Cabal
Cabal is a 1988 arcade game by TAD Corporation (though the title screen of all versions says Red Corporation). In this game, the player controls a commando, viewed from behind, trying to destroy various enemy military bases.
Cabal was somewhat innovative in that it featured a 3D perspective in which the player was situated in the foreground, similar to modern FPS games except with an over-the-shoulder camera view. Although it is sometimes compared to contemporary games such as Commando and Ikari Warriors, it differs in that the player cannot move forward of his own volition; an area would first have to be cleared of enemies before advancing.
Another interesting twist was that players could either move their character or move their aiming cursor, but not both at once (aiming was accomplished by holding the fire button and moving the joystick; a similar system was implemented later in the SNES game Shadowrun). This meant that gameplay became a careful balance between offensive and defensive tactics, separating it from simple "platform" shooters which relied more on reflexes. Overall it was somewhat popular and did respectably well in the arcades.
Cabal was followed in 1990 by Blood Bros., though the sequel had a western theme as opposed to Cabal's Vietnam-era theme. NAM-1975, an early Neo Geo title, has play mechanics which are very similar to Cabal. (Wikipedia)