Retro Game Club - April 1 to 15 Let's Play Kung Fu Master / Spartan X

[fat flatulent git]

This is a day early because I'm away for the weekend.  Thank you @Swainy for the nomination.

 

This is Kung Fu Master in the west (except on the NES, where it is just Kung Fu) and Spartan X in Japan.  The name Spartan X is to tie in with the Jackie Chan movie Wheels on Meals, which was called Spartan X in Japan.  But apart from having characters named Thomas and Sylvia, the latter being kidnapped in both film and game, the game has nothing in common with the film.

 

However, it clearly borrows a lot from the parts actually featuring Bruce Lee from the film Game of Death.  The posthumously completed film is some crap about an action star trying to stop mobsters muscling in on his career.  Lee's original vision had a martial artist trying to retrieve a stolen treasure from a multi-storied pagoda, with each level guarded by a different martial artist.  Lee ascends stairs at the end of a level, just like Thomas in the game, and when you come to the boss inspired by Kareem Abdul Jabbar, you'll know it.

 

The game is a very basic scrolling brawler, unsurprisingly as it was one of the earliest.  However, the gameplay is fun and addictive as long as you play a good version.  The arcade version is great, and the extremely successful NES version, apparently converted and published by Nintendo themselves, is amazing in all but one regard, which makes very little difference.  Wikipedia has it as the 13th best-selling NES game, but it is in the top 10 if you disregard pack-in games.  There is a good port, more similar to the arcade, on the PS and Saturn Irem Classics disk.

 

All other ports are laughably bad.  The 2600 and 7200 got ports with zombie-like enemies who change speed on a whim, and abysmal collision detection.  The Spectrum port is just about playable but tortures your ears with its music.  The C64 is more or less the best of the dismal bunch.  I haven't played the other home computer ports, but I gather they are no better.  So I suggest sticking to NES, arcade or PS  Saturn.

 

Kung Fu Master on Gameboy is quite fun, but it isn't the same game, although the game play is similar.  There is also a sequel on Famicom, called Spartan X 2, which is fine.  Feel free to discuss these games as well.

 

So, I hope you all enjoy Kung Fu Master.  Once you get the hang of it, it's about fifteen minutes from start to finish.  Was it any good, or am I suffering from a severe case of rose-tinted glasses?

[MagicalDrop]

Aagh the horrors this brings back. 

My local pub back in the day had a beautiful Hypersports machine. I spent a lot of time getting good at that game, and so did another guy, as there was a constant battle for top three spot on all the events. I only knew him by the dreaded 3 letter initials, until eventually we bumped into each other, occasional 2 player games were arranged and much competitive fun was had over a couple of bottles of Holsten Pils. 

 

Until the fateful day the machine got replaced by Kung Fu Master. No warning, there I was with 10ps jingling in my 6 pleat Bowie trousers and only bloody Kung Fu Master to play. That annoying jingle at the start, the low repetitive trundling 'soundtrack' and the repetitive gameplay. 

 

Actually over the years I revisited the game in Mame and it's OK. But that game took my beloved Hypersports sessions away and can never be forgiven for that. 

[Fuddle]

One of those arcades  I would always play when I got the chance, I love that music!

But I can't remember doing much more than the first stage or two.

No idea how many stages there are, but if it takes fifteen minutes to beat there must be millions of them.

I might try to have a go at the NES version, and see how hard that is.

[fat flatulent git]

There are five stages in total.  About one minute fifty per stage, then the end of level score tallying, and a brief cut scene after stages two and four.  Plus I usually lose a life on one of the stages, so all in all about fifteen minutes.

 

When I was young I didn’t realize that the signs along the stages were the kanji from one to six.  Six is more or less at the boss.

[phillv85]

This is a really fun, if not real basic game. I’ve never played it before but I dug out the loose Famicom cart I had. 
 

I got through the first loop (that stage 4 boss is a cock until you know what to do). How many times does the Famicom version loop and is there anything after a certain number of loops?

[Swainy]

The original Speccy port was rubbish but thankfully we got Mister Kung Fu a couple of years back:

 

 

[Skull Commander]

I first encountered this game when I was around 8/9 years old and they had the arcade machine in the local community centre. I remember being very bad at it, but there was one older kid that could get to the second level and his God like abilities always attracted a wee audience. It was at this time I noticed the risk/reward mechanic too in that if you kick it's safer and you have more range, but if you get up close and use the punch attack you get more points. 

 

It was years later before I played this again, but even now I'm really bad and I don't think I've been past the second stage. This thread may be the motivation I need to persevere and push on. 

 

On a side note it's "spritual sequel" Vigilante is a game I'm also rather fond of (being that it plays pretty similar), however I'm far better at that which is odd given the game mechanics are almost identical. 

[Cheeko]

Never heard of this game before, pulled out the 280v I just bought off @yakumo and there it is ready to go!

 

When it was mentioned that it takes 15mins to complete I thought ‘simples’. Man it’s so damn hard.

