Developed by Irem Corp. and released to the arcades by Irem in Japan as "Kaiketsu Yanchamaru", and by Data East in North America in 1986.
Nintendo NES/Famicom version developed and published by Irem Corp. in 1987.
Apple II and Commodore 64 versions ported by Quicksilver Software, Inc., and published by Data East in 1988.
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INTRODUCTION & GAME STATUS
Kid Niki is not a game I have ever heard anyone really talk about, likely because it was never actually released in Europe, even for the NES. The only time I ever even tried the game out was the Commodore 64 version, which also goes by an alternative name, "Kid Niki to the Rescue", even though the cover art has the same title as all the other versions. That one time I tried Kid Niki out on the C64 was an experience I'm likely to never forget due to the game's cringyness. Now, I thought I might try the other versions out, because it's such an unusual collection of versions of a game of this type, and I'm hoping for at least the Apple version being equally cringeworthy to the C64 port. Let's see.
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DESCRIPTION & REVIEW
The reason why Kid Niki is not the most memorable game is likely, because it resembles quite heavily of not only Irem's earlier hit, Kung-Fu Master (a.k.a. Spartan X), but also Ghosts 'n Goblins in its basic form - a game, which was released over a year prior to Kid Niki, and did basically everything notably better and in a more interesting manner. It is very much a side-scrolling action-platformer, in which you fight against hordes of enemies and collect score items, and at the end of each of the game's seven levels, you fight against an end-level boss. Your only weapon is your spinning sword, but you can collect two different kinds of bells to get either a projectile upgrade for your sword or a force field for a short time. The game's plotline is similar enough to Ghosts 'n Goblins, Kung-Fu Master or even Double Dragon, but more cheesy.
To its advantage, Kid Niki does have a good difficulty curve and plenty of variety in enemies. Unfortunately, the game does get repetitive and boring, as it offers less of level design elements than GnG, and less of a challenge, once you figure out how to deal with the end-level bosses. On the whole, Kid Niki is a wholly average action-platformer, and as such, a completely needless one in the line of too many other similar games. What it does offer is a rare look into an arcade game that was ported in a two-year time period to three machines, two of which were not even considered the focused platforms for these kinds of games. As such, it should make this comparison interesting. But I certainly wouldn't recommend it to anyone who wasn't a complete 80's platforming addict.
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PLAYABILITY
For the first time in a small infinity, there is no cassette version of the game in question; both the APPLE and COMMODORE versions were released on floppy disk, largely because that's the way things were in the American market - cassettes were more of a European thing. From what I've gathered, though, the APPLE version uses both sides of the floppy disk, while the C64 version uses only one.
The way the original ARCADE version of Kid Niki works is, that you have a joystick and two action buttons. One of the action buttons uses your spinning sword, of which the attack range and time are both short, and the other action button jumps. The joystick allows you to duck by pulling down, and you can climb trees by pushing up. The NES/FAMICOM version plays much the same, as the controller has two action buttons. These two feature an alternating two-player mode, which doesn't really add anything of significance, but it is a feature.
For both the APPLE and COMMODORE versions, team Quicksilver decided to have Kid Niki walk automatically, and use down for stopping Niki instead of ducking. Up is jump, since neither computer has a joystick with two separately assignable buttons, but for some reason, you cannot climb trees, either. If you choose to use keyboard controls instead of joystick, the pre-defined keys are I, J, K, L and Space. Of course, by now you might have guessed, that neither of the Quicksilver versions have a two-player mode, not that the game really needs one. Another thing that sets the Quicksilver versions apart from the other two is, that you can use your spinning sword continuously while moving slowly ahead, but in the APPLE version, you get a very brief non-segue window of opportunity for enemies to engage while you spin your sword.
Quicksilver also decided to make their Kid Niki into a flip-screen game, with a clear entrance transition through a black screen to the boss fight screens. Despite how it initially feels like it cheapens the original game (which it does, make no mistake), it works surprisingly well. Part of it is, because they also made the hit detection area for your spinning sword to reach further below the visual hit detection area, but as it happens, the naturally scrolling screen brings no more playability to the game, than the feel that you're supposed to be playing Ghosts 'n Goblins.
