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showing 26 games

name	publisher(developer)	year	description
Yie Ar Kung-Fu	Konami	1985	Conversions of the arcade game "Yie Ar Kung-Fu" can be put into two different groups. The first group of conversions tried to put the actual arcade levels and opponents into the game. The second group of conversions limited itself to only one background and less opponents. The Famicom/NES version sadly belongs to the second group. Fighting games surely were a rare sight in 1985 but the controls are not the best and the game feels rather repetitive, much more so than the actual arcade game.***Despite the name, this game has little in common with its similarly-titled arcade brother. The characters, background, and music are completely different, though the gameplay remains largely the same. [Jacquismo]
Spartan X	Nintendo	1985	[169]* [142]You'll need lightning fast reactions to knock out the Knife Thrower, stop the Stick Fighter, and trip up the evil Tom Tom Brothers in this action-packed martial arts contest! Are you sure you're tough enough? Because it'll take all your strength and skill to master the moves in KUNG FU, beat your opponents, and rescue the fair Sylvia who's held captive on the top floor! The action is non-stop, and just when you think you've got your enemies licked there's always a Giant, a Snake, or a fire-breathing Dragon to contend with in KUNG FU! [22]* [4]* [52]* [52]* [49]This game is a home version of an arcade coin-op that is not officially related to any movie. But the Famicom version was re-branded to make it the game for Jackie Chan's movie, Wheels on Meals (Spartan X). The Arcade version also was heavily influenced by Bruce Lee's movie, Game of Death, but it was not officially licensed as such. This is the first movie based game for 8-bit Nintendo.One of the first real scrolling beat'em up games. I have very fond memories of this game playing it a lot in the 80's on the C64. When I tried the Famicom/NES version the fond memories returned. Same music, same enemy attack pattern, same satisfaction when hitting three opponents at the same time. The game surely is rather simple, short and repetitive but at least the different enemies and "bosses" need special tactics. The coolest Kung Fu game of its time. Much better games with similar gameplay and martial arts setting would follow soon though.*One of the launch games for the US NES and a precursor of games like 'Double Dragon'. Nintendo licensed the game from Irem, who did the original Arcade version.
Karateka	Soft Pro	1985	[media=youtube]RJoHgELbO5s[/media]*Karateka became somewhat famous because of its nice, fluent animations and little cut scenes. Both positive aspects are still in the Famicom version, but otherwise the game is very disappointing. Starting from very repetitive enemies and fights and ending with bad play control. Over ninety percent of the time you are just pressing the standard kick button, which is enough to beat nearly every opponent. The game is pretty easy. Except... well let's just say that this version also contains the stupid "gate of death" at about half-way in the game. Karateka is by the way one of the earliest western homecomputer games seeing a release on a Japanese console system.*The predecessor to Prince of Persia with a martial arts feel. The controls and gameplay feel exactly like PoP, although without the traps and jumping. However, unless you like walking forward and fighting endless waves of opponents in a slow, clunky manner every few steps, you're better off sticking with the Prince. [Jacquismo]
Super Chinese	Namco;Culture Brain (Culture Brain)	1986	The monsters have taken Princess Min-Min and the treasures. The land has fallen into sorrow. Can Jacky and Lee really save the princess? Now, defeat the enemies with Punch and Miracle Kick! What's waiting for you at the 8 castles? Monster Land is full of thrills and mystery!*In Super Chinese you play the role of a martial arts guy on his way to rescue a princess. He has to fight his way through 8 palaces, each consisting of 4 screens, making for a total of 32 levels. In each screen you have to kill about twelve enemies so that the door to the next screen opens up. Punching blocks might reveal some extras or even give access to a bonus stage. Each enemy has its own way to defeat, some can be punched, some only die by kick-jumping, and yet others only die by slaying them with a sword (which must be found first). The game suffers from bad hit detection and I wonder why Culture Brain decided to release a merely mediocre game from 1986 three years later in the US. At least the two-player cooperative mode can be quite fun and makes the game a bit easier.*NES-CE-USA Kung-Fu Heroes, published by Culture Brain USA, Inc., 1989 in the USA Super Chinese, published by Namcot, 1986-06-20 1 player or 2 players simultaneous. Based on the Arcade game called Chinese Hero [Zerothis]
Musashi no Ken: Tadaima Shugyou Chuu	Taito	1986	Sword of Musashi - Now in the Middle of Training***Musashi no Ken is based on a sports manga/anime series about a boy who wants to become a Kendo star. The game adaption is a side-scrolling platform game. The first three levels are training courses and your goal is to reach the end of the level before your pet dog does. The fourth level is a Kendo tournament where you have to beat five opponents in combat. Collecting sword symbols in the first three levels give you a certain amount of special moves you can use in the tournament and thus making the fights easier. After winning the tournament you play all the levels again (just with slightly different colors) and winning the second tournament means winning the game. The game is barely average, even for a rather old Famicom game. Unsatisfying graphics and forgettable music mixed with poor controls.
