Video Game Search

showing 1 - 50 of 195 games

name	publisher(developer)	year	description
Donkey Kong	Nintendo (Nintendo EAD)	1983	[media=youtube]https://youtu.be/F1kcC4gxBFg[/media]* [142]* [22]* [52]One of the launch games for the Famicom/NES system in Japan. Considering the game's release date, it features great graphics and solid gameplay, which comes close to its arcade counterpart. The NES version only features three levels, instead of four as in the arcade version. Surely this game is a classic, although in my personal opinion the game and its three short levels become boring quite soon and doesn't reach the status of later games in which a certain plumber named Mario made his reappearance.**Donkey Kong has kidnapped Pauline, and it is up to Mario, the fearless carpenter, to come to her rescue. Throwing fate to the wind, Mario tries desperately to climb the labyrinth of structural beams from the top of which Donkey Kong taunts him. Help our hero ascend the metal structure by dodging an assortment of fireballs, steel beams, and exploding barrels the angry ape hurls at him. Prepare yourself for a never-ending adventure as Donkey Kong takes Pauline away to the next level every time Mario gets to the top. Based on the arcade game of the same name, this classic will keep hardcore and casual gamers entertained for hours.
Donkey Kong Jr.	Nintendo (Nintendo EAD)	1983	[media=youtube]https://youtu.be/y6t5zOsWAmU[/media]* [52]Donkey Kong Jr. was one of the launch games for the Famicom/NES release in Japan. An excellent arcade conversion, especially considering the release date of 1983. The game is a little improvement of the original Donkey Kong gameplay, although the concept stays basically the same with the only difference that now Mario is the bad guy (kind of) and Junior Kong wants to rescue his father. All in all a good game for its time and surely a classic, though very limited when compared to later platform games from the post 'Super Mario Bros' era.**Based on the popular arcade game, Donkey Kong Jr. is the sequel to the immensely successful Donkey Kong. Play as Donkey Kong's son, Junior, and rescue your dad who has been kidnapped and imprisoned in a cage by Mario. Use your jumping and climbing abilities to clamber up vines and chains, gather vital fruit and keys, and open the cage to free your father. Make sure you avoid the pesky birds, nasty electric sparks, and creepy chompers! Four different worlds filled with numerous climbing and jumping puzzles await you in this timeless classic.
Popeye	Nintendo	1983	[169]* [22]* [66]* [52]* [52]*Now you're the King of Spinach in a battle for Olvie's love! Are you ready to climb ladders, jump landings, eat spinach and punch out Brutus, Seahag and the flying Bernard? Because that's what it takes to win Olive Oyl's hand in marriage. You'll score points by defeating your enemies and collecting the "love tokens" Olive drops from her window. The more you collect, the more points you'll score and the faster you'll win her love. But watch out. Around every corner lurks another jealous suitor. You'll have to think with your head as well as your heart to win this fast action love affair!* [47]*UPC: 0-45496-63023-0 appears on some packages, but this is not a valid UPC code. It is most certainly a typo of the valid code 0-45496-63023-2 which appears on other packages.Popeye and Brutus are at it again in this video contest for Olive Oyl's affection. As Popeye, you must battle the likes of Brutus and the Sea Hag while you race to collect all of the floating hearts that Olive tosses to you. Once you have Spinach power, Popeye can conquer all, but without it, watch out! [...] Olive throws things and Popeye has to pick them up while avoiding the attacks of Brutus, Seahag and Bernard. In round I, Olive throws hearts; in round II, musical notes; and in round III, letters of the alphabet. Try to pick them all up before they sink in the water.**Popeye was one of the launch games for the Famicom/NES system release in Japan. It's a well done conversion of Nintendo's own Popeye arcade game. The goal in each level is to catch all objects that Olive Oyl is throwing down (hearts, notes etc.), while at the same time avoid being catched by Bluto. Graphics are great for a game from 1983 and I still like the gameplay and the different design of each level.
Mario Bros.	Nintendo (Intelligent Systems;Nintendo)	1983	[100]* [62]* [49]*NES-MA-GBR is used in official Nintendo documentation but the cartridge shows only "GBR" NES-MC-NOE, UPC: 0-45496-63070-6, Mario Bros. (Classic Series) published 1993-04-13 in Germany.You can play alone, or team up with a friend as Mario and Luigi tackle this underground adventure together. There are plenty of cagey critters to conquer -- turtles, crabs and fireflies, to mention a few. You'll progress through endless levels of challenge collecting gold coins and building your score as you go.1 player or 2 players simultaneous. [Zerothis]Enjoyable arcade port and one of the earliest Famicom/NES games ever released. One of the better platform games of the pre Super Mario Bros. era.**Overly simple, straight-forward, yet strangely fun 2-player game. There was a way to access it from [game=Super Mario Bros. 3]Super Mario Bros. 3[/game]. [cjlee001]
Popeye no Eigo Asobi	Nintendo	1983	Popeye no Eigo Asobi is the Japanese-exclusive spin-off to the Popeye arcade game. The game includes three modes: Word Puzzle A, Word Puzzle B, and Word Catcher. In Word Puzzle A (based on the first level of the original game), the player is given the Japanese term for a word in one of six categories: Animal, Country, Food, Sports, Science, and Others. Blank squares for the English word are given, and the player must maneuver Popeye around to point to letters of the alphabet in order to fill in the blanks. Each wrong letter entry prompts Brutus/Bluto to punch a basket carrying Swee'Pea; the player must solve the puzzle before Swee'Pea's basket is knocked off the platform it is attached to. The player may also forfeit the puzzle by punching the "?" icon. If the puzzle is lost or forfeited, the correct English word will be displayed. Word Puzzle B is identical to the "A" mode; however, the player is not given the Japanese term beforehand. In the two-player Word Catcher mode (based on the third level of the original game), the first player controls Popeye and the second controls Bluto. Three Japanese words are displayed on the screen's left side, and both players compete to collect letters thrown by Olive Oyl to spell out their English equivalents. A player wins when he or she has correctly spelled five words. [i](Source: Wikipedia)[/i]*[media=youtube]0KJRYXupyeg[/media]*Popeye no Eigo Asobi is a simple word guessing game aiming at Japanese kids to improve their English skills. The graphics feel like being directly taken from the earlier released Famicom arcade port [game=#8102]Popeye[/game]. You can choose words from several categories like "countries" or "sports". Gameplay of Game Mode A and B follow Hangman-rules. Selecting ten wrong letters from the searched word results in Baby Sweetpea falling down. In Game Mode C you have to catch English letters in the right order to build the English translation of the given Japanese words. All in all a simple game aimed at kids, which is well playable, but also really uninteresting.