 

[Qazimod]

The deadliest hugs in fighting games.  

 

I'm terrible at the arcade game and I never really explored the ports. I think I can clear the first stage on the NES game?

[fat flatulent git]

I drew quite a crowd playing this in the arcade, as I could get up to but not beat the level 4 boss.

 

Now I know how to do it, in the NES version anyway.

 

Spoiler

the only attack to do any damage is the crouching punch.

 

 

 

 

If you finish the NES version, it's worth trying the second loop.  Much more difficult second time round because

Spoiler

rank and file enemies still attack you while you fight the bosses.  In the first loop, the low level enemies turn back once you reach the boss.

 

[phillv85]

51 minutes ago, fat flatulent git said:

I drew quite a crowd playing this in the arcade, as I could get up to but not beat the level 4 boss.

 

Now I know how to do it, in the NES version anyway.

 

  Reveal hidden contents

the only attack to do any damage is the crouching punch.

 

 

 

 

If you finish the NES version, it's worth trying the second loop.  Much more difficult second time round because

  Hide contents

rank and file enemies still attack you while you fight the bosses.  In the first loop, the low level enemies turn back once you reach the boss.

 

Any idea how many times it loops? I can clear the first loop quite consistently on the Famicom version now, although the stage 5 boss can be a tricky one. Also any idea if any of the bosses change or anything on the subsequent loops?

[fat flatulent git]

I always switch off after the second time round, having had enough by then, so no, I don’t know.

 

Spoiler

The final boss in the NES version is the weakest.  You can keep him at bay by just doing the crouch kick.  He will come towards you, take damage and then retreat.  That’s the problem with the NES version I mentioned in the first post.  Hardly game breaking but a bit anticlimactic.  Of course, when goons are attacking from the other side it becomes harder.

 

[Cheeko]

Okay, so on the arcade I haven’t cleared the first stage yet but a couple of goes on the NES version and I’m seeing stage 4. I feel less useless now

[Gabe]

Man, I remember playing this when I was a kid. Was totally useless at it, but on the strength of that memory I downloaded about 25GB of Finalburn Neo and support files and gave it a go earlier. I don't even like playing arcade games generally! I always felt the kick had a real crunch to it, very satisfying. I used to be able to see the 2nd floor, but that was it. Now, with all my gaming prowess garnered over the past few decades, would be the time to see the end, right?

 

No. I still suck at it. Floor 2 boss went down just as a little bastard gave me a cuddlehug and saw me off. Couldn't get back there again and gave up.

 

Probably won't even try any other arcade games either 

[bplus]

On 31/03/2023 at 10:47, fat flatulent git said:

This is a day early because I'm away for the weekend.  Thank you @Swainy for the nomination.

 

This is Kung Fu Master in the west (except on the NES, where it is just Kung Fu) and Spartan X in Japan.  The name Spartan X is to tie in with the Jackie Chan movie Wheels on Meals, which was called Spartan X in Japan.  But apart from having characters named Thomas and Sylvia, the latter being kidnapped in both film and game, the game has nothing in common with the film.

 

However, it clearly borrows a lot from the parts actually featuring Bruce Lee from the film Game of Death.  The posthumously completed film is some crap about an action star trying to stop mobsters muscling in on his career.  Lee's original vision had a martial artist trying to retrieve a stolen treasure from a multi-storied pagoda, with each level guarded by a different martial artist.  Lee ascends stairs at the end of a level, just like Thomas in the game, and when you come to the boss inspired by Kareem Abdul Jabbar, you'll know it.

 

The game is a very basic scrolling brawler, unsurprisingly as it was one of the earliest.  However, the gameplay is fun and addictive as long as you play a good version.  The arcade version is great, and the extremely successful NES version, apparently converted and published by Nintendo themselves, is amazing in all but one regard, which makes very little difference.  Wikipedia has it as the 13th best-selling NES game, but it is in the top 10 if you disregard pack-in games.  There is a good port, more similar to the arcade, on the PS and Saturn Irem Classics disk.

 

All other ports are laughably bad.  The 2600 and 7200 got ports with zombie-like enemies who change speed on a whim, and abysmal collision detection.  The Spectrum port is just about playable but tortures your ears with its music.  The C64 is more or less the best of the dismal bunch.  I haven't played the other home computer ports, but I gather they are no better.  So I suggest sticking to NES, arcade or PS  Saturn.

 

Kung Fu Master on Gameboy is quite fun, but it isn't the same game, although the game play is similar.  There is also a sequel on Famicom, called Spartan X 2, which is fine.  Feel free to discuss these games as well.

 

So, I hope you all enjoy Kung Fu Master.  Once you get the hang of it, it's about fifteen minutes from start to finish.  Was it any good, or am I suffering from a severe case of rose-tinted glasses?

I had the Gameboy one you mention. I loved it at the time, bit mean machines gave it like 36 percent or some which I was surprised by. Maybe that should have taught me the lesson not to trust reviews!