There is one regional thing I noticed, when comparing the Japanese and American versions of the ARCADE original. If you're playing the Japanese version, upon death, the game throws you all the way to the beginning of the level, even if you died during the boss fight. The American version has a checkpoint around half-way through the level. The same regional rules apply to the NES and FAMICOM versions. In the Quicksilver versions, the game throws you back a couple of screens upon death, unless you die during a boss fight, whereupon you are allowed to continue with the boss fight.
A funny thing about Kid Niki is, that the instruction manual gives you clear hints on how to beat all the boss fights. For instance, the first boss should be beaten by poking his backside with your sword three times, but the Quicksilver versions don't really have a clear indicator of when you deliver a successful hit or when your sword flies off from a blocked attack, so you might end up hitting something ten times before the fight is over.
After a few days of sweating with the four versions of Kid Niki, I have still only managed to reach the end of level 2, but I figured that should be quite enough to come to some sort of a conclusion about the gameplay comparison. The C64 and APPLE versions play similarly enough to each other, but the C64 version plays just a little bit more fluently, makes full use of the continuous sword spin, and has no floppy disk switching issues. Between the originals and the NINTENDO versions, it's difficult to really determine, which one plays better, since they are similar enough.
1. ARCADE / NINTENDO
2. COMMODORE 64
3. APPLE II
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GRAPHICS
As we learned in the previous section, the four versions of Kid Niki are so clearly divided into two pairs, and as such, there should be no real need to make the rest of the comparison any more difficult and long-winded than it deserves. So, I'm going to show you screenshots of the game up to level 2, and leave the rest for your imaginations.
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| Intro animation screens from the Arcade versions (Top: US / Bottom: Japan) |
The ARCADE and NINTENDO versions share a fairly similar title sequence, in which Niki runs and jumps along to the right on a blank screen, until he reaches the actual title screen. Perhaps a bit obviously, the NINTENDO version has less graphical elements in the sequence, than the original ARCADE version, which features a demonstration of a bunch of enemies from the game as Kid Niki moves towards the large platform somewhere to the right.
Just to make things a little bit confusing, the Japanese and American versions differ by Niki having a different hair style in both ARCADE and NINTENDO versions. The FAMICOM version also differs from the NES version by having a blue background instead of black, and the floor is slightly lower on the NES, due to the game title logo requiring more space.
Intro animation screens from the Nintendo versions (Left: Famicom / Right: NES)
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| Title screens from the Apple II (left) and Commodore 64 (right) versions. |
From the colour mode used in the C64 version, it's fairly safe to assume that Quicksilver made their port originally with APPLE II in mind, and did a straight port of that to the C64 as an afterthought. Neither of them have any elaborate title sequence, though, just Niki bouncing to his designated spot on the right side of the screen between a bunch of white and green text on a black screen, before the text "To The Rescue!" appears below him. "Kid Niki to the Rescue" is considered the game's alternative title, but it could just as well be a mistake on Quicksilver's part, since the cover art still shows the real title.
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| Opening cutscenes. Top row: Arcade (US). Middle row: NES (US). Bottom left: Apple II. Bottom right: Commodore 64. |
In the original ARCADE title sequence, you also get a brief text narrative after dropping a coin in the slot, before pressing the start button. The game starts off with a short animated sequence, in which a messenger bird comes in to the ninja school where a silhuette of Kid Niki is standing. The bird is shot down with an arrow, and Niki picks up the message and decides that he "will help you!" (or maybe it's Ninja School will help you?), before jumping through the paper wall and on to the right, off the screen. The animated sequence is included in the NINTENDO version, but has no text narrative, and the APPLE and C64 versions have it vice versa, but with the big ugly font and no thought on line spacing, it's next to unreadable.
