Ninja Hattori-kun (忍者ハットリくん)
Ninja Hattori-kun (忍者ハットリくん)
Price: US$6.99
Weight: 100Grams
Item description
Mention platformers to a Japanese gamer who lived through the Famicom years and they will likely mention titles like Super Mario Bros, Akumajo Dracula (Castlevania), Rockman (Mega Man) and Ninja Hattori-Kun with fondness. Ever hear of that last one? No? Despite selling 1.5 million copies (more than any other Hudson Soft game), Ninja Hattori-Kun is almost entirely unknown outside of Japan.
The game is based on the manga created by Fujiko F. Fujio (of Doraemon fame). You play as a young martial artist using shuriken and Ninpō (ninja arts) to dispatch enemies. It’s a side-scroller that feels like a Shoot 'em up. Much like a shmup, the enemies advance in waves with pre-set patterns and you must rapid-fire your throwing stars at them. You collect scrolls as you progress and need to decide to use them right away or save them for higher abilities (like in the shooter Gradius).
This cart lacks the tight control of a game like Super Mario (released a year earlier) and it can be very difficult to land jumps that require precision. You might get frustrated by Hattori-Kun when you first play it, but stick with it and you will discover that the key to winning is the 12 Ninpō power-ups. Using the correct ones will make the game a lot easier. For example, the high jump Ninpō makes it easy to avoid the pits of “death water” or, instead, you could choose to make your shuriken more powerful. The speed boost let’s you Sonic your way through a level and collecting the symbol for power (カ) allows you to use multiple Ninpō at once. It’s a game that becomes more fun and less frustrating the longer you play it.
Despite the cute characters, this game is notoriously challenging. There are no save points or continues. You will need to start from the beginning many times. This means that you will hear the game’s, grating music again and again. The soundtrack consists of a poor rendition of the Hattori-Kun theme and a lazily arranged Georges Bizet piece.
Ninja Hattori-Kun is very import friendly. There is no Japanese text in the game (just bad English). If you enjoy unique platformers, and can deal with the game’s learning curve (and music) it’s definitely worth picking up.
The game has been tested on an actual Famicom system and plays great. The photo uploaded is of the actual game I am selling. Check the condition before buying. Make sure that you have the necessary hardware to run Japanese Famicom games before buying. This cart will not run on an unmodified NES system. It should run on most Famicom clones but I cannot guarantee it's compatibility.
Loose Famicom carts will be wrapped in a removable plastic sleeve and then placed in a bubble wrapped mailer for shipping. Boxed or fragile games will be cushioned with bubble wrap or newspaper and put in a larger box. Please remember, the games will ship from Japan so please allow some additional shipping time. Also during Japanese postal holidays (New Year's, Golden Week, Obon) orders will be delayed while the post office is closed.
As always, if you have any questions about this or any item on the store, you can contact me on:
Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/JapanRetroDirect/
Twitter at: @JpnRetroDirect
Bluesky: @japanretrodirect.bsky.social
The game is based on the manga created by Fujiko F. Fujio (of Doraemon fame). You play as a young martial artist using shuriken and Ninpō (ninja arts) to dispatch enemies. It’s a side-scroller that feels like a Shoot 'em up. Much like a shmup, the enemies advance in waves with pre-set patterns and you must rapid-fire your throwing stars at them. You collect scrolls as you progress and need to decide to use them right away or save them for higher abilities (like in the shooter Gradius).
This cart lacks the tight control of a game like Super Mario (released a year earlier) and it can be very difficult to land jumps that require precision. You might get frustrated by Hattori-Kun when you first play it, but stick with it and you will discover that the key to winning is the 12 Ninpō power-ups. Using the correct ones will make the game a lot easier. For example, the high jump Ninpō makes it easy to avoid the pits of “death water” or, instead, you could choose to make your shuriken more powerful. The speed boost let’s you Sonic your way through a level and collecting the symbol for power (カ) allows you to use multiple Ninpō at once. It’s a game that becomes more fun and less frustrating the longer you play it.
Despite the cute characters, this game is notoriously challenging. There are no save points or continues. You will need to start from the beginning many times. This means that you will hear the game’s, grating music again and again. The soundtrack consists of a poor rendition of the Hattori-Kun theme and a lazily arranged Georges Bizet piece.
Ninja Hattori-Kun is very import friendly. There is no Japanese text in the game (just bad English). If you enjoy unique platformers, and can deal with the game’s learning curve (and music) it’s definitely worth picking up.
The game has been tested on an actual Famicom system and plays great. The photo uploaded is of the actual game I am selling. Check the condition before buying. Make sure that you have the necessary hardware to run Japanese Famicom games before buying. This cart will not run on an unmodified NES system. It should run on most Famicom clones but I cannot guarantee it's compatibility.
Loose Famicom carts will be wrapped in a removable plastic sleeve and then placed in a bubble wrapped mailer for shipping. Boxed or fragile games will be cushioned with bubble wrap or newspaper and put in a larger box. Please remember, the games will ship from Japan so please allow some additional shipping time. Also during Japanese postal holidays (New Year's, Golden Week, Obon) orders will be delayed while the post office is closed.
As always, if you have any questions about this or any item on the store, you can contact me on:
Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/JapanRetroDirect/
Twitter at: @JpnRetroDirect
Bluesky: @japanretrodirect.bsky.social