Players walk from one level to the next, blasting and arresting bad guys, and picking up drugs and money for points, which are totalled at the end of each level. In addition, sometimes a special ‘Keycard’ of a certain color is needed to be found before players can progress to the next section of the level.

From “Vending Times”, Nov. 1988:A two-player dedicated upright, ‘Narc’ takes players through an urban wasteland of drug dealers, smugglers, crazed killers, and desperate bad guys. Armed with machine guns and rocket-bombs, the ‘Hit Man’ and ‘Max Force’ characters fight their way through back alleys, abandoned warehouses, and across bridges in a mission to crush the criminal empire known as K.R.A.K. Their ultimate target is the headquarters of the evil mastermind known as ‘Mr. Big.’ Cooperative play places both players on the side of justices with a powerful anti-drug theme.

In addition to drug dealers, attacking dogs, and homeless guys launching rockets at you, there are some stages where some very large bugs attack and cling on to you. You must jump up and down to get them off of you.