Play Senjou no Ookami II ~ Mercs Online

Summary

Mercs (known in Japan as Senjō no Ōkami II) drops you into a frantic run‑and‑gun experience that builds on the classic Commando formula. In the arcade you could team up with two friends as Joseph, Howard or Thomas, each wielding a basic rifle that upgrades to an assault, shotgun, grenade launcher or flamethrower, while a dedicated bomb button clears the screen of foes. The control layout is simple—an eight‑direction stick, a normal attack and a Megacrush attack—yet the vitality gauge and limited bomb stock keep the action tense.

The Sega Genesis port reshapes the game for solo play, offering an “Arcade Mode” that mirrors the original stages and an “Original Mode” that adds a fresh storyline, brand‑new levels and a shop system where you spend cash earned from enemies to buy power‑ups. You can switch between characters, each starting with a different weapon, and even pilot enemy vehicles in certain sections, giving the single‑player experience a surprising amount of variety.

Beyond the console, Mercs landed on Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum and other home computers, and it earned praise for its tight controls and relentless pacing. The title showed up in several Capcom classic compilations and resurfaced on the Wii Virtual Console, Retrobit Generations, and the Nintendo Classics service in late 2024, proving that its high‑octane action still resonates with retro fans today.

Storyline

In Senjou no Ookami II ~ Mercs (commonly just called Mercs), you play as a member of the Wolf Force mercenary team on an anti‑terrorism mission. The objective is to rescue a former President who has been seized by a revolutionary gang in the fictional African nation of Zutula, a country depicted as an apartheid regime. The campaign spans six distinct levels, each pushing you through hostile terrain and enemy fire until the climax: boarding a massive Hercules transport to free the captive leader. The Mega Drive’s Original Mode adds a completely separate storyline with its own unique stages, though the specifics of that plot aren’t detailed in the source material.