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Most bizarre NES/Famicom games?

I want to hear about the most bizarre, obtuse, left-field games available for the NES or Famicom. Admittedly, it was kind of a matter of course that a lot of the earlier adventure games for the system were kind of obtuse because of space constraints and loose design philosophies. But I want to hear about the games with the weirdest concepts, the most inexplicable implementations and mechanics, the most unexpected settings, and so on. It doesn't have to be good, just weird.
 
Time Warp Tickers from Action 52 for the NES.

Is it good? Lord no, is anything on that cartridge good? But it's definitely weird. You play as a disembodied pair of fingers, walk around kicking things to death, at which point they turn into the word "Time?". The world itself is like some surrealist's wet dream, with flying doors and checkerboard patterns galore.

Yeah.
 

Rygar 8 Bit

Jaguar 64-bit
75mxmn3
 
Time Warp Tickers from Action 52 for the NES.

Is it good? Lord no, is anything on that cartridge good? But it's definitely weird. You play as a disembodied pair of fingers, walk around kicking things to death, at which point they turn into the word "Time?". The world itself is like some surrealist's wet dream, with flying doors and checkerboard patterns galore.

Yeah.

Jesus, that's amazing.
 

Syril

Member
Hoshi wo Miru Hito. You start on the world map and the first town is invisible. Exiting a location returns you to a predetermined point on the world map instead of next to the location (e.g., leaving the second town returns you the beginning of the game). The main character starts at level 0 and does more damage unarmed than with the first available weapon. Buying a new piece of equipment immediately replaces and destroys the existing one. An enemy in the first zone inflicts a paralysis with 100% accuracy which doesn't wear off, making you watch it kill you slowly. Both treasure and plot-critical items are hidden on the world map. The command selection in battle defaults to special skills instead of attack, and you can't cancel if you select it accidentally. HP display in battle omits the ones digit. Passwords are a mix of letters and katakana and don't save certain types of progress, suck as character level.

Credit for this information where it's due.
 

DemiMatt

Member
I remember when I was younger my Mom brought home this SNES game (title I forget so maybe you can help me).

But basically I was a guy who got shrunk down and had to enter the human body to kill of germs and virus' to save a guys life. It was my 1st instance of edutainment when I was 8 or so.
 
Takeshi's Challenge is pretty damn bizarre.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCOVHW7B6dc&feature=player_embedded#!

From Wiki said:
Kitano incorporated many of his unique and controversial ideas into the game. For instance, the player can beat up a yakuza gangster at a pachinko gambling establishment, and take the yakuza's money to exchange for prizes. The player can use a hang-glider to fly over into a strange land called the "Red Country" (an amalgam between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany). The player can gain access to the Red Country if they pass over the four other islands, but a huge mountain blocks the way into the country, and the player will be forced to crash into either the mountain or the ground, resulting in an automatic game over screen. There is also a choice on the password-entry screen ("Punch the old man") which also results in an automatic game over, even when the player has not even started the game. Other in-game events include: a game over screen where the player's character is given a funeral, singing karaoke at a pub (using the second-controller's built-in microphone), the main character divorcing his wife and paying a settlement, beating up yakuza, or seeing inhumane comments on store signs.
 

LayLa

Member

Famicom has all sorts of strange things
I am a Teacher - Super Mario no Seta (1986, FDS) - knitting instructions, make a Mario sweater! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YbANpltcm4
Famicom Top Management (1990) - aimed at Japanese business students, climb the corporate ladder! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCAPVTGh0Cs
America Daitōryō Senkyo (1988) - American presidential race sim, features soundtrack ripping off OMD at one point! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1A1QjjlOhU

Ooh, more like these!
 

-KRS-

Member
There's a good web series called Chrontendo which goes through every licensed game ever released for the Famicom and NES in chronological order. I've seen some weird shit on that. The only problem is that it's quite a lot to watch of course, but it's usually pretty interesting because the guy is serious about it so he's not constantly making stupid jokes but actually gives you facts about the game and the development of it etc etc. He's only up to March of 1989 so far but that's still a lot of games.

http://chrontendo.blogspot.com/
 
Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa is a pretty standard platformer, except for the part where you play as a baby, you have the oddest jumping arc ever, you hit dudes with a bottle which inflates them, and levels range from being inside a cake to being inside a video game console over a decade before Nuts and Bolts did it.

It's also really fun.
 

Tex117

Banned
+2 On Kubuki Quantum Fighter.

Also, played Wall Street Kid...Kinda fun actually (but more of a learning tool).
 
Anyone remember Karnov? I traded for it at a flea marketing in the 90s and never heard about it before or since. It was a profoundly weird game where you fought dinosaurs and had a bunch of abilities like ladders, ninja stars, etc:

Man, I played the hell out of this. I had it for PC, because my mom & dad wouldn't get me a NES. Looking back, I'm not really sure why I was so into a game about a bald Russian man who spits fireballs.
 

Gameboy415

Member
SD Splatterhouse Wanpaku Graffiti - Cutesy version of Splatterhouse only released in Japan despite the fact that the story is displayed in English!

560905-splatterhouse_wanpaku_graffiti_box_large.jpg


Joy Mech Fight - strange 2D fighter from Nintendo

250px-Joymechfight_boxart.PNG


All-Night Nippon Super Mario Bros. - bizarre yet officially-developed hack of Super Mario Bros that replaces the enemies with caricatures of 80's Japanese Celebrities!

875068-allnightnipponmariofg6_large.jpg


Otocky - a "musical side-scrolling shooter" for the Famicom Disk System

Otocky_Box-art.png


King Kong 2 - strange action game from Konami that continues the story of King Kong

kk2_box_front.jpg
 

Tempy

don't ask me for codes
More in the "Did they really bother to make and release this for the NES?" category:

Taboo: The Sixth Sense - Tarot card fortune telling, by Rare.


Color a Dinosaur - Flood fill areas with a limited amount of colors/patterns.

There's also the various Wisdom Tree releases based on the bible. I'm sure they need no introduction.
 
R

Rösti

Unconfirmed Member
How about Baby Boomer, an unlicensed game by the company Color Dreams, Inc., known for other classics such as Bible Adventures and Sunday Funday, as seen reviewed by James Rolfe.

The game utilizes the NES Zapper which you use to protect stray baby Boomer from hazards like cats and dynamite. The goal is to get the baby back to his mother.

68575-baby-boomer-nesk6uqn.png


Gameplay video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nxyzrO-rAA
 

shoplifter

Member
Rösti;35821950 said:
How about Baby Boomer, an unlicensed game by the company Color Dreams, Inc., known for other classics such as Bible Adventures and Sunday Funday, as seen reviewed by James Rolfe.

The game utilizes the NES Zapper which you use to protect stray baby Boomer from hazards like cats and dynamite. The goal is to get the baby back to his mother.

68575-baby-boomer-nesk6uqn.png


Gameplay video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nxyzrO-rAA


Looks like a Gumshoe ripoff?
 
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