Hokuto no Ken
Alternative title: Fist of the North Star
Platform: Nintendo Entertainment System
Region: Japan
Media: Cartridge
Controller: NES Gamepad
Genre: Action
Gametype: Licensed
Release Year: 1986
Publisher: Toei Animation
Players: 1
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Originality in video games is a rare occurrence indeed.

For the most part, games tend to add upon an existing idea; meat around the bone as we often hear. In fact, many great ''classics'' are little more than improved versions of already existing games. Why, one could argue that video games have not significantly evolved all that much in the last 20 years or so (as far as the basic logic of the game goes)...

There are times when a game truly breaks new grounds by putting forth a new paradigm - a proverbial epistemological rupture in the world of gaming.

Sadly, the Fist of the North Star series falls quite far from that tree...

Given the notorious reputation of the first installment, the very idea of reviewing it's sequel might make me seem like a masochist. Rest assured, Toei made significant improvements over their, shall we say, mediocre previous offering so that this game (although not the best side scrolling action game of all time by a longshot) is a much less taxing experience. In fact, it is a very MANLY experience indeed !

Let us be clear and structured then and explore...

The never-existing story

Obviously this game will give you no clue as to your motivation (other than being amused at the idea of making heads explode) for even pursuing this apparently desperate journey. Besides the name of the stage boss, you're given little information on everything and anything.

Now, understand that fans of the FotNS anime and manga (bless their little hearts) often find more enjoyment in the over the top violence than in the slightly confusing yet completely silly story. Still, having some idea of what you're doing would be nice...

The manual, however, does insert a small blurb to explain everything. Apparently, you're out to ''free your people'' from the clutches of some evil tyrant named Shula, Emperor Heaven. So you embark upon a journey into this Empire and reduce an army of clones into quivering masses of intestines, facing one dangerous boss after another before meeting the fabled Emperor Heaven.

A fan of the series informed me that the manual (and possibly the game itself) managed to make quite a few mistakes with the story. Seems the last boss you face is NOT Emperor Heaven, no matter what the game and its manual say. There are other cases, but I'm not going to delve into this controversy. Know that I'm as shocked as you are faithful reader - someone should warn Toei right this minute ! Fools they be, how dare they deprive us of the glorious (and exact) details of this MANLY story ? I feel an urge to use some...

This is the first in the series.  The US "Fist of the North Star" is actually a sequel to this game.

Reviewer: Asplagis
http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/nes/review/R32171.html
