Fall Of The Foot Clan

I’ve a bizarre love/hate relationship with Konami.

It’s the creator of a few of my favorite franchises, similar to Steel Gear Strong and Silent Hill, however in recent times its extra well-known for feeding the Japanese gaming market with Pachinko machines fairly than releasing any precise video video games.

In the course of the NES and SNES eras, nevertheless, it made some stellar titles with among the world’s largest licences. No licence was arguably greater round this time than Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Rebranded as Hero Turtles right here within the UK, the 4 brothers skilled in martial arts by an enormous rat had been completely big, having began life as an underground comedian guide earlier than making a splash as a cartoon in 1987 and a box-office smash of a film in 1990.

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Launched a couple of months after the film within the US and 1991 in Europe, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Fall Of The Foot Clan represents the franchise’s first foray on to Nintendo’s Sport Boy handheld system. Konami had accomplished wonders for the franchise up up to now, having launched Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on the NES in 1989 – an excellent recreation, regardless of the hate it receives – and a fully stellar arcade cupboard that very same 12 months. Fall Of The Foot Clan was one of many first titles I owned on Sport Boy, outdoors of the pack-in title Tetris, and regardless of it holding a particular place in my coronary heart, it pains me to confess that it’s not the strongest entry within the franchise.

As you would possibly anticipate of the 8-bit period, Fall Of The Foot Clan is a side-scrolling fighter with platforming components. You soar with B and assault with A, although fortunately you possibly can swap these earlier than beginning (except you’re a heathen). However, as a lot as I do get pleasure from this title, I can’t deny it suffers from the simplicity of its time. It’s good enjoyable, little doubt, however solely lasts about 20 minutes – nowhere close to sufficient for even a vacation automobile experience. Even the plot is fairly cookie-cutter for the Ninja Turtles franchise, to the purpose you possibly can break it down to 3 key phrases: “April”, “kidnapped” and “Shredder”.

So, April’s been kidnapped by Shredder, and it’s as much as you to avoid wasting the “ravishing reporter” (their phrases). Like each the NES recreation and the arcade recreation earlier than it, you begin by choosing your Turtle from the brothers 4, and if one Turtle dies you must keep it up with the brothers three. They every have the weapons you’d anticipate: Leonardo with the katanas, Raphael wields his twin sais, Michelangelo has a pair of nunchakus and Donatello has a giant ol’ stick. Every Turtle additionally has limitless shuriken you possibly can throw in case you crouch and assault, which is a pleasant contact.

Actually, although, I can’t faux it actually makes a distinction who you decide. All of them use the identical sprite with solely the weapon swapped out, and because of the four-tone palette of the Sport Boy they aren’t even differentiated by color, making your selection even much less essential. If there are any variations between the characters, similar to one Turtle leaping larger or one other being stronger, you’ll have accomplished the sport earlier than you discover.

The again of the field proclaims that the sport has 5 ranges that you simply’ve “by no means earlier than seen”, although I can promise you, you have got. The primary degree takes you thru the sewers which, because the Turtles stay within the rattling sewers, is probably going in each single title primarily based on the franchise. This is perhaps the longest degree within the recreation as properly, being damaged down into 5 separate sections. I suppose it’s fortunate that Sport Boy video games by no means had ‘first degree demos’, as a result of when you’ve performed the primary degree you’ve sadly seen 90% of what the sport has to supply. When you make it to the tip you face the primary boss within the cool reggae beats of Rocksteady. He has a gun that fires one shot at a time. You soar his shot and hit him 5 occasions. Actually, in case you can’t make it to degree two you don’t have any objective being right here in any respect.

On to degree two, then, and it’s the sewers once more (I simply wish to reiterate at this level the field stated “5 by no means earlier than seen ranges”, and but right here we’re). The next levels have your chosen Turtle operating throughout the tops of vehicles in a site visitors jam (which is neat), right into a ravine and eventually into the showdown within the Technodrome. All through the sport you’ll combat recognisable enemies similar to foot troopers, Mouser robots and Roadkill Rodneys. However you’ll additionally combat a bunch of mystifying new ones, together with “Torpedo Timmy” (a shark/torpedo hybrid clearly spoofing Bullet Invoice from Tremendous Mario Bros.), faces which might be on fireplace for no obvious motive, bats, fish and, er, donuts (“the frosting is homicide” the guide says, explaining completely nothing).

Apart from Rocksteady, the bosses of the levels embody Bebop, Baxter Stockman in his full fly kind, Shredder and, in fact, Krang. Krang is a contact weak for a closing boss, because it’s simple to remain in a single place and stun-lock him. He’s really a better combat then Shredder earlier than him, as Shredder is blessed with each a sword and the magic capability to show round. Shredder really finally ends up being the one actual problem within the recreation, and whereas lots of people have complained concerning the problem of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on the NES, the other is true right here. Most enemies, whether or not their existence is understandable or not, go down in a single or two hits however your Turtle can take a whopping eight. There are additionally well being boosts that may be collected within the type of (you guessed it) pizza. A single slice can refill two of your well being blocks and a complete pizza will refill the meter utterly. It in all probability would have been a greater expertise if these had been eliminated, however I suppose in case you’re making a Ninja Turtles recreation you’ve simply bought so as to add some pepperoni someplace.

In case you nonetheless battle, there are hidden bonus video games all through the degrees providing a full well being refill in case you win. These are available in three flavours: the primary has you guessing what quantity between 0 and 999 Splinter is pondering of. You could have 10 makes an attempt at this and while you guess a quantity, Splinter will say both “greater” or “smaller”. I don’t assume he’s certain whose facet he’s imagined to be on, as the best way to win is to go smaller when he says greater and vice versa. The second bonus stage is an oddly civilised duel towards Krang, the place you must take away shuriken from three rows. You may take away as many as you want from a row, however to win you must make it so there’s just one left in your go. The third is a straightforward taking pictures gallery, the place you must transfer a cursor to shoot balls that fly throughout the display screen. It feels prefer it’s from a unique recreation however whereas the bonus levels all really feel like easy carnival video games, they’re a spotlight and assist combine up the platforming.

Graphically, the low decision of the Sport Boy display screen is properly optimised right here, particularly for an early title on the hand held. Sprites are massive and detailed, and though the Turtles all look alike, the remainder of the solid are immediately recognisable. Fall Of The Foot Clan is clearly primarily based totally on the 1987 cartoon, that includes the artwork model, villain roster and even the theme tune from that present, although the field artwork includes a scene from the Archie Comics adaptation of the primary film – cross-media franchising at its best. Very like SEGA’s Grasp System and Sport Gear, Nintendo’s NES and Sport Boy would typically have the identical video games ported between them. I’d have most popular it if the NES recreation may have made the leap straight to the Sport Boy as an alternative of Fall Of The Foot Clan being designed individually, however maybe the Sport Boy couldn’t handle it.

Konami went on to launch two sequels on the Sport Boy with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: Again From The Sewers in 1991, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: Radical Rescue in 1993. It continued making Ninja Turtles video games proper by way of the 16-bit period and past, however ultimately misplaced (or, extra doubtless, simply stopped caring about) the rights to supply Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles video games earlier than the discharge of the fourth film in 2007 – that honour fell to Ubisoft. With Tribute Video games’ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge due this 12 months for PC and consoles, it appears scrolling Ninja Turtles preventing will quickly be again in trend.

You served us properly again then, Konami. Fall Of The Foot Clan, regardless of its flaws and probably not being talked about anymore, remains to be higher than one other Pachinko machine.