Hokuto no Ken	Toei (Shouei System)	1986	A month after an average "Hokuto no Ken" game appeared on the Master System, a Famicom game was released. The Famicom game is also a Beat'em Up game and often considered to be one of the worst games for the Famicom/NES system. You are walking from right to left, killing innumerous thugs with kicks or punches. At certain points you have to enter doors to progress. The right door is often indicated, when Lynn, a little girl and one of the hero's companions, appears in the door. This is a fact that players often forget about and think the level goes on and on forever without end, whereas they just have to enter a door by pressing the right button combination (A+B+Up). Technically and graphically the game is rather weak, the controls are not very good as well. There are five levels in total, each ending with a boss battle against a major opponent from the series (Heart, Shin, Jagi, Souther and finally Raoh).
Karate Champ	Data East (SAS Sakata)	1986	Data East brings you arcade realism at home! Put on your black belt and challenge your friends or the computer through nine picturesque settings to become the Karate Champ. Flatten your opponent by deftly executing the kicks and punches at your command. Sharpen your martial art skills through the series of karate matches in this super arcade classic.*Karate Champ for the NES is based on the arcade hit from 1984 and one of the first classic 1vs.1 fighting games on the NES. Too bad that the controls and especially the hit detection are rather bad. It felt to me that it is pure luck whether you hit your opponent or not. The game plays different (in a negative sense) than the arcade version. The background graphics have a mixed quality, the animations are unspectacular. On the positive side I could mention the little speech samples when a fight begins. Otherwise I see no real good points in this overall disappointing game.1 player or 2 players simultaneous competitive. [Zerothis]**An attempt to port the arcade game to the NES that fails miserably due to terrible graphics and control. [Jacquismo]
Hiryu no Ken: Ougi no Shou	Culture Brain	1987	"Flying Dragon: The Secret Scroll" is a mix of beat'em up platform action game and classic 1 vs. 1 fighting game. Playability is only average but the game has some interesting aspects. For example the rather lengthy tutorial where the unusual hit-mechanism when battling opponents in the tournaments is explained. There is also a basic storyline you are following, which is a plus and wasn't often seen at the time of its release (at least the Japan release which was 2 years earlier than the US release). The fact that you had to play through the game twice to see the real "good" ending (similar as [game=#7825]Ghosts 'n Goblins[/game] handled it) left a bitter taste though.***A platformer with fighting tournaments between stages. Similar to the Master System's Hokuto no Ken (AKA Black Belt), but executed far better. Not a bad game, but the controls feel a little stiff at times. [Jacquismo]
Tsuppari Oozumou	Tecmo	1987	I haven't played many Sumo games yet. Only as part of [url=http://www.uvlist.net/game-35182-World+Games]World Games[/url]. And I must say that it is a strange sport as a videogame and indeed does fit more as part of a multisports game. The game as it stands is quite ok, but doesn't have much variety to it. By winning games your wrestlers stats increase a bit and it is your goal to climb the ranking ladder to the highest rank. Everything is nicely represented with some funny moments, but after a few fight fights I got pretty bored by it.***1 player or 2 players simultaneous. [Zerothis]
The Karate Kid	LJN (Atlus)	1987	"Karate Kid" is based on the second Karate Kid movie and marks LJN's entry as publisher of US NES games. A pretty uninspired standard beat'em up game with platform elements. The controls, especially the jumping is rather bad and the enemies seriously lack in variety. Graphics and music are ok and I liked the fact that there are several mini-games hidden inside houses along the way. All in all I don't think it is so extremely bad as many people think it is. A bit too short and unvaried, but I liked the fact that it was a very straightforward and not a super complicated "you need a hint-book" maze-like action game mix that many Japanese developers tended to create in 1986-1987.*[media=youtube]ym8XIP4jUgI[/media]*An action game based primarily on the second movie in the series. Karate Kid is a blend of fighting game and platformer that doesn't really succeed in either. Focus harder, Daniel-san! [Jacquismo]