Baseball	Nintendo	1983	[100]* [62]* [17]*Play 9 innings of major league baseball competition with realistic 3-D graphics featuring close-up and overview of the field perspectives. Select your team, and step-up to the plate against a computer opponent or a friend - for twice the fun. You control the swing of the bat. The speed of the pitch. The hits, the steals, the double-plays! Even hear the roar of the crowd as you hit a home run and race across the plate to score!1 player or 2 players simultaneous. [Zerothis]One of the early titles from Nintendo's sports line-up. Baseball is really impressive for its time. The controls and perspective are what would become a standard throughout 2D Baseball games for many years to come. Today you would want to see at least some kind of league mode though and it feels a bit dated.*NES Baseball was part of Nintendo's original list of titles, released with the system back in 1984. It was graphically the best baseball game of the time. Like the other NES games of the time, it was as advanced as games got on the 8-bit platform. But, that didn't guarantee an easy to play game.
Donkey Kong Jr. Math	Nintendo (Nintendo EAD;SRD)	1983	[52]*1 player or 2 players simultaneous. [Zerothis]Donkey Kong Jr. Math is obviously aimed at children. Technically speaking the game is well done and can be recommended as a fun way to teach math. For older players it seriously lacks challenge and motivation that you can expect from a "real" game.Learning can be fun, especially when you play along with Donkey Kong Jr. Practice addition, subtraction, multiplication and division by directing Junior, a cute little monkey who must climb up and down vines to collect numbers and math symbols to solve the math problems his father gives him. Compete with a friend in a race to solve problems in Game A or add more challenge with Game B. Of course, you can also practice on your own. This game is perfect for younger players who are looking for a fun and easy way to develop their math skills.*The Japanese title translates to 'Donkey Kong Jr.'s Arithmetic Play'. [Jacquismo]
Tennis	Nintendo (Intelligent Systems)	1984	[33]* [4]* [22]* [52]* [49]* [33]Most important factor with tennis games are the controls. And Nintendo's first tennis game has only average controls. Placing your player correctly and then hitting the ball in the meant direction doesn't feel intuitive enough. Graphically the game is good for a title from 1984. There is a two player mode implemented but strangely only as cooperative mode in a doubles match and no player vs. player mode.**Players slam a serve, fire a blazing backhand and smash a forehand volley on their way to winning the victory cup. Players can choose between five different levels of difficulty, ranging from Beginner all the way up to Advanced. If players want to become true champs, they should be ready to show off their most brilliant lobs and most powerful smashes. Play a singles match or grab a partner for doubles, and then choose an opponent. Players control the moves in tennis action so intense, they’ll almost believe they’re at center court.
Donkey Kong 3	Nintendo (Nintendo EAD)	1984	[media=youtube]https://youtu.be/p4A5zoBuEzA[/media]* [22]* [52]* [47]A strange entry in the Donkey Kong game series. Graphics are nice and it is a playable game, but it ultimately lacks variety and does not have the kind of "evergreen" status like the original Donkey Kong.**Based on the third game in the enormously popular arcade series, Donkey Kong 3 introduces an exterminator named Stanley as he desperately tries to protect the flowers in his greenhouse from Donkey Kong. Armed only with a can of bug spray, Stanley must force Donkey Kong higher and higher into the greenhouse rafters until Donkey Kong is off the screen and the next stage is reached. Not surprisingly, Donkey Kong isn't going to move without a fight, so he sends wave after wave of bugs, bees and other creatures toward Stanley. Not only must Stanley repel the insects in order to save the flowers, but he'll also have to keep an eye out for projectiles thrown by Donkey Kong himself. If Stanley is good enough, he'll be able to grab a can of more powerful bug spray and really get Donkey Kong moving. It all adds up to frantic fun that anyone can enjoy.
