Rolling Thunder — stories left

Upon release, Clare Edgeley wrote a very short review of the arcade game in Computer and Video Games, saying that the gameplay in Rolling Thunder is "rather slow" and that she wouldn't recommend it to anyone "keen on a bit of fast action".

In 1996, Next Generation ranked the arcade version as the 43rd game of all time, citing the "long-legged" characters, "wonderfully" designed levels, weapons, the use of panthers as enemies, character's ability to duck behind boxes, the constant need to jump from the floor to raised platforms, and "great" music.

Lambie also considers Namco's Time Crisis series to be a spiritual successor to Rolling Thunder, citing similarities like how the player can "take cover behind crates, shoot multi-colored goons with a pistol, and gradually make your way through a villain's lair in search of a damsel in distress".

In 2022, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch versions were also released as the 1st title in Arcade Archives.

In the "Cross Review" of the game magazine Famitsu it received 28 out of 40. In the "Game Report Card" reader poll run by Family Computer Magazine its rating was 17.86 out of 30, as shown below.

Rolling Thunder 3 — released in 1993 for the Mega Drive outside Japan only; the protagonist was changed to Albatross's superior officer, Jay.

This version was localized for the Nintendo Entertainment System in North America and released in October 1989 by Tengen without a license from Nintendo.

There is also the view that it went unreleased in Japan because it was judged that its style, with no female presence, would not go down well in Japan.

An Atari Lynx conversion of Rolling Thunder was announced in a Lynx catalog, with a scheduled May 1992 release date, but was later canceled.

Rolling Thunder 3 — released in 1993 for the Mega Drive outside Japan only; the protagonist was changed to Albatross's superior officer, Jay.