I always thought this game was cool as a kid.
#Ninja jajamaru kun hardcore gaming 101 Pc#
Reminded me of some of those crappy shareware PC games from the 90’s. There was stuff happening all over the place so it was tough to avoid anything and I had no idea what any of the things I was collecting did and how much life I had left. I mashed a bunch of buttons, and eventually I got to a screen where I was a barbarian guy in a 2-D platform 16-bit area. When you press Start, they show you a map, and I couldn’t figure out what to do next. This is another new game, with a barbarian setting. Yeah, we really needed two Donkey Kong clones on here. It’s exactly like the first Night Defender game, except the clown is now a yeti, the girl looks older, you’re now a little man with a helmet, and the background is a crappy stock picture of a snowy mountain. You can jump and also press down to charge up, and then press another button to release a shot that can stun the ghosts for a bit. If you hit one, you’ll have to start the stage over again. There are ghosts that move in a set pattern in each stage for you to avoid. The graphics kind of reminds me of Balloon Fight, even though the gameplay is different. Anyway, each single screen stage has platforms and diamonds to collect, and when you get them all, you move onto the next level. Hey, we get a sequel to such a ‘great’ game! And no, it’s not a ripoff of DK Jr.! You’re still the teddy bear, and when you start the game, the screen shows a message for less than a second that says, “God gave children to man as a treasure.” That’s an odd thing to start a game with. It’s an exact ripoff of Donkey Kong, except Donkey is now a giant clown that throws skulls and snakes, Pauline is a little girl, and Mario is now…a teddy bear? I fell down a pit and couldn’t get past a fireplace without getting burned. It’s really easy to get stuck in the platforming sections, though. Sometimes you must jump over obstacles, but other times you can’t progress until you press a button to change the color of your blob and shoot pellets upward to create a picture with squares that matches an example. The story is really out there, so much so that I can’t remember it. It’s 16-bit in style, and seems to be a mix of 2-D platforming and puzzles. You’d think I would like this game, as it stars a little blue blob and I love the title name.
![ninja jajamaru kun hardcore gaming 101 ninja jajamaru kun hardcore gaming 101](http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/0099.png)
But they move around so much and/or take too many hits to defeat, so it’s really hard. You play as a guy who must run and jump up a vertically scrolling platform stage with garish backgrounds as you shoot monsters like bats and ghosts. This is a Jaleco Famicom game, and it’s all in Japanese. Anyway, this does have two games to choose from: Arcade Mode and Original Mode, both with different levels. I know Mercs was on the Genesis, but I’m not sure about the SNES. I’m pretty sure this is the console version, not the arcade versions, as it’s kind of choppy. I didn’t realize it when it first came out, but Mercs is actually the sequel to Commando. Looks like they reused some assets from other games like the “Let’s Go” sound from Lemmings. It looks like it, but it’s not an old game. The unique thing is that when you push a block, the whole row of blocks moves, so there are some new strategies involved. If you’ve ever played Retro Game Challenge, the Haggleman games are definitely a tribute to the Ninja Maru titles. Maru’s Mission is also similar to that, but it was a Game Boy game and featured improved graphics and gameplay. Ninja Jajamaru no Daibouken is more like a traditional 2-D platformer with the character. This game was on the Famicom and was even brought to the Virtual Console in the US at one point. You jump up and down platforms while throwing stars at enemies and when they’re all defeated, you move onto the next level. You can scroll the screen left and right a bit, but that’s it. The first game on here, Ninja Jajamaru-kun, reminds me of arcade games like Mappy. There is actually a pretty interesting article about the history of these games over at a site called Hardcore Gaming 101, so if you are interested, I suggest going there to learn more.
![ninja jajamaru kun hardcore gaming 101 ninja jajamaru kun hardcore gaming 101](http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/ninjataro-1.png)
Many of these games were going to be released in the US in some form or fashion, but most got cancelled. Most of the games are side scrolling 2-D platformers, but there are some others as well, like RPGs. In the arcade, on the Famicom, Saturn and PlayStation, and even the 3DS. He’s been in all sorts of games in Japan. So yeah, Jaleco’s mascot of sorts is a little ninja wearing red. Ninja Jajamaru-kun, Ninja Jajamaru no Daibouken, and Maru’s Mission
![ninja jajamaru kun hardcore gaming 101 ninja jajamaru kun hardcore gaming 101](http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/ninjakun-cover-pc88-302x360.jpg)
#Ninja jajamaru kun hardcore gaming 101 plus#
They even had a mascot of sorts, a little red clad ninja that starred in a bunch of games! A few are featured in this batch, plus many more! So if there’s one thing I’m learning from playing this Retro-Bit Generations console is all sorts of games made by Jaleco.