Nuts & Milk	Hudson Soft	1984	[media=youtube]https://youtu.be/n47fKPH2Z70[/media]*"Nuts & Milk" involves the player moving through various levels while collecting an assortment of fruit scattered throughout each one. By gathering all the fruit on a particular screen, the player will gain access to a previously unopened house door containing Milk's fiancée, Yogurt. When the player makes contact with the female blob, they are advanced to the next level to start the process anew. Movement through these levels is accomplished by using the directional pad to move Milk across the stage while avoiding pitfalls and other obstacles, most notably the character's rival, Nuts. Milk can jump a short distance vertically or horizontally, allowing him transverse pits or quickly gain access to an adjacent platform. If the player falls from too great a distance, Milk will become momentarily dazed and unable to move until the player joggles him awake with the jump button. Rope bridges are suspended in mid-air on most levels, and by using the directional pad, the player can climb them up or down as well as walk across them once they reach the top. In all, 50 individual levels exist, and each one can skipped freely by pressing the select button. Once a player has cycled through all fifty, who will return to the first level and restart the sequence until all of Milk's lives are lost. [i]Source: Wikipedia[/i]The very first game for the Famicom published by a 3rd party.**The Famicom/NES version is different from the homecomputer versions. Instead of an overhead maze game you have a side-view platform game. The goal of the game is still the same. Collect all fruits in a level while avoiding or jumping over nasty enemies, then the door to the next level opens. An overall average game. Highlight is the build-in game editor that lets you create your own levels.
Lode Runner	Hudson Soft;Brøderbund (Hudson Soft)	1984	Lode Runner is an early classic title originating on homecomputers which cleverly mixes challenging puzzles with platform action. And while they left the basic concept untouched in the NES version I don't like it as much as the classic homecomputer versions. The main reason for this is the fact that the level is scrolling. You can't see the whole level on your screen, which makes planning in advance very difficult. And some extra difficulty is the least element the game needs. Success is not easy to obtain here.***This landmark action-puzzle game has been a worldwide fixture in video games from the moment of its inception until today, producing many sequels and related products along the way. The player controls the hero, or "Runner," who collects gold nuggets located around every stage, all the while avoiding capture by enemy robots. The action itself is simple, but the stages are designed as increasingly challenging puzzles, and none of the 50 stages is as easy as it seems. The Runner avoids enemies by digging holes in the floor to the right and left of his position - by doing this, he can clear a path to places that, at first glance, seem unreachable. Players must use their brains to collect all the gold nuggets in every puzzling stage if they want to escape to the next. In addition to normal play, this version of the game features an Edit Mode that allows players to design their own stages, adding a new level of enjoyment to the game.
Devil World	Nintendo	1984	Lost in the maze of Devil World, Tamagon the Dragon has to steer clear of the Devil, his nasty co-Devils, and his treacherous helpers, Medaman, the Fried-Eggman and Bon-Bon, and ward off their attacks by breathing fire. After each round, the maze scrolls up, down, right or left. The Devil decides the direction and points with his finger. As you guide Tamagon through the maze, you also have to avoid being sandwiched between the walls.*Devil World is a Pac Man clone with an interesting new element. The maze is automatically scrolling randomly in all directions. So it can happen that you are trapped inside the maze and squished between the maze wall and boundary wall. Additionally there are not only "eat all dots" rounds, but also some rounds where you have to carry bibles found in the maze into the middle of the maze to win the round. These elements work pretty well and give Devil World the necessary extra dimension from being a simple clone.*Only released in Japan and Europe. What little language usage it has, it's in English, even in the Japanese release. The Japanese title reads approximately [i]debiru waarudo[/i] (Devil World).
Mappy	Namco	1984	Mappy is a side-scrolling platform game that features cartoon-like animals, primarily cats and mice. The game's main character itself is a mouse. The player guides Mappy the police mouse through the mansion of the cats to retrieve stolen goods. Mappy and the cats move between floors by bouncing on trampolines at various places in the house. Both Mappy and the cats can land on a floor on the way up, but not on the way down. When they pass in the air, Mappy is unharmed by the cats, but if Mappy runs into a cat anywhere else, he will lose a life. A round is completed when all the loot is retrieved. [i]Source: Wikipedia[/i]***In Mappy you control a police mouse with the task to retrieve stolen goods from buildings infested with lots of criminal cats. In order to reach an upper platform you have to use one of the numerous trampolines. A good arcade port and one of the better platform games of the pre Super Mario Bros. era.
Urban Champion	Nintendo	1984	Think you're tough, huh? Well, you better be. Because you've got to be quick on your feet and fast with your hands to become the next URBAN CHAMPION. You've go the block, fake and land punches that will knock your opponent off the screen. Do that three times and there will be a confetti celebration in your honor as you become the new URBAN CHAMPION. But watch out. Just when you think you've beat him to the punch, you fall into an open manhole! Or get hit by a falling flower pot! Think you can handle the action? Then prove it. Play by yourself or challenge a friend, either way you'll have a knockout time defeating the toughest guys in the neighborhood in URBAN CHAMPION.* [22]* [52]* [52]* [52]* [49]Urban Champion is a very simply structured, slow-paced fighting game with bad controls. Attacks are limited to punches only, the opponents all look the same, the game is very repetitive. Only the background graphics are nicely done.**A somewhat repetitive fighting game where you must use your punches to knock your opponent off the side of the screen and continue on to the far side (every third stage), where you can knock him into a manhole. [Jacquismo]
Ice Climber	Nintendo	1985	[media=youtube]https://youtu.be/SM-tDhDHlzM[/media]* [142]* [52]* [22]* [52]*As Popo, players use a trusty mallet to work their way up the mountain. They chip away at the blocks overhead, then jump up through the resulting hole to the mountain's next level. Once Popo reaches the top level, he enters a fast-moving bonus stage in which he can pick up veggies and, hopefully, reach the summit for a big point payoff. Of course, not everyone's supportive of Popo's pastime. Toppies fill Popo's holes, so players must jump through the gaps quickly. It's easy to slip off some of the icy levels, as Polar Bears, Toppies and other ferocious fauna don't want players up there. There are 32 challenging peaks to scale – players can face them alone or with a friend.1 player or 2 players. The Great Britain version catalog number is "NES-IC-GBR". But the cartridge shows simply "GBR" The French version catalog number is "NES-IC-FRA". But the some cartridges show simply "FRA" [Zerothis]**The graphics are surprisingly nice and colorful for its time, but after a few tries you start to realize that the gameplay is rather dull and unspectacular.