Hiryu no Ken II: Dragon no Tsubasa	Culture Brain	1988
Track & Field II	Konami;Hyundai (Konami)	1988	[17]*The sequel to "Track & Field" features more games such as fencing and canoeing, as well as updated graphics, but still features both the "button mashing" and "aim cursor and shoot" style of gameplay that is better suited for the Power Pad and Zapper accessories.* [62]* [49]* [1]* [52]1 player or 2 players. Published and Developed by Konami Industry Co. Ltd. KDS-F2 Konamik Sports in Seoul published 1988-09-16 NES-F2-USA Track & Field II published 1989-06 in the USA NES-F2-NOE Track & Field II published 1989-11-22 by Konami Europe GMBH in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK for Region B machines NES-F2-EEC Track & Field II published in Finland for Region B machines The Japanese version of the game is based on the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, Compete in many events of the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.[list][]Fencing []Tripple Jump []Freestyle Swimming []High Dive []Clay Pigeon Shooting []Hammer Throw []Taekwondo []Pole Vault []Canoeing []Archery []Hurdles []Horizontal Bar []Hang Gliding []Pistol Shooting []Arm Wrestling[/list] [spoiler= ; ] [/spoiler] [Zerothis]
Fighting Road	Toei	1988	[spoiler=Passwords:;Close]BEAUTIFUL! Level 2 CHARMING! Level 3 DREADFUL! Level 4 EXITING! [sic] Level 5 FANTASTIC! Level 6 GREAT!! Level 7[/spoiler] [Zerothis]
Sakigake!! Otokojuku: Shippu Ichi Gou Sei	Bandai (Tose)	1989
Hissatsu Doujou Yaburi	Sigma Enterprises	1989
Tenkaichi Bushi: Keru Naguuru	Namco (Game Studio)	1989
Chinese KungFu: Challenge of the Dragon	Sachen	1990	Master Lee had finished his training courses in Sou Lin Temple, so he decided to go outside to create a new career. Before he left, he had to pass a traditional kung fu test which is very hard for everyone. There are 5 total stages in these tests. You have to pass each one step by step and collect the sacred box or other special objects to get more powerful kung fu skills. You will come face to face with Vadjrn in the final term of each stage after you have passed the basic trials. You also will discover some secrets of Sou Lin which no one else knows!*Sachen's version is possibly [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XncxoAhpBG8]a pirate[/url].*This is a Double Dragon clone that is unrelated to the Color Dreams game titled Challenge of the Dragon. It comes in Famicom and NES cart variations. Some of the Famicon versions are in Chinese. The Milmar cart looks like a standard gray NES cart the other NES cart variants are black. One of the black carts has exposed pins, apparently for jumpers so the owner can bypass Nintendo's lockouts or perhaps select PAL/NTSC. It is also included in several of the Sachen multicarts. The evidence shows that this is an unlicensed, but otherwise legitimate game of the Double Dragon style that was programmed by Sachen. 少林武者 literally means "Shaolin (Noun)", and refers to a style of martial arts, as far as I can tell. [Zerothis]
Exploding Fist	Beam Software;Piko Interactive (Beam Software)	1990	Become a master of this mysterious ancient art: progress from novice to Tenth Dan and test your strength and discipline. You can control your character with either joystick or keyboard - 18 different manoeuvres including blocks, flying kicks, leg sweeps, roundhouse and even somersaults!***1 player, 2 players, or 3 players [Zerothis]
SD Battle Oozumou: Heisei Hero Basho	Banpresto	1990	Now this is an interesting concept. "SD Battle Oozumou: Heisei Hero Basho" is a sumo game with SD characters from several popular anime and tv series. Gundam, Ultraman, Kamen Rider and the Super Sentai series "Choushinsei Flashman". You can play with five characters from each series and two original Banpresto characters, which makes a total of 22 characters. That sounds much, but I could not find out any differences in playing them. The gameplay did not appeal to me. It plays like any other sumo game on the NES and its totally average. Despite the interesting and wacky scenario this game could not make me a fan of sumo wrestling.
