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This article is about the NES game, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. For information on the arcade game with the same name, see Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (arcade game). Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (激亀忍者伝 Gekikame Ninja Den in Japan) is a 1989 platformer video game for the NES by Ultra Games/Konami based on the popular animated series and comic books. It is also the first video game ever to be based on the series. The same year, Konami released Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, an arcade game by the same name but totally unrelated to this NES title.
Gameplay The game begins with all four Ninja Turtles: Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo and Raphael, who can be rotated through at any time during gameplay. The turtles are practically identical except for their weapons, which differ in attack speed, range, and damage (i.e. Donatello's bo has the best damage and range, but the worst speed). The player must travel through the first 5 of the levels using an overview map to enter various sewers, warehouses, and other areas which leads to the goal of each level. Along the way the player fights various enemies which range from Foot Soldiers and Rat Kings to bomb dropping-blimps and chainsaw-wielding baddies. Each turtle serves as a life, and there are only 2 continues. Later in the game, the player is given several opportunities to rescue those who been captured after failing in combat. Turtle Info Donatello: Has great reach, but his weapon is slow and doesn't hit small targets with a standing swing. His Bo does the most damage of all the turtles and is best for boss fights. Raphael: The Sais have the worst reach and flexibility of all the weapons in the game. They are noticably slow, but as an added bonus he does double damage to some flying creatures. Michelangelo: Average character all around. Doesn't have a downward attack like Donatello or Leonardo, and while his nunchaku weapon is weak, once he has taken half damage his weapon becomes as strong as Donatello's. Leonardo: Long reach, has the greatest weapon range when swinging, but doesn't do much damage. Fortunately, he seems to take less damage from smaller creatures as well. Criticism Although it sold extremely well during its release, probably due to the TMNT name, some consider this game their least favorite of the earlier TMNT games. Part of this could be blamed on the game's difficulty. Some difficult portions appear as early as the second level's swimming area, and many people gave up on this title before reaching the third level. Because there were only four turtles, and fallen comrades could not be rescued until some of the later levels, one had to progress through the game with the equivalent of four lives - a rather harrowing task for such a difficult game. The use of critical items, such as the grappling hook, was very unclear in the game. Enemies respawned very easily (moving across the screen and back would regenerate enemies), and difficult controls made timed and strategic jumping almost impossible. Another reason why this game is often looked down upon among the other Turtle games is because of its gameplay. The straightforward scrolling fighting game gameplay of the popular Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade Game was featured in most of the future games and used in favor of the platform style of the original game. But the most panned part of TMNT was the water level, in which the player had to defuse several bombs. This particular level was very difficult, owing to poor controls and the difficulty of the level in general, leading many players to abandon the game before even finishing the second of six levels. However, those who defend the game note that, unlike the later versions, this game retained the gritty tone of the comics and even retained Splinter and Shredder's original designs, even though Splinter's cartoon background is used here. The game's difficult gameplay is seen as an example of the true difficulty of early NES titles, which also include Super Mario Bros. and Mega Man. There is also no sign of Krang, despite Rocksteady and Bebop being present, indicating that Eastman and Laird had a say in the look and gameplay of this in contrast to what followed later. Trivia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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