Soccer	Nintendo (Intelligent Systems)	1985	You've got to be fast on your feet to keep up with Nintendo SOCCER! Enjoy World Cup action as you move your team up and down the field to victory! Perform Kickoffs, Throw-ins, Goal kicks and Corner kicks just like in a real soccer match. You can choose a computer team or a friend as your opponent. Then select a skill level 1-5. Youll love Nintendos state-of-the-art graphics and realistic game play, and of course, the head-to-head competition that youll control just with your fingertips! If you miss out on this exciting Nintendo game pak, youll be kicking yourself!* [22]* [64]* [52]* [52]* [52]*With the exception of the good [game=#105779]International Soccer[/game], the quality of early and mid 80's soccer games varied between average and disastrously bad. Nintendo's first soccer game for the Famicom/NES luckily belongs to those of the average type, because the controls are acceptable. Real soccer feeling doesn't come up though. You can choose between several different teams, the length of a half and five different skill levels. And that is all. Sadly there is no league or tournament mode.
Championship Lode Runner	Hudson Soft	1985	Championship Lode Runner features the same graphics and gameplay as the original Lode Runner. However, while Lode Runner was a difficult, but playable game, the difficulty level of each of the 50 new Championship Lode Runner levels goes miles through the roof. Only experts, who know every trick from the original game, will stand a chance to beat a single level in this sequel. I bet many people who bought the game were unpleasantly surprised by this.
Antarctic Adventure	Konami	1985	The player takes the role of an Antarctic penguin, racing to disparate research stations owned by different countries in Antarctica. The gameplay is similar to Sega's [url=http://www.uvlist.net/game-1341-Turbo]Turbo[/url], but plays at a much slower pace, and features platform game elements. The penguin, later named Penta, must reach the next station before time runs out while avoiding sea lions and breaks in the ice. Throughout the levels, fish jump out of ice holes and can be caught for bonus points. The game, like many early video games, has no ending – when the player reaches the last station, the game starts from the first level again, but with increased difficulty. [i]Source: Wikipedia[/i]***You control a cute penguin and have to reach the next base in a certain amount of time. While racing above the snowy antarctic landscape you have to avoid cracks in the ice, sea lions and other creatures. The gameplay resembles that of standard racing games, but it is a nice change to control a penguin and not a car. And this penguin subsequently became some kind of Konami's mascot in the 80's with him appearing in many more Konami games.
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]
Ninja-kun: Majou no Bouken	Jaleco (Tose)	1985	[i]Ninja-Kun: Majou no Bouken, Ninja Kid: Castle of Demons Adventure[/i]***Arcade port of the first game in the "Ninja-kun" series. You control a little ninja who has to defeat each enemy on screen. The game's formula is reminiscent of many other games of its time. You have very few stages packed with enemies. Once you have cleared all stages the game repeats itself just with more and deadlier enemies. Graphics are basic and the sound and music are annoying. It is a bit beyond me why this game started a successful series...
Chack'n Pop	Taito (Tose)	1985	Chack'n Pop is the unofficial precursor of [game=#28]Bubble Bobble[/game], but by far inferior to its famous sequel. You have to destroy monster eggs with timed bombs as well as recover a stolen heart from a cage. Problem with this game are the bad controls and stupid aiming of the bombs. Combine this with a harsh time-limit and you get a game that is infuriatingly frustrating. Graphics and sound are also on the weak side.
Dig Dug	Namco	1985	A good conversion of an old arcade game.***Become Dig Dug, the champion of love and justice, as you drill up, down, left and right, defeating any enemies in your path. Avoid the persistent Pooka and the deep-dwelling but whimsical Fygar as you defeat all the enemies in order to clear each stage. Defeat enemies by hitting them with the harpoon and pumping air into them, or by dropping rocks on them from above. Receive bonus points by getting the vegetables that appear in the middle of the stage. Receive high points for defeating deep-dwelling enemies or by defeating Fygars from the side with the harpoon. Pass through inflated enemies or defeat enemies in an adjacent passage for an even higher score. Lure multiple enemies and defeat them with a single rock from above in this thrilling action game.
Flappy	dB-SOFT	1985	Flappy plays like a mixture of Soukoban and Boulder Dash. The goal of each level is to place a blue boulder on a blue platform. And levels this game has enough. There are 200 of them. The graphics and sound are outdated and the controls are not so great. In the end Flappy is only for people who like puzzle games and want to play something different for a change.
