Battle Shark (World)

Play Battle Shark (World)

Yes! Battle Shark (World) is a rail shooter arcade game developed and published by Taito in 1989. It’s one of the lesser-known but unique titles from the late ’80s arcade era, notable for its first-person submarine warfare and periscope-style cabinet.

🌊 Game Overview

• Title: Battle Shark

• Region: World/International release

• Developer/Publisher: Taito

• Release Year: 1989

• Genre: First-person rail shooter (submarine warfare)

• Platform: Arcade

• Hardware: Taito Z System

• Perspective: First-person (periscope-style view)

🕹️ Gameplay Mechanics

• You play as: The commander of a futuristic attack submarine

• Objective: Eliminate enemy subs, battleships, aircraft, and sea creatures while navigating through hostile waters and airspace

• Scrolling: Forward-scrolling (like a rail shooter, similar to After Burner or Galaxy Force)

• Weapons: Torpedoes and missiles, fired via trigger controls

• Enemies: Submarines, battleships, helicopters, bombers, and futuristic machines

• Boss Battles: Each stage ends with a large enemy (usually a huge warship or mechanical beast)

🧭 Controls & Cabinet

• Special Cabinet Feature:
  The original arcade cabinet had a mounted periscope-style controller that players would physically look through to aim and shoot — enhancing immersion.

• Controls:

  • Rotate and tilt the periscope to aim

  • Trigger to fire torpedoes

  • Buttons for missile launch or secondary weapons (varied by version)

🎨 Graphics & Audio

• Graphics:

  • High-quality pseudo-3D scaling for its time

  • Impressive explosion effects, water textures, and scrolling enemies

  • Futuristic HUD displaying torpedo count, radar, and energy

• Audio:

  • Intense background music with a sci-fi military feel

  • Voice alerts (“Torpedo incoming!”), sonar pings, and missile sounds added to the immersion

🌟 Legacy & Reception

• Reception:

  • Praised for its unique cabinet design and immersive gameplay

  • Often overlooked in favor of more famous Taito games like Operation Wolf or Darius

• Legacy:

  • No official ports to home consoles

  • Rare in arcades today, but preserved through MAME emulation

  • Considered a cult classic among fans of naval warfare and rail shooters

• Unique Point:

  • Combined periscope mechanics with rail shooter action — a rare mix even by today’s standards

🔍 Trivia

• Some arcade cabinets had hydraulic motion or recoil in the periscope for added realism.

• Despite being named Battle Shark, there are no actual sharks — the name refers to your submarine codename.

📥 Emulation

• MAME Title: bshark (Battle Shark, World)

• Also Exists As: bsharkj (Japan version), and bootleg versions in some regions

🧠 Summary