Developer: Pack-In-Video Publisher: Pack-In-Video Release: 12/22/89 Genre: Action
I was never a fan of Knight Rider. I get that KITT was cool but in my opinion that is all the show had going for it. It says a lot that I preferred to watch almost anything else at a time when we had four channels at most without cable. But evidently the show must have been popular in Japan like Airwolf as there are multiple video game adaptations. Knight Rider Special is decent for a licensed game during the 80s. But it lacks that special something to be a worthwhile endeavor.
At first I thought Knight Rider Special was an enhanced port of the NES game. Disappointingly the PC Engine game looks worse than the NES version despite the stronger hardware. They share the same developer and many of the same design sensibilities. That makes sense of course as they are using the same source material and there is not a whole lot you can do with this premise. But they are both unique titles. Knight Rider Special is third person while the Nintendo game is first person. They both are very similar to Taito’s Chase H.Q. series, specifically S.C.I. as that one adds weapons to the mix. And just like that series they both suffer from being short.
The similarity to S.C.I. is striking although both games were more than likely in development concurrently. The first phase of Knight Rider Special is akin to Rad Racer or Outrun. You have set amount of time to reach your destination to face the end level boss. There are usually two checkpoints in each stage that award more time. In your way are enemy cars that attack, traffic, and planes that drop bombs to deter you from your goal. You start the game with a basic machine gun and earn a new weapon after each level. Overall this is simpler than its NES counterpart that let you upgrade KITT in various areas such as engine, shields, and gas. That means this is a more focused experience, for better and worse.
The control is pretty simple. You can use either Up or button I to accelerate while down brakes. Using button I caps your speed at 200 mph and it is also the jump button which will trip up most when you start jumping for no reason. The handling is simplified compared to other driving games. There is little resistance going in to turns and you will rarely have to use the brakes. So long as you remember not to hold left or right too long while cornering lest you spin out you are golden.
The problem with Knight Rider Special is that both the action and racing side of the game is average. With its relaxed handling the rapid turns pose little challenge. The only difficulty comes from crashing into a truck or leaning in to a turn too heavy, both of which can be easily avoided. Nor is the track design interesting enough to provide a thrilling experience. The action portion of the game similarly feels lacking. The density of traffic is not high enough to warrant using your weapons frequently. This means they only see real use during the boss battles. I get what they were going for: by cordoning them to a separate arena you can have a one on one duel. But the tight time limit and confusing environment rob them of any fun. You are supposed to look forward to boss fights. Here you will dread them.
It is interesting to compare both versions of Knight Rider. The NES game suffered because it was too long and repetitive with a difficulty curve that was steep and frustrating. Knight Rider Special has the opposite problem. The game is short at only six levels like Chase H.Q. Unlike that there is no scoring so there is no reason to go back to it once it is over. A few more levels would have made this feel like a more complete package without it over staying its welcome.
In Closing
Knight Rider Special is decent overall. I did not expect much going in to this and so the fact that it is competent is a surprise. But its simplicity and short length mean you are better off looking for your driving thrills elsewhere.