Wrecking Crew	Nintendo	1985	[4]* [22]* [52]* [49]1 player or 2 players simultaneous cooperative. [Zerothis]Nice early puzzle / platform mix with nice graphics for its time. Destroy (nearly) everything on the screen to make it to the next level. One of the not so well known games featuring star plumber Mario.*In the days before Mario and Luigi became sports stars in their downtime between plumbing and saving the Princess, they tried their hands as one-man wrecking crews. With a hammer as their only tool, players take control of the brothers and set out to destroy ladders, rip out pipes, knock down walls and detonate explosive devices. But make sure to plan your path of destruction carefully, as each building is designed as its own clever puzzle—if you're not careful, you can easily trap yourself in a dead end. Adding to the excitement and challenge are fireballs, enemies and an angry foreman roaming the buildings. They're all trying to stop you from moving on to the next stage. With 100 buildings to demolish and the ability to construct your own, it's a wonder Mario and Luigi ever got back to saving the Mushroom Kingdom.
Hyper Olympic	Konami	1985	the JAN code 4 988602 502190 is used in numerous outlets to refer to both ハイパーオリンピック (Hyper Olympic) and ハイパーオリンピック限定版！ (Hyper Olympic Gentaiban! ). Hyper Olympic is 4 events based on Konami's Arcade game of the same name. It seems appropriate to note here that Hyper Olympic's PCB has no chips, just 2 'gloptops'. Which is often a sign of fast and sloppy manufacture. Hyper Olympic Gentaiban! has all eight events and is the same game as Track and Field. There's a bit of tech difference also. Gloptop Hyper Olympic uses no memory mapper while the aditional data of the Gentaiban edition reires the use of a mapper.***For Hyper Olympic, Konami took four track&field disciplines (100m dash, long jump, 110m hurdles and javelin throw) from the arcade version and put them on this Famicom cartridge (a few months later they would eventually release four more events as [game=#168936]Hyper Sports[/game] and a US release with all eight events on the same catridge as [game=#8384]Track & Field[/game]). The game is a good example of a varied and well playable multi-sport events game. Good controls with a mixture of button smashing and right timing, as well as a high motiviation to break your own records make this game worth to play.
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.
Elevator Action	Taito (Micronics)	1985	Good arcade conversion of a nice and "different" action game. Your goal is to obtain documents hidden behind red doors and then make it to the basement of each building to leave it. Secret agents try to stop kill you and you have to avoid or shoot them. As the title implies, elevators are the main game element here. You have to make extensive use of them to make your way through the building. Simple to understand and hard to master. Nice gameplay and interesting level design. A negative point might be that there is only one enemy type in the whole game.***This is a multi directional, scroll-type spy-action game that is a blast from the past. Control a spy and sneak alone into a building to steal the secret papers hidden there. Use a pistol, kicks, an elevator and even the lights to take out the building's guards. The gun-fighting action is full of thrills. Players will need speed and timing to get on the elevators, move between floors, steal the secret papers and escape from the basement parking lot.
Warpman	Namco	1985	Simple single-screen shooter where you have to kill a certain amount of aliens to finish a stage. Warpman is basically an improved version of the 1981 arcade game [game=#763]Warp Warp[/game]. There are two different playing fields. The one is in space and has very straightforward shooting gameplay, the second one is in a Bomberman-style maze where you have to leave bombs on the ground to kill nearby enemies.
Door Door	Enix (Chunsoft)	1985	Before Chunsoft developed the immensely popular [game=#7747]Dragon Quest[/game] for Enix, they made some more obscure games. Door Door is such a game. Your goal is to trap all enemies behind doors. A slightly above average typical fixed-screen platform game from the pre Super Mario Bros. era with strange looking creatures.
Super Arabian	Sunsoft	1985	Your task in Super Arabian is to collect letters spread around each screen to form a specific word. The game is a typical fixed-screen platform game and features four different screens after which you have completed a level. The next level will confront you with the same type of screens just with different enemies and letters making the game progressively harder. Sunsoft's first Famicom game is technically and gameplay-wise merely a below average game.
Front Line	Taito	1985	Taito's early Famicom games really leave a lot to be desired. Front Line is no exception. A pathetic arcade conversion. The player is a soldier who has to shoot everything in sight and walk his way up several screens until he gets into a tank. The rest of a level follows the same formula, just that you are using the tank to go up several more screens and destroy the enemy base. Bad graphics and sound combined with sloppy gameplay.
The Tower of Druaga	Namco	1985	Some may call "Tower of Druaga" an Action-RPG, I call it a clever maze game with usable extra items. Your goal on each floor is to find the exit. Besides that you have to find a treasure chest on each level, which often gives you a bonus item, which might become invaluable in later levels. Here is also my biggest complaint about this game. Besides the repetitive nature of such maze games the appearance of treasure chests is often triggered by certain events like killing a special enemy on the floor. Missing treasure chests on the first floots might make a much later floor nearly unplayable, which is a bit unfair system. Graphically the game is average. Since it is an early Famicom game the mazes don't come in many shapes and looks.