If I hadn't read it elsewhere, I probably wouldn't have even realized, that the Japanese and American versions of Kid Niki differ by his haircut. His Japanese haircut is a more traditional slick one with a ponytail, while the Americanized haircut is more hedgehoggy kind of a spiky thing. Other than that, the only difference is the section number shown at the bottom of the screen.
Screenshots from level 1 of the Arcade version.
The ARCADE graphics are surprisingly simplistic compared to other similar games of its time. Despite all the shading used for the background elements, it's all VERY flat-looking and childish, as if the graphic design job was given to a 6-year old. Perhaps because of that, Kid Niki does the unthinkable and looks very much its own thing - an arcade-action game designed for a clearly younger demographic.
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| Screenshots from level 1 of the NES/Famicom version. |
In some ways, the NINTENDO version has some inklings of a graphical upgrade to the original, but the basic idea is the same. In fact, I'm almost willing to bet, that the game was designed with the 8-bit NINTENDO system in mind, since the graphical design is similarly tile-based in the ARCADE version, so the translation is less forced. Niki himself looks a bit more aggressive, probably thanks to his red outfit and overall spikier hairstyle in both Japanese and American versions. The proportions for the background elements are a bit different, but hardly make much of a difference.
The in-game graphics reveal the true ugliness of the APPLE II and COMMODORE 64 versions. If the bad pixelations and colourings of basically all elements in the game doesn't convince you of its horridness, maybe the clunky animations do - which you will get to see in the accompaniment video further down.
Screenshots from level 1 of the Apple II (top row) and Commodore 64 (bottom row) versions.
As you can see, the APPLE II and COMMODORE 64 versions looks basically the same, with a few little differences. Whoever drew the graphics, converted them straight from the APPLE to C64 and didn't bother to rescale to accommodate the C64's screen size. At least the colours in the C64 version have a more natural colouring with healthy greens and browns in the backgrounds, and the boss enemy has more colour on it. The flip-screen method is clearly shown here, since all the screenshots are from the exact same spot, and Niki can appear at any given spot on the screen. The only thing that I consider somewhat of an advantage in the APPLE version is the picture of Niki next to the shown number of lives, which the C64 version doesn't have, so it feels a bit unclear, what the X2 at the bottom right corner means, until you lose a life.
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| Map screens from the Arcade (left) and NES/Famicom (right) versions. |
Between each level, you see a map of sorts of the entire game, going in a spiral from bottom left corner to the center of the screen. It doesn't appear on the APPLE and C64 versions, which shouldn't come as much of a surprise at this point, and rather naturally, the ARCADE original looks considerably more detailed and pretty than the NINTENDO equivalent.
The second level shows clearer the disparity between the ARCADE and NINTENDO versions' graphical qualities. Once you start properly taking note of all the details from this point on, there is an almost overwhelming decrease in details in all the textures when you get from the original to the 8-bit version, but you don't really see the full extent of it until level 2. Still, the NINTENDO version has the distinction of being the only conversion to get even this close to the original.
Screenshots from level 2. Top row: Arcade. Bottom row: NES/Famicom.
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| Screenshots from level 2. Top row: Apple II. Bottom row: Commodore 64. |
As the APPLE and C64 versions progress, the colouring and pixelation problems get more problematic, and more elements from the other two versions are found to be missing. The more you play either of these versions, the more you realize you shouldn't be playing them.
As promised, this graphics comparison shall go no further, so only the Game Over screens are left
Game Over screens.
to be dissembled. Of course, you can see from the above screenshots that there is not that much to
tell; only that the NINTENDO version differs from the rest by having a blank screen for the message
instead of incorporating it into the screen you died at.
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| High score screens from the Arcade version. |
The ARCADE and NINTENDO versions are rather obvious in their placement, but the APPLE and C64 versions are less so. Aside from the colours and screen size, they share the same ugly look. I suppose you could consider the C64 version to have a slightly more natural approach to its colours, but the brown border and the leftover blackness in the main area of the screen makes it even less visually pleasing than the APPLE version. So, I choose to let them share the spot.
