Kid Niki: Radical Ninja
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| Kid Niki: Radical Ninja | |
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| Developer(s) | Irem |
| Publisher(s) | Irem |
| Platform(s) | NES/Commodore 64/Apple II |
| Release date | Arcade version:' JPN December 1986 NES version: JPN October 2, 1987 NA November 1987 |
| Genre(s) | Platform game |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
| Media | cartridge |
Kid Niki: Radical Ninja, released in Japan as Kaiketsu Yanchamaru (怪傑ヤンチャ丸? "The Wonderful Yanchamaru"), an arcade game released in 1986 by Irem. In 1987, Data East released ports of the game for the NES, Commodore 64, and Apple II. Curiously, all home versions of the game show screen shots from the graphically superior arcade version on the back of their boxes. It was one of the more successful games released by Data East.
The differences between the Kid Niki: Radical Ninja and Kaiketsu Yancha Maru are minimal. Aside from text translation, the most glaring difference is the main character's hair style. Kid Niki's hair is more "punk rock" with wild spikes and a ponytail in the back. Yancha Maru's hair has more subdued spikes and a topknot (or chonmage). It's also worth noting that in the arcade version of the game, the main character's keikogi is yellow while it is red in the home ports.
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[edit] Story
One day in Feudal Japan, Kid Niki, the most radical of ninjas, is training at his Ninja School. Suddenly, a passing bird is stuck down by an arrow and lands at Niki's feet. Attached is a note explaining that Niki's girlfriend, Princess Margo, has been kidnapped by the evil Stone Wizard. With the cry of "Will help you!" Niki bursts through the wall of his school and sets off on his quest to save Margo.
[edit] Gameplay
Kid Niki is armed with the Spinning Sword, which according to the game's manual, "has been passed down from generation to generation from the School of Chirin."
In addition to the spinning sword, Kid Niki can gain extra offensive power by collecting Bells. The Golden Bell allows him to launch a projectile every time Kid Niki spins his sword, and the Silver Bell creates a spinning force field around him. Both of these power-ups last for a limited amount of time.
The game is divided up into seven rounds, with a boss character at the end of each one. These bosses are:
- Round 1: Death Breath
- Round 2: Spike
- Round 3: Horned Witch
- Round 4: Green Grub
- Round 5: Mad Monk
- Round 6: Samurai Guard
- Round 7: Stone Wizard
The arcade version runs on Irem-62 Hardware, the same as Kung-Fu Master.
[edit] Sequels and cameos
In Japan, two sequels appeared for the Famicom. The first was Kaiketsu Yanchamaru 2: Karakuri Land in 1991, and the second was Kaiketsu Yanchamaru 3 in 1993. Each of the three NES/Famicom titles feature radically different character designs.
There was also a Game Boy sequel called Ganso!! Yanchamaru in 1991. This portable sequel is a unique game and not a port of one of the existing Kid Niki/Yancha Maru titles.
Kid Niki makes a cameo appearance in Irem's NES game, Kickle Cubicle. To see Kid Niki, hold down the A button on Controller 2, and then turn on the game. Continue holding A until the title screen appears, and Kid Niki will appear. This trick also works on the Famicom version of Kickle Cubicle.
[edit] History
Lead developer Ren Kamuchi based the Kid-Niki character on a neighborhood child who would chase his car when the developer returned home from work. Kamuhci incorporated the child's rat tail haircut into the lead character.
The concept for the 'mocking bird' enemy is based upon the classic American novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Developer Data East attempted to secure rights for a video game version of the novel in the late 1980s, but failed. The use of the mocking bird in Kid Niki was an overt attempt to antagonize Harper Lee, the author of To Kill A Mockingbird.
Shortly after the arcade release of Kid Niki, four Japanese youths were arrested for attacking tourists. According to witnesses, the youths chased the tourists while rapidly spinning swords in the style of Kid Niki.