Gyromite	Nintendo	1985	In this action-packed game you've got to keep R.O.B.'s gyroscope spinning in order to assist Professor Hector, the mad scientist, in defusing all the bombs in his laboratory. R.O.B. will help move the columns blocking the scientist's way so he can get to the dynamite before it explodes. Master the technique and you can get R.O.B. spinning two gyros at the same time. But don't take your eyes off the screen for two long - because anything can happen in Gyromite!* [52]* [52]*The catalog number for the Great Britain / Italy version of this game is officially "NES-GY-GBR". However, the cartridge simply has "GBR" on the label. [b]Some[/b] Canadian version cartridges likewise show only "CAN". Also "FRA" for [b]some[/b] French Versions. Some USA version cartridges have no catalog number printed on the cartridge label. There exists a 'big box' USA version'. The cartridge in this box has "NES-GY-USA" on the label. The USA R.O.B. and Gyromite boxed set shares the same UPC as the Gyromite game sold alone, 0-45496-63001-0. The Japanese cartridge label reads: "ファミリーコンピュータロボット HVC-GY ジガイロ Gyro" Where "ファミリーコンピュータロボット: ジガイロ" seems to be the intended title "HVC-012" Applies to the Japanese Robot without the Robot Gyro game. This box apparently has no JAN barcode. UNKNOWN: Japanese Robot + Robot Gyro game JAN code Robot Gyro lone cartridge JAN code.Gyromite is one of two Famicom/NES game using Nintendo's (today very expensive) R.O.B. addon. You are playing a professor who has to collect all dynamite in each level. One player controls the professor, the second player controls the pillars, which block the way. Pillars can also be used to kill enemies by squishing them beneath pillar and ground or ceiling. R.O.B. can also take the role as second player. The game is quite interesting with nice graphics and music for its time. Now the problem is to get a willing second player or R.O.B. to fully enjoy the game, because alone it doesn't rise to its full potential.Since the average younger sibling is usually slightly smarter that ROB, they are a much better choice as a 2nd player. [Zerothis]*1 player or 2 players simultaneous cooperative. Technically, the game is two player only, one human player only, R.O.B. being the second player. This is a very basic platform game with the added twist of a second player having simple control over certain elements in the game world. It is intended that the first player would command ROB to spin up his gyroscopes and move them around to push buttons on the 2nd player controller to manipulate the game world on behalf of player 1. Thus human player 1 and robot player 2 would cooperate to beat the game. Tags: The game is designed to be used with the Robot Operating Buddy (R.O.B.) Gyromite was available when the NES was launched in the USA. It was also packaged with some NES decks. Gyromite was available as a standalone game in a package with ROB parts. It was also available in a package without ROB parts inside. Some players have noted that when this game is played on an NES deck modified for stereo or an emulator with stereo out capability, that it sounds as if it were designed for it. [Zerothis]
10-Yard Fight	Irem	1985	You're the quarterback in this amazingly real football game!Enjoy realistic grid-iron action as you move your team up and down the field to victory! Run, pas, kick, punt--you call the plays in this true-to-life football game. Play against the computer, or against a friend, for hours of real football action. The sights, the sounds and the plays are so real, you'll think you're right on the fifty yard line!* [64][media=youtube]5LUyTv9j1TM[/media]NES-TY-USA Early cartridges did not include a catalog number, thus there are two know label variations for this game. 2 players simultaneous. Part of Nintendo's Sports Series marketing label. [Zerothis]*10-Yard Fight ist the first American Football game for the NES / Famicom and an arcade port. The game indeed plays like a simple arcade game. There is not much strategy involved. Controls could be better and the running speed is too slow (harder difficulty levels only consist of your team running even slower). All in all a poor representative of its sport.
Super Mario Bros.	Nintendo	1985	[22]* [1]* [52]* [52]* [33]*Super Mario Bros. is the pinnacle of pure, unblemished gaming. The 2D platformer, designed by Nintendo's legendary figurehead Shigeru Miyamoto, still remains in our minds the most intuitive and addictive entry in the genre. The title stars "Jump Man" himself, Mario, along with his brother Luigi, and takes players through more than 30 colorful levels of varied theme and design, all of them packed with cute, stylized enemies like the goombas and a wide array of platforms and obstacles. Super Mario Bros. is the first major showpiece for Nintendo's heightened quality of gaming: full of depth, layered with tight control and remarkably clever level creation that spills with secrets and extras.One of the most important and best-selling games in history. This game was the #1 reason to buy a NES console in its early days. Perfect controls, nice graphics and sounds for its time. Varied levels with many secrets. The major breakthrough for side-scrolling platform games.Also released on a compilation grouping [game=#8317]Tetris[/game], [game=#5128]Super Mario Bros.[/game] and [game=#8062]Nintendo World Cup[/game] (Only in Europe).*First side-scrolling Mario game. Huge sales for the NES, both in Japan and the USA. A superb platformer and early benchmark for the NES and 8-bit consoles. Guinness World Records reports this game as the best selling game of all time at 40230000 copies. [b]Tags[/b] Landing squarely on an enemies head to defeat them is the first and most common tactic in this game. It was available at the launch time of the NES in the USA (Famicom?). It stars Mario the plumber. he main plot includes rescuing the unfortunate Princess in distress, and saving her kingdom; which is threatened by Bowser. Successful completion of the game completes a story of deliverance. Other royal subjects can be rescued optionally. The common bricks in the game can be smashed directly or by hurdling enemies at them. Although a glitch, Mario or Luigi can preform wall jumps. [Zerothis]
Hyper Sports	Konami	1985	4 988602 504170 may be the Hyper Sports set which includes the Konami HyperShot. Hyper Sports by itself may have another JAN code.***Hyper Sports is the second early 4 event sports game from Konami. The events consist of Archery, Skeet Shooting, High Jump and Triple Jump, which were all later also included together with the four other disciplines from [game=#173086]Hyper Olympic[/game] in the US/EU releases under the name [game=#8384]Track & Field[/game]. The four disciplines in Hyper Sports are all well done and motivating. Today you would say only four disciplines are not much, but this wasn't an issue at its release in 1985. Not quite as good as the similar, but more complex [game=#35201]Summer Games[/game], but still a good substitute for NES players.
