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Sly Spy, alias Secret Agent, is a 1989 action Arcade Game by Data East inspired by popular works of Spy Fiction. The player takes control of an agent with a three-digit code name, who shoots through nine stages to save his country (the U.S.A., not England) from the terroristic menace known as the Council for World Domination.

Conversions of the game for the Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC and ZX Spectrum were developed by Software Creations and released by Ocean Software.

See also Special Project Y, another spy-themed arcade action game released the same year by Konami.


Tropes appearing in this game:

  • Artificial Limbs: The boss of the third level is a Giant Mook with two metal arms.
  • Boss Rush: The climb up to the Final Boss recapitulates every previous Boss Battle that wasn't fought underwater or in a vehicle.
  • Damsel in Distress: One stage has a woman held captive by the boss and is hanging midair with her arms above her head.
  • Expy: Unsurprisingly, some of the bosses are this, most notably the third boss (who is a dead ringer for Jaws), and the sixth (who looks like Oddjob). Of course, the main character is an unnamed American Expy of James Bond himself.
  • Free-Fall Fight: The first stage begins with the protagonist shooting Mooks skydiving over Washington, D.C.
  • Hello, [Insert Name Here]: The game begins by asking the player to enter a three-digit "security clearance code" which then becomes the agent's code name. Inputting "0-0-7" is allowed.
  • IKEA Weaponry: The game has you collecting five parts of the "Golden Gun" (get it?).
  • Jet Pack: Some enemies fly in on jetpack, and when killed will sometimes drop theirs for you to use.
  • Monumental Battle: The first stage involves a firefight with terrorists in front of the Lincoln Memorial.
  • Oh, Crap!: The final boss has this after you break through his barrier while a spiked ceiling is lowering towards you.
  • Sexy Discretion Shot: Beat the game and you'll be treated to a scene of the hero driving around with a accompaniment of beautiful women. When you put in your initials and the high score table pops up, a female voice will moan, "Oh, Sly!"
  • Shout-Out: Since the game loves to use so much from the James Bond series, let's run down some of what's been borrowed.
    • Level 3 introduces a Jaws expy, though instead of metal teeth, he has metal arms.
    • Level 4 introduces a boss in a JIM diving suit before he sics a giant shark at you. He reappears in level 7.
    • Level 6 introduces an outright Oddjob expy.
    • The One-Hit Kill super gun you can get is the Golden Gun.
    • Not a James Bond reference, but the final level has a headless RoboCop body lying at the start.
  • There Is No Kill Like Overkill: Once killed, the shark boss can be shot at until it is torn apart in graphic detail.
  • Threatening Shark: The underwater levels have these as enemies that die in one shot. The first water level has a great white shark as a boss.
  • Throw a Barrel at It: Some Giant Mooks carry and throw barrels.
  • Underground Level: The sixth level is in a cavern leading to an underground hideout.
  • Under the Sea: The protagonist dons a scuba suit to go underwater for the fourth and seventh stages, which feature Thunderball-style harpoon combat.
  • Weaponized Headgear: An Oddjob-like boss attacks by tossing his hat like a boomerang.
  • Wolfpack Boss: The first Boss Battle is nothing but a huge mob of mooks that attack you individually with punches, guns or bombs. The fifth boss does nothing but send a bunch of tigers to charge you from both sides of the screen.

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