[Unofficial Who]

I'm surprised no-one has mentioned the solid C64 port (probably the port of choice before we had access to the NES version) with it's weird level one cheat involving SHIFT G which on level one allows you to whip out a gun and take out lines of foes.

 

 

[Camel]

I think it was mentioned as the best of a horrible bunch of ports which I think is selling it a bit short.

[fat flatulent git]

I played it before starting the thread.  It’s not fun at all but it’s not bad to the point of being briefly funny - the 2600 and 7200 ports at least have amusing zombie-like enemies.

[Anne Summers]

My first and most enduring memory of this is playing the NES version in Boots - anyone else remember the kind of milti-choice NES setups they had in a lot of branches back in the late 80s, that let you play for a set period of time before they reset? 

 

A bit later I got the Spectrum version, and I remember playing the arcade for the first time on a ferry during a school trip to France. Next time I came across it would have been MAME.

 

Anyway, like many others have reported I was always shit at it. I know I got close to the end at one point because I can remember there are dragons and things in the later stages. Probably on the Speccy version after lots of practice. Pretty sure I never cleared it though.

 

Might use this as an excuse to finally put it to rest - I'm sure it's just a matter of learning timings and patterns for the bosses, right? And they're hardly Dark Souls levels of complexity. Right?

[Gabe]

The bosses are actually quite easy, the challenge comes from being attacked on both sides by normal enemies, and that's really a question of getting your timings right as much as anything.

[Skull Commander]

I find the controls are less than responsive as well when it comes to jumping which makes avoiding low knife attacks a bit of a pain. Obviously this makes the second level more difficult when it comes to avoiding dragons.

[fat flatulent git]

I’ve never found them a problem on the NES port, but on the Atari consoles it’s an absolute joke.  You press up, and if Thomas has a window in his schedule later he’ll get round to it.

The dragons are on the second floor (assuming the bottom one is the first floor, not the ground floor).  Lots of points for destroying formed dragons before they breathe fire, many more than destroying the falling ball before it becomes a dragon.  The annoying snakes can’t be attacked - you have to jump them.

 

The only problematic boss for me is level four.  His diagonal attack is too fast to dodge when you are close to him.  You can duck his high attack, indeed, you have to duck to damage him at all.  I’m sure that in the arcade version duplicates of him can form behind you but I have never seen that in the NES port.

 

The killer bees on level four do a lot of damage if they hit you in most ports.  On the Speccy version they barely hurt you at all.  Anyway, the pattern to get through them is easy to learn.

 

Anyone tried the sequel on the Famicom?

[fat flatulent git]

@Skull Commanderhow about doing the next game for April 16-30?

 

If you want to pass, I’ll pick another name.

[Skull Commander]

Sure I will have a wee think and post something up in the next couple of days. 

[Tomdominer]

I've been playing this on my new arcade cab recently, due to this thread, and although I do love the feel of the combat, a lot of this game is really top shelf frustrating bullshit.

 

Essentially, because everything is random, sometimes you get a bunch of standard guys spawned behind you and following, which means you can make a clean dash through nearly the entire floor without even having to stop and fight, and sometimes you'll get two knife throwing dudes appear at each end of the screen, and both go for a low knife throw, almost always ending in your death.

 

Some tips for other people who are struggling with it (like me):

• The main objective of each level is to move left / right as fast and as often as possible. Ignore people behind you until the last minute.
• Shortening the distance between you and any harder enemy is key. Bosses and knife dudes are easier to kill if you get very near before attacking, and then attack multiple times with kicks (or punches in some circumstances).
• The jars or snakes and butterflies are mostly again about trying to move right as fast as possible. Dip, duck, dive and dodge, and try to keep moving.
• Ducking / jumping interrupts attacks. This is useful to know as (in a panic) you can interrupt an attack and be grabbed quite often.
• Jumping forward only happens when you have moved forward a short time and press up. You cannot stand and jump forwards.

I've managed to pretty consistently get to level 4, where you fight the hunchback / warlock, who is an utter twat. I've also used the cheat to fight the final boss on level 5. Who is worse.

[fat flatulent git]

What’s the cheat on the fifth level boss?

[Tomdominer]

The MiSTer core has a cheat menu where you can skip levels and have infinite health. There isn't any hack to get to the boss, sorry.

[smac]

Man, I used to play this in the Uni halls of residence bar, back on the day. I was crap at it.

[fat flatulent git]

I’ve never made it to the fifth floor boss on anything other than the NES port.  If I beat the fourth floor boss I inevitably come across knife throwers in front of me and behind me, one goes low the other goes high and there’s no way to avoid both.

[Camel]

Had a quick go of the arcade version last night. It’s never been a game I particularly rate, going way back to when it was current and playing it now just reinforces that. Frustrating and often puts the player in impossible situations. Definitely feels like a game that plays better with a stick so I’m going to give it a go with a Namco PSX stick later and see if I fair better.