Ever wanted to take to the water in a mega-powerful speedboat, armed with an on-board cannon and missile launcher, and blast everything out of the way? If so, Cobra Triangle is the game for you.
It's a multi-directionally scrolling 3D forced perspective game with 25 different levels, varying from racing sections and target shoots to defusing mines and rescuing swimmers from being towed away by enemy ships!
First up is a twisting river down which you must race. There are other boats on the water, which can be blasted out of the way, and also power-up pods which can be picked up to give extra speed, missiles, faster shots, shield or turbos.
Finish that and there's a bonus stretch of the river to negotiate: jump over ramps to collect suspended add-ons and mystery extras before the timer runs out.
Next is mine defusing, where four mines, guarded by an enemy boat have to be dragged to a detonation area and exploded within a time limit. Fail and you lose a life. Then there's defending swimmers in the middle of a lake from marauding enemy boats. The boats attempt to tow the swimmers away them away; blast them before they reach the side of the lake and tow the swimmers back to the middle and they're alright - let the enemy reach the bank and that swimmer is lost.
Finally there are two very tough races upstream dodging logs and whirlpools, only to find yourself transported to the lair of a sea monster, which must be destroyed by repeated blasting - and there's still twenty more levels to go!
Cobra Triangle was programmed by Rare, better known to computer game players as the legendary Ultimate Play The Game! And like their old games, this is utterly superb.
The graphics are amazing, with smooth scrolling and utterly convincing sprites, but it's the playability that makes Cobra Triangle one of the best Nintendo games around - it's incredibly addictive, and once you've started playing it's really difficult to tear yourself away.