At one point, Konami was unstoppable. Even before they had Metal Gear Solid under their belt, which would bring the classic Metal Gear franchise to the forefront of gaming a decade later, they had tons of classic properties, including Castlevania.
In the late ’80s, they were pumping out games like Blades of Steel, Super Contra, Gradius 3, and Double Dribble. They had a hold on many genres on old-school game consoles, as well as dominance in arcades.
Now, thanks to a new announcement on YouTube, a Konami classic is coming back to the forefront. It’s been a while since we’ve seen it surface, so you’ll want to check this one out as soon as you can.
A 39-Year-Old Konami Game Has Returned
In 1987, Konami released Combat School, the same year as the original Metal Gear. While the studio wouldn’t follow up with Metal Gear 2 until 1990 (and subsequently, 1998 for Metal Gear Solid), it remains a hard-to-find game in Konami history, especially outside of Japan. That changes now, as Combat School is available via the Arcade Archives program, on PS4, PS5, Switch 1-2, and Xbox Series X/S.
Here’s the full breakdown of Combat School from Hamster, who handles the Arcade Archive project: “Join a prestigious military academy as a cadet and tackle brutal training like shooting and combat under a terrifying instructor. Only those who survive these trials to claim the glory of graduation can face the next battle as a hero. Well, can you make it to the end?! The Arcade Archives series has faithfully reproduced many classic Arcade masterpieces.”
As is typically the case with Arcade Archive projects, there are extras involved: “Players can change various game settings such as game difficulty, and also reproduce the atmosphere of arcade display settings at that time. Players can also compete against each other from all over the world with their high scores.”
Is Combat School Worth Your Time?
Somewhat confusingly, there are two versions of Combat School. One is $7.99 and works on older systems; the other is $9.99 and works on modern systems. There’s also an upgrade that will be available at a later date.
While Konami has been slowly salvaging its reputation since Hideo Kojima left the company, it’s been releasing a ton of classic games either through their own banners or through third parties. It’s a great thing because Konami contributed significantly to the rise of gaming worldwide, so their classic games should be preserved as much as possible.
- Date Founded
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March 21, 1969
- Subsidiaries
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Konami Computer Entertainment Japan
