Famicom Cart
Here we have all the games in the Famicom Cart Section.
Famicom Cart
Action
Famicom take on the long running Japanese TV soap opera set in the past where our hero roams the town in a similar vein to Goemon getting into scrapes and scraps, then dishing out some rough justice. Plenty of samurai haircuts on offer in this period romp.
Famicom Cart
Sports
Genki doesn’t do tattoos, but if we did our first would no doubt be in the shape of the Famicom style of Mario, here seen in unusually relaxed position of umpires chair. Simple is the best: the full court is visible in screen and good use of shadowing and ball sizing creates a clever perspective with very playable gameplay.
Famicom Cart
Shoot Em Up
A vintage vertical scroller that pulls up its bar stool and satisfactorily sups its tipple, safe in the knowledge that what it does, it does very well. Don’t expect any favours, but it does make a great adventure.
Famicom Cart
Platform
A fitting tribute to a fine story due to the amount of unregulated fun and adventure in the game. The rafting sections are superb: firing at flying frogs, avoiding whirlpools and grabbing power ups. The platform sections can look a little rudimentary at times, but gameplay innovations such as being able to take to the skies with feet wrapped in fluffy cloud; turning the action into a side on shooter. Genki just fears the appearance of Injun Joe.
Famicom Cart
Platform
Genki Gurus will be more than aware of our unhealthy penchant for ninjas. Still at least it doesn’t result in donning ninja suit and heading for the local park to test our skills. Yet few would be able to turn down Kage’s charms as or hero runs through the snow laden forests taking down opponents as you may clearing a path through the bamboo. Indoor levels show off some beautiful screens and more varied adversaries donning big bowled hats of a pilgrim. Yet rescuing the kimono clad princess makes it all worth while.
Famicom Cart
Platform
The cuddly characters hide some devious level design from as fine a stable as Konami. Chomping carrots and spooky levels with big boss rushes to savour.
Famicom Cart
Action
It takes great skill to be able to deflect the ball in Titan onto the blocks that need breaking down to clear the level. A simple premise with beautiful presentation.
Famicom Cart
Shooter
Take off and get up to altitude whilst dog fighting other fighter jets at Mach speed in your aviator shades. Impressive frame rate.
Famicom Cart
Action
Classic title from a golden era of gaming where players take on the role of knight tasked with clearing mazes. Set apart by Namcot’s flair for appealing sprite graphics and some fine gameplay blending quick thinking and fast pacing to create a title as loved today in updates such as this and on virtual consoles.
Famicom Cart
Platform
Robots in disguise must be avoided, but otherwise Optimus Prime romps through the platform levels blasting all and sundry. Nice nostalgia in many of the baddies including a T Rex look alike. Genki was always a big fan of the ones which could transform into cassette tapes, Decepticons or not. Subtitled Convoy no Nazo in Japanese or Mystery of Convoy.
Famicom Cart
Shoot Em Up
Lushly pastel shaded vertically scrolling shoot ’em up from the reliable Konami stable. Off – shoot of the Gradius and Parodius series. Shooter heads may find its frivolous gameplay a little easy, but everyone will enjoy the ride.
Famicom Cart
Shoot Em Up
Vertically scrolling helicopter based blaster. Think 1941 with copters for planes. Taito once again showing its expertise in crafting very competent shooters. Also known as Kyukyoku Tiger.
Famicom Cart
One on One Beat Em Up
Pre-dating Street Fighter, this title puts player as a street brawler up against not only an opponent, but also falling objects from the inhabitants of the building above where the scrap ensues. This can also be a bucket of glitter should your opponent be defeated. Timing is everything. Vintage, Nintendo gameplay, a veritable claret of classic gaming.
Famicom Cart
Platform
The striking colour scheme gives Wagan Land its distinctive look, but it works well with pad in hand in practise to keep the levels clear. A very enjoyable platform romp with the developer showing a firm grasp of the Famicom’s architecture.
Famicom Cart
Platform
Brash colour scheme with chirpy gameplay to match the chipper colours. Perfectly suited to the hardware and Namcot really squeeze plenty out of the architecture both aurally and visually.
Famicom Cart
RPG
RPG action in both village and mountainous regions where you can interact Goemon style with the shopkeepers. Zany mix of robot transformation and the Japanese countryside. Inexplicably known as Keith Courage in the West.
Famicom Cart
Puzzle
Exciting puzzle game with an overhead perspective that allows players to clearly view the action. Taking on the role of a bionic man, players must try and fill up the screen with blocks which they constantly trail from behind. Yet skilful control whilst keeping an eye out for trapping yourself against your own blocks are the keys to beating your opponent. Good, gaming, wholesome fun.
Famicom Cart
Platform
Enjoyable platformer with the look of Mother 2 to the character and a nice gamepaly twist in being able to walk into the screen to visit shops and the like. An umbrella works a treat for extending jumps, for example.
Famicom Cart
Shoot Em Up
Vertically scrolling shooter but requires you to keep an eye on the ground with a bomb option too. Distinctive graphical style works well on the Famicom.
Famicom Cart
One on One Beat Em Up
Take on the deft of foot Oolong or the brute Chain in this grandmaster of martial arts antics. Gameplay is like a vintage port that only seems to improve with age. Hot fighting history indeed.
Famicom Cart
Puzzle
The cookies of the title must be aligned by scrolling the biscuits horizontally and vertically. Two player mode makes for frantic action as success can temporarily mask a key area of players cookie tray. Simple, fun and Nintendo.
Famicom Cart
RPG
Gorgeous sprite levels and sounds lift this up to rival Zelda as one of the finest action RPGs on the Famicom. But its perhaps the more unnoticed level design that is worthy of higher praise and elevate this to seminal status.
Famicom Cart
Action
A beautiful taster of what was to come in Parodius et al. The Penguin hero of the title piles on the pounds with each hit and therefore gets less likely to make the time limit controlled end of level. Full of colourful, Konami fun and humour and a real gem of a Famicom game.
Famicom Cart
RPG
Very tidy RPG based on the Zoids world with impressive 3D battles that introduced saving money you find in game into a bank. Get hold of the baddest Zoid to wreak havoc on the other prehistoric inspired robots.
Famicom Cart
RPG
Very tidy RPG based on the Zoids world with impressive 3D battles. Get hold of the baddest Zoid to wreak havoc on the other prehistoric inspired robots.
Famicom Cart
Platform
A platform adventure with light RPG elements including a few real time stats at the base of the screen. Nothing too elaborate, but as such it ticks all its boxes and jumps through more hoops than Genki after a flask of green tea.
Famicom Cart
Shoot Em Up
Vertical shooting action as players ships zip along up the screen with the secret to fast progress being to nip enemy ships in the bud nice and early before the screen can get too full of bullets and bombs. As an extra strand, players must collect spare parts in order to clear the stage. The chip tunes effects and old school gameplay are the likes of which Genki pines for in the face of bullet hell, bullet storms and bullet waves of the modern STG. Keeping it simple is no criticism.