Play Bionic Commando Online

Summary

Bionic Commando on the NES turns the usual platformer formula on its head by removing the jump entirely. Instead, you rely on a bionic arm that extends, contracts, and latches onto ceilings, walls, or enemies, letting you swing, pull objects, and even yank foes toward you. The arm is the only way to scale vertical terrain, which makes every gap feel like a puzzle.

Outside the side‑scrolling stages, the game drops you onto an overworld map where you pilot a helicopter between numbered Areas; intersecting enemy vehicles trigger a Commando‑style overhead shooter before you can descend. In each level you must pick gear, locate Communications Rooms and defeat a computer‑core boss, all while avoiding the alarm that turns neutral zones hostile.

The English version stripped obvious Nazi imagery, renamed the villains "Badds" and their leader "Master‑D," and kept a gory finale. Junko Tamiya’s soundtrack—credited as Gondamin—adds arcade‑inspired tracks, while the title has earned lasting praise, landing on several “greatest NES games” lists.

Storyline

Bionic Commando is set in the late 1980s, pitting the Federation against the Empire. The Empire’s leader Generalissimo Killt tries to finish the abandoned Albatros weapon, a laser cannon originally started by the Badds. The Federation sends its hero Super Joe to investigate, but he is captured, so a second commando, Ladd, is deployed to rescue him and uncover the secret.
Ladd battles through the early areas, using his bionic arm and wire‑gun to reach the Imperial disposal zone and free Super Joe from a POW camp. Super Joe reveals that the Albatros is nearly complete and that Killt intends to revive Master‑D, the dead mastermind behind the original project. Together they break the base’s power system, disable the resurrection tank, and confront Killt in the final chamber.
When Killt activates the device, Master‑D is revived and kills Killt, then threatens the world with the Albatros. Ladd destroys the weapon, receives a bazooka from a dying comrade, and blows up Master‑D’s chopper. After the explosion he rescues Super Joe and the Federation forces evacuate the base, celebrating their victory.