Challenger	Hudson Soft	1985	Challenger consists of several scenes. The first one is a platform scene on a running train, then the game switches to an overworld view. Around the overworld you have to visit little caves (again in side-view) and ultimately have to find the princess and rescue her. The highlight of the game are the graphics. Especially the first scene on a train (featuring parallax scrolling) is impressive for a game from 1985. The gameplay though is far from being a real rival to either [game=#5128]Super Mario Bros.[/game] in the side-view scenes or [game=#9176]The Legend of Zelda[/game] in the overworld-scenes.
Ninja Jajamaru-kun	Jaleco (Tose)	1985	[media=youtube]bKtwWO5N7is[/media]**While UPL brought the official sequel to Ninja-kun into the arcades, Jaleco made this spin-off sequel for the Famicom. The game basically stays true to the original game. Kill all enemies on screen with your shuriken throwing little ninja to make it to the next scene where more enemies await you. Inside a level you reach higher platforms by destroying brick walls by jumping headfirst against them ouch*. Instead of the mainly up-and-down scrolling levels of the original Ninja-kun game, Ninja Jajamaru-kun scrolls horizontally. By the graphics and sound you can see that it is a rather early Famicom game.
Onyanko Town	Pony Canyon (Micronics)	1985	In Onyanko Town you control a mother cat in her search for her little kitten, which strolls around in a huge maze-like town. When you found your kitten your task is only half finished. You have to bring him back to your home under worse conditions, namely more aggressive enemies. Enemies consist of cars, dogs, manholes etc. Being in a town gives this maze game a nice touch. Otherwise it is nothing special and good for just a few tries.
Pac-Land	Namco	1985	Pac-Land is a side-scrolling platform game and was ported from the arcade to the Famicom system. The game is well playable.The graphics are very cartoonish, just like in the arcade original, but also really undetailed. The game doesn't reach the evergreen status of the classic Pac-Man and never reaches the quality of a Super Mario Bros.
BurgerTime	Data East;Namco (SAS Sakata)	1985	As Chef Peter Pepper, you must fend off the Food Foes while making perfect burgers! Use pinches of pepper to stun Mr. Hot Dog, Mr. Egg and Mr. Pickle, or lure them onto or under burger buns, lettuce, cheese or tomatoes to escape their clutches! Making perfect burgers gets progressively tougher through the six screens of BurgerTime!*A good conversion of an arcade classic. I personally think that the Famicom/NES version came a year or two too late to be considered impressive, since many other home versions were already available (e.g. the very good Colecovision port). Gameplay gets a bit old after a few tries and the difficulty level is rather high from the beginning.*Developed by Data East Published by Namco Limited in Japan, 1985-11-27 NES-BR-USA published by Data East Corporation in USA, 1987-05 The player controls Chef Pepper while he makes giant hamburgers by walking over and knocking the layers of required ingredients off the giant lattice where they sit. Layers only fall one level of the lattice at a time. When one layer falls on another, it falls one level also. Hamburgers are complete when all the required layers are knocked to hamburger tray on the bottom. Required ingredients are bun, meat, lettuce, and bun. The optional ingredients, are the antagonists; Mr. Egg, Mr. Pickle, and Mr. Hot Dog. Apparently, fried eggs and hot dogs are a popular hamburger ingredients in the alternate universe where videogame characters live. Should they be caught between the falling required layers, they will become permanent ingredients. Otherwise they will kill Chef Pepper on contact. But Chef Pepper can pick up salt to protect himself. One sprinkle od salt will stun the optional ingredients long enough for Chef Pepper to walk past them. [Zerothis]
Ikki	Sunsoft (Tose)	1985	Run around, collecting all money bags scattered around the level and defend yourself against attacking ninjas. Only four rather short stages and a bonus round were left from the original eight arcade stages. The game is not free of some problems. Sometimes your enemies spawn in unfair spots and the fact that the game starts to scroll only when the player is already near the edge of the screen makes it even worse. On the other hand the game's start isn't very difficult. I was rather disappointed to come to the end of the fourth stage only after a few minutes in my first try. The fifth stage just repeats the first stage with more difficult enemies. The motivation to play on drops down drastically from there.***In this game you play rebel farmer who defends his section of land from marauding ninjas. This is based on Ikkō-ikki history. Presumably the ninjas were hired by the Samurai to wreak havoc? (I'm not that familiar with Japanese history). The farm land is a maze-like area that the player must navigate while the Ninjas can piratically fly. They Approach from the north with smaller numbers from the flanks. The player uses his boomerang to kill hundreds of them (maybe these are Ninja school dropouts). There are also Japanese coins to be collected in a Pac-Man like manner. The player does not remain centered in the screen and most scroll it by advancing dangerously close to the edge. Only the protagonist knows the boundaries of his land and stops on them (this information is not revealed to the player before reaching the edge). This game was released only in Japan. [Zerothis]
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]
Spelunker	Irem;Brøderbund (Irem)	1985	Spelunker could have been a really good game, but it has a huge problem. The play controls are really bad. Nearly every time you fall down something it feels more due to the controls than your because of your own fault. And regarding falling down: Falling down more than a few pixels results in death. All this makes the game ridiculously difficult. The cave exploring part could have been really fun, but not after so many deaths due to the sloppy controls. Graphics and sound are nothing special. They get their work done well enough for an early Famicom/NES game.***Wander through miles of uncharted caves in search of the legendary underground pyramid and its vast treasures. To complete your adventure, you will swing from ropes and ladders, run across unstable terrain and down ravines, operate elevators, mining carts and rafts. You will collect keys, bombs, flares, jewels, sacks of gold coins and other valuable items as you navigate the hazardous terrain. But beware of the scalding steam vents, poisonous bats and the avenging spirits of dead spelunkers that lurk in every corner of this massive underground labyrinth.