Moero!! Judo Warriors	Jaleco	1990
Hiryu no Ken III: 5 Nin no Ryuu Senshi	Culture Brain	1990
Jackie Chan's Action Kung Fu	Hudson Soft (Now Production)	1990	Jackie and his sister, Josephine, are tough on tyrants. As China's supreme kung fu champs, they guard their country against the Prince of Sorcerers, who lurks just beyond the Great Wall. It comes as no surprise when this fiend and his ghouls try yet again to seize China for themselves. But this time they're clever, casting a spell over Josephine which causes her to vanish into thin air! Jackie is in shock! How can he save his country without his sister? The two have been an unbeatable team! Meanwhile, a demon horde led by the Sorcerer storms the Great Wall and prepares to establish a fierce empire. At the urging of his revered Master, Jackie must now battle the dreaded Sorcerer and rescue Josephine. Maybe he can learn a little magic on his own, because he's going to need all the help he can get!* [66]* [64]* [37]* [27]
Spartan X 2	Irem	1991	Game description from [[link:http://www.romhacking.net Romhacking.net]]: This is the sequel to Kung-Fu, the oldskool game we all know and love. Except now, you’re not a guy that has to save his girlfriend… In this game, you’re a police officer that goes and fights crime using kung-fu! Which makes no sense if you take into account part one’s story. Visually, the game’s pretty good. There are little cutscenes between levels where you get messages via a communications unit, either from your friends or someone else cough. You fight on top of a subway, on a flying airplane, a mansion, a ship… oh, and you also fight a gorilla. Not since Bad Street Brawler had a game dared to put you against one. And this time it doesn’t suck! Except of course that damn Circus level boss. Oh sure, you can drain my entire life in three seconds, and my punches don’t hit you? Bastard. Unofficial English translation available: [[link:http://abstractcrouton.emuxhaven.net/ http://abstractcrouton.emuxhaven.net/]] [[link:http://www.romhacking.net/trans/659/ http://www.romhacking.net/]] [cjlee001]
Flying Warriors	Culture Brain	1991	New Heroes were born, their names, the Flying Warriors! The great adventures of five young heroes from the Light Dimension now begin! The Super Action System and Artificial Intelligence enables players to enjoy the speedy and realistic versus action. It also includes an independent mode that lets a maximum of eight people participate in fights against each other! When the evil red star appears in the sky and the great monster Demonyx revives, the five Flying Warriors sent by the Dragon Lord are ready to fight!*The USA version of Flying Warriors is a mix of [game=#7800]Hiryu no Ken II: Dragon no Tsubasa[/game] and [game=#7801]Hiryu no Ken III: 5 Nin no Ryuu Senshi[/game]. Because it is a mix of the two, there really is no direct Japanese version of this game.*The game borrows heavily from Hiryuu no Ken II and Hiryuu no Ken III. It has the intro, music and general gameplay from Hiryuu no Ken II, but the graphical presentation from Hiryuu no Ken III, which makes Flying Warriors somehow unique and standing on its own. Whatever... the game is a rather good and enjoyable mixture of scrolling platform/beat'em up levels and standard 1vs1 fighting scenes. Mix this with a remarkable good story for such kind of a game and a few RPGish elements like xp and levels and you get a rather interesting game.
Hiryu no Ken Special: Fighting Wars	Culture Brain	1991	This game was planned to be released in North America. A prototype labeled "Fighting Simulator World Champ" has been found.
Dragon Ball Z II: Gekishin Freeza!!	Bandai (Tose)	1991	The sequel to Attack of the Saiyajins. Same style, same engine, with some differences. More action in this title. It's about the Freeza's Saga of the TV series.***Unofficial English translation in progress: [[link:http://www.romhacking.net Romhacking.net http://www.romhacking.net Romhacking.net]] [[link:http://www.rpgclassics.com/subsites/twit/ http://www.rpgclassics.com/subsites/twit/]] [[link:http://www.yntprojects.net/ http://www.yntprojects.net/]] [cjlee001]

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