Mercenary (1987)

Mercenary, also known as Mercenary: Escape from Targ, was released in 1987 for the ZX Spectrum 48K. Published by Novagen Software, the game was designed by Paul Woakes with code by David Aubrey-Jones.

This single-player tactical combat game features 3D vector graphics with perspective views. It supports cursor control, Kempston joysticks, and Interface 2, while the Spectrum +3 disk version utilizes AY sound effects.

The cassette version was priced at £9.95. The game was also released on several other platforms, including Amstrad CPC, Atari 8-bit, Commodore 64, Commodore Plus/4, Amiga, and Atari ST.

Mercenary holds an average magazine score of 90.89%. It earned multiple Crash Smash awards and Your Sinclair Megagame titles, with individual review scores peaking at 99%.

The game became a significant title in Russia. Magazines like Eldorado, Hacker, and ZX-Ревю featured detailed walkthroughs, while hacking groups such as Hacker Stinger, Phantom Ltd, and VAD released numerous TR-DOS versions. Cracked cassette versions were also available.