all, the game was fun.
Great Home Version
When I first played 1943, it was not in the arcade but rather on the NES. Whereas 1942 was a terrible port that was outsourced by Capcom, 1943: The Battle of Midway saw its port handled with a lot more care and polish. There were changes of course, as the NES simply could not match the arcade’s sound and visuals. However, I have always felt the NES version did an amazing job in terms of both sound and visuals. It may not be on the level of the arcade, but you can still enjoy it fully.
There were other changes as well, in the change from arcades to the home console. The two-player mode was gone, but Capcom did something interesting instead to give the NES port its own edge. While the game was a single-player experience only, you now had a point build system to customize your plane with, giving you a very different experience with each playthrough. You can now consistently upgrade your plane throughout the game, giving you new motivation to play multiple times as well and giving the NES version a rather neat gimick the arcade version lacked. The cutscenes were text-only now, but the narrative was still there. If anything, this version was better than the arcade if not for the lack of two-player mode.
Nostalgic Fun
1943: The Battle of Midway was the first shmup I ever played growing up, and here is a picture of the cartridge I have had since I was young.
There is something magical about this game. Yes, there was censorship by Capcom to remove the more controversial aspects that plagued the company in Japan, but the game managed to still tell a great story. I can enjoy both the arcade and NES versions now for different reasons, and both in their own ways.
The arcade version will be seeing a release on Switch soon as part of Capcom Arcade Stadium, and there is a good place to play it. Whichever way you can, I would suggest checking out this shmup. It is a classic for a reason.
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