The first NES western launch game: Thomas the karate fighter against ninjas. Simple and foundational. Still briefly playable. Historical document of the NES launch.
Your verdict
Category
Action1 player7+
Description
Founding beat-'em-up featuring Thomas battling enemies in kung-fu levels. Published by Irem, released in Japan in 1984. Thomas in side-scrolling view with punches and kicks. Original Japanese version of Irem's Kung Fu classic on Famicom.
Spartan X review
3/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Polished"
3/5
Music
★★★★★
"Memorable"
2/5
Story
★★★★★
"Classic"
Gameplay
"Solid"
Fun
"From the very first seconds"
Climbing a tower bare-handed, dishing out punches and kicks to waves of attackers to save your beloved: this side-scrolling beat-'em-up lays the genre's foundations with fearsome efficiency. The simple controls and the rising intensity grab you from the first floor. Direct, snappy and fiercely replayable, an arcade classic that electrifies.
Kung Fu is one of the first NES launch titles in the West: Thomas the karate fighter takes on a horde of ninjas in side-scrolling corridors. Simple, foundational, Irem's title stands today as a historical document of the NES launch. Controls are rudimentary but readable, and each session stays short. A relevant cart to know today to understand what the console looked like at its Western debut.
