Boo (SMB3)

"Boo" Diddly was the name given to these ghosts in the instruction manual for Super Mario Bros. 3.   Should the quotation marks be around "Boo," or rather, "Diddly?"  He and Morton Koopa Jr. seem to have Americanized joke names given to them during localization.  I enjoy going back and rereading the descriptions of things in the instruction manuals for NES games, mainly because they tend to butcher whatever carefully created backstory the Japanese original may have had.   The American manuals tend to just take a bunch of the cool cartoon artwork and just jumble it around.  

Of course, Boos show up just about everywhere afterwards, so you've surely seen them whilst playing Mario Kart, or pretty much anything Mario has his name in.  Boy, there are a lot of Mario games.  But since he shows up in a misty spooky mansion most of the time, he seems about right for a Halloween post.  That, and I almost forgot to post something in the first place.  Whew, I'm done, with only a few hours to spare....

Bub (Bubble Bobble - NES)

There is a green dinosaur in Bubble Bobble.  And yet I never played this game as a kid.  There is a blue one as well (his name is Bob).  They were always around when I was playing Bust-A-Move in college, cranking that bubble shooter, but since that was more of a puzzle, Tetris-like game, I hardly paid attention to their cutesy antics.  Time to play catch-up....

After reading reviews about this game, it seemed like a nice two-player option, of which I'm sorely lacking on my NES.  What do you expect from an only child? Well, after picking up a decently preserved cartridge, I could see why I missed it.  This game is infinitely more fun with two players.  It would be pretty boring and repetitive otherwise.  You could end up playing this all night if you aren't keeping track of the time.  If it weren't for the ridiculous jump in difficulty when you reach the end boss, we might have even finished it. Although, I doubt a game this simplistic has much of an ending.  Still, it's been an enjoyable purchase, and perfect for playing a few rounds (or more), and not getting too stressed about dying too much.  Though, I really want to know why it's so hard to beat that last boss....

Zombie (Castlevania)

I must confess, I never played Castlevania until a few years ago. It just wasn't one of those games that any of my friends had that I could I borrow.  I'm not a horror fan, so Ghosts 'n Goblins more than satisfied my need to fight classic monsters.  I did play Castlevania 2 a few times, but that also was hard to get into because it was more of an RPG/adventure type game.

So, I gave Castlevania a try.  Boy, I feel silly for missing out.  This game is classic, and I don't care how sluggish the main character is in the first game.  Once you get used to the mechanics, it's quite easy to adjust.  Not that this game is easy; I still haven't gotten past the Grim Reaper.  I'm playing it on my 3DS and trying really hard not to cheat and use save states, but in my older years I may just have to use them instead of pushing through it like in my childhood, when I had hours and hours to practice.

The zombie is barely in the game.  It's actually the first enemy you encounter, and is terribly weak.  He's just there to get you comfortable with using your whip.  Now, when I made this version, I wasn't too enamored with the end result.  It didn't look like much, and if you couldn't figure out what it was on a quick glance, then I probably shouldn't use it as an entry.  But it's grown on me, and I still wanted a reasonable Halloween character before I return to Ghosts 'n Goblins characters.  Give it a chance; when you take a step back and look at it from farther away, it looks better.  I still give the edge to the zombie I made a few years ago, but this one is here more for comparison's sake.  Plus, you don't see too many zombies skating around with pink shrouds....

1 Up (SMB3)

Well, I guess I missed a St. Patrick's Day post last year, but I'm not going to let that happen again this year...  

It's a little odd that I haven't gotten to this one sooner. Maybe because I was usually thinking of the common red mushroom, and not thinking about all those green mushrooms that help me get through every world on my way to fighting Bowser in the third installment.  These have eyes now.  

In honour of a previous post years ago, I am wearing my Kuribo's Shoe shirt for the occasion.  There really isn't much more to say about this one, as it's pretty self-explanatory.  Enjoy!

Red Devil (Ghosts 'n Goblins - NES)

Yes, it's been a long time.  Over a year and a half.  I guess life has just gotten so busy to be doing these things.  But I've always wanted to come back eventually, just on my terms.  So if it wasn't going to be St. Patrick's Day, then it was going to be my other must-post holiday, Halloween.  And so you get Red Devil.

Red Devil torments you in the this game due to his erratic movements and his ability to take multiple hits.  You will almost always lose your armor to him at some point, because he is a sadistic devil.  Not THE Devil, mind you, nor Satan; those are two other characters.  I almost forgot the Petite Devils...no wonder this game is so brutal.

So Level 3 is chock full of these guys, and you have to be careful you don't let more than one on the screen at any one time, otherwise you might as well just throw your controller away.  I'm sure I did that on more than one occasion playing this game.  I'd do it right now if it wasn't for the fact that the Big Men are thwarting my ability to even reach that level.  I guess I could use the warp code, but one does not play Ghosts 'n Goblins without expecting some sort of sadistic pleasure from it....

So this character somehow got his own Gameboy game, strangely titled Gargoyle's Quest.  Yeah, I never played it, but I heard it's pretty good.  Although I like the Japanese name way better: Red Arremer: Hell Village Side-Story.  And yet he's green on the cover art.  Oh, who am I kidding? Like Capcom ever knew how to match their cover art with the content inside....

Bionic Commando

Ah, Bionic Commando. One of the best games for the NES, and one of the few that is superior to its arcade machine counterpart. It seems kind of weird to show you without your actual bionic arm, but that's just a long row of grey pixels, and therefore boring.

So I don't actually know this character's name. Your mission is to save the world and rescue Super Joe, who I always thought was the hero (and guy you controlled) in the original Commando. I looked all through the instruction manual, and this guy isn't given a name. I don't trust Wikipedia and its entry naming the protagonist "Ladd Spencer." That's a really silly name.

This guy couldn't jump; everything was dependent on that bionic arm. It sure was fun though, except when there were lots of spikes beneath you and you had to pull a Tarzan to survive.

Oh, and here's your green entry for March, of course. Because nothing reminds me of the Irish more than a guy with spiky red hair and a green jumpsuit....

Pokey ("Clyde")

Alright, time to put you out of your misery. Of course you know there are only four ghosts, so you won't have to deal with any more Pac Man sprites until I start making the bonus fruits. Although I'd probably start with a key or the Galaxian guy. Wait, I already did that....

So Clyde here is the only ghost to undergo an identity crisis when we get to Ms. Pac Man. Everyone else retains their original names, but Clyde takes a different path. Perhaps feeling confused that Pac Man might be pulling a fast one and just wearing lipstick and a bow, Clyde decides he wants to be called Sue from now on. The other ghosts oblige, and secretely are disappointed Sue doesn't do anything to differentiate her/himself from her/his previous persona. At least wear a skirt or something....