Dough Boy	Kemco (Synapse Software)	1985	This is surely one of the worst games existing on the Famicom. In several stages you collect tools like TNT or ladders and use them to make further progress. In the last stage you have to rescue a POW. The controls are horrible, shooting and walking doesn't work and it is a real pain to get the tools to work. Add very simple graphics on top of that and you get a game of miserable quality.
Bokosuka Wars	ASCII (Bits Laboratory)	1985	Bokosuka Wars was a rather successfull game on several Japanese homecomputers, so ASCII decided to make a port for the Famicom system. Although the game never made it outside Japan it is not totally unknown in the west. The simple reason behind this is the fact that it is widely considered being one of the worst, if not the #1 worst game ever released for the Famicom/NES. And there are good reasons for this assumption. First of all the game is a technical catastrophe. Graphics are undetailed and plain, the scrolling is horrendous. Music is extremely repetitive. And the gameplay is, well... confusing at first. You control a king on his way 600 meters to the left to beat an evil boss. On his way you can find friendly forces hidden in trees or rocks. The king, each of his units and the enemies all have an attack value. So if you have bad luck your king will die confronting the first little enemy unit and it is Game Over. Maybe there are certain tactics giving a better chance to make it far. The problem is the whole game design and bad presentation makes you want to quit this game before finding it out.
Binary Land	Hudson Soft	1985	In Binary Land you control two cute penguins simultaneously through a maze. At the beginning you decide which bird you control directly resulting in the other bird having a mirrored control scheme. That means when you run left with the first bird, the second bird would run right. Both birds start from different locations in the maze and the goal is that both birds reach the heart on the middle top of the maze at the same time. I found the concept really refreshing. With enemies roaming the maze you have to keep a good look for both birds at the same time. There are lots of mazes and the difficulty level raises just in the right amount, starting with easy mazes and getting slowly more difficult ones.
Bomberman	Hudson Soft	1985	The Famicom/NES version of Bomberman is technically not the first Bomberman, the MSX and other computer versions were a bit earlier. But it is the first Bomberman with the typical Bomberman character and general graphical look that so many subsequent games in the series would borrow from. Sadly this Bomberman version doesn't have the best and main fun feature of later sequels, namely the multiplayer part. So you just run around the (scrolling) maze solo, bombing enemies and stone blocks in search of the exit door. Slightly above average game, but missing the fun factor of the better sequels.***published 1985-12-19 in Japan NES-BM-USA published 1987 in the USA 1 player only. Bomberman is a robot who dreams of freedom from his task of bomb making in the underground explosives factory. He's told a rumor that if a Bomberman reaches the surface he is granted one wish. He intendeds to escape, his wish will be that all Bombermen could become humans. Bomberman can drop timed bombs, that's it. But he can grab powerups to increase his bomb range and carrying capacity. The factory is full of guards who will stop Bomberman at all costs. They can be destroyed with bombs, but so can Bomberman, so Bomberman must becarful to stand in the right places. Each floor has an exit to the next floor that is hidden behind bombable walls. Bomberman is 50 floors underground. A password system allows Bomberman to continue from any level he knows the password for. The password also stores score, carrying capacity, and bomb range.[spoiler=secret powerups;secret powerups]The remote detonator & flameproof suit do exist in this game. The only known way to get them to show up in the world is with hacked passwords or cheat device[/spoiler] [Zerothis]
Thexder	Square (Bits Laboratory)	1985	Thexder was a very successful action game on early Japanes homecomputers. As a result it was ported to the Famicom. You are controlling a robotic mecha which can transform into a flying ship. The goal of each level is to find the exit. Easier said than done, because the game can confuse with its labyrinthine design. Gameplay is interesting, but the controls are not optimal. Shooting as a mecha is semi-automatic, you press the fire button and the aiming is done automatically. A very challenging game.
Son Son	Capcom (Micronics)	1986	Son Son is a conversion of a rather unknown Capcom arcade game and was only released in Japan. You control a monkey named Son Son on his way through 19 stages towards a heaven-like place. When you select 2-player mode Son Son is accompanied by his pig friend Ton Ton, which is controlled by the second player. You can jump up and down platforms and shoot incoming enemies. The levels are scrolling automatically. An overall average shooting/platform hybrid. At least it spawned eventually a much better sequel ([game=#101388]Son Son II[/game]) for the PC-Engine a few years later.

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