1. ARCADE
2. NINTENDO
3. APPLE II / COMMODORE 64
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SOUNDS
At this point, the rest of the comparison seems a bit futile, since you can probably already anticipate what's coming next. Whatever you thought it might be, you might be surprised to learn, that the ARCADE soundtrack feels like one of those early NES/FAMICOM soundtracks with two in-game tunes - one that plays up until the end level boss battle, and one that plays during the boss battle - and a couple of other fanfare-type pieces of music, only enhanced with a muffled drumbeat. It's all very up-tempo and upbeat, and the main theme tune is a very memorable one that fits the overall childish, but funny feel of the game. There are enough of sound effects to go for all the action, and as a nice surprise, there are even some voice samples for the level bosses.
Oddly enough, the NINTENDO soundtrack sounds much clearer and fresher, with all the music and sound effects basically intact, but as Nintendo's sound chip is used to produce all the sounds, the entire soundtrack feels as if it's enhanced to sound the way perhaps it was supposed to in the first place. There's just no other way to describe it.
If you're the sort of person, who enjoys single-channel beeper music and sound effects, like old 16k/48k Spectrum games or DOS-games with no sound cards, then your choice would probably be the APPLE version. There are basically only two melodic phrases I encountered in it, both played prior to the game starting. The first one is played in the title screen, and is oddly reminiscent of the classic "Happy Birthday" tune's first two phrases; and the second one, which plays at the "Get Ready" screen, repeats a slighly eastern four-note phrase three times. The sound effects are basically just staccato ticking noises, some of which are ascending or descending sequences.
Naturally, the C64 version follows the APPLE version by having the same short title jingle, although it plays much quicker on the C64. The "Get Ready" melody was dropped from this version, but the sound effects are much more melodic, while still similarly staccato as the APPLE sound effects. Marking a more sophisticated soundscape, they gave the boss fights some white noise usage to differentiate those scenes further from the rest of the game. Since it's the sound effects you will be hearing for about 99.5% of the time when playing the APPLE and C64 versions of Kid Niki, the C64 version is the easy winner.
1. NINTENDO
2. ARCADE
3. COMMODORE 64
4. APPLE II
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OVERALL + VIDEO
In the end, Kid Niki turned out to be not such an abomination, after all - although the APPLE and C64 versions certainly try their hardest. For all their unfathomable gameplay differences compared to the original(s), they're not nearly as unplayable as they look. But worse they certainly are.
1. ARCADE: Playability 3, Graphics 3, Sounds 3 = TOTAL 9
1. NINTENDO: Playability 3, Graphics 2, Sounds 4 = TOTAL 9
2. COMMODORE 64: Playability 2, Graphics 1, Sounds 2 = TOTAL 5
3. APPLE II: Playability 1, Graphics 1, Sounds 1 = TOTAL 3
The two leading versions share the top spot for different reasons, but even with the oddly mathematical scores, I cannot see the Overall results in any different way. The strange lack of quality in the C64 version has to do with the fact that it was made by an American team, who focused primarily on the APPLE version, and botched up the C64 version while at it, but in the end, I'm not really sure anyone would have given more notice to the game, had it been ported by, say, the people who ported Bubble Bobble or Wonderboy instead.
To see all four versions in action and not have to actually try them out for yourselves, click below to see them in video form.
As if one Kid Niki game wasn't enough, Irem made two Japan-exclusive Yanchamaru sequels for the Famicom in 1991 and 1993, and a Game Boy exclusive sequel in 1991. Each of the games in the series looks radically different from each other, but still remain in the same base genre. If you enjoyed the original, you might want to seek out the sequels. For myself, I couldn't really care less at this point.
That's the first April of Abominations wrapped up, I hope that was enjoyable enough to warrant another one next year! Next month, I will be super busy with work-related things, so if I could squeeze in one comparison, I would be quite surprised, but let's see what happens. At any rate, keep an eye on FRGCB's YouTube channel for more content, if nothing happens at the blog itself. Until the next time, thanks for reading, and keep on retrogaming!
Nice info ,
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