Bad Dudes

"The president has been kidnapped by ninjas! Are you a bad enough dude to save him?"

Those 2 sentences begin one of the greatest adventures to ever grace your NES.

Simply put, this game is funny. In a cheesy sort of way. And by cheesy, I mean hilarious. Bad Dudes is your basic side-scrolling beat em' up, ala Double Dragon or Final Fight. It is lacking in a few aspects, but it also has some redeeming qualities.

Graphics - 9/10

No, the graphics aren't state-of-the-art, 3d polygonal models. This is the NES we're talking about here. And Data East didn't do too bad of a job. Each level has a great variety of backgrounds that really set the mood. The characters themselves don't look all that bad either. And c'mon, there's Ninjas! Ninjas improve the graphics of every game.

Sound - 10/10

This is one category I was impressed with. The music and sound effects are okay, but this game has one very redeeming quality - voices! Yes, voices. On a NES. At the end of the level, your hero lets out the cry ''I'm bad!''. He must be bad, since he just fought through a Ninja Army! Dongaaa!

Story - 10/10

It's so incredibly simple... and so incredibly funny. The entire story is as follows: some sort of army general appears on the screen and says ''The president has been kidnapped by Ninjas. Are you a bad enough dude to save him?'' Yup. That's all. I'm sure you can appreciate its beauty.

Gameplay - 9/10

It's a side scrolling beat-em-up... it cant be that bad. You have your standard punches and kicks, along with some neat twists such as a Hurricane Kick and a Charge-up Punch. There are quite a few items you can pick up along the way, such as a soda that restores your health, or a dagger you can use to battle your enemies. Speaking of enemies, did I mention every single enemy is a ninja? Well, except for a dog that shows up. But yes, every enemy is a ninja - and there's even a midget ninja! By only complaint is that sometimes the hit detection can be a bit weird, resulting in fits of rage such as ''Ok, he did NOT hit me!''

Overall - 10/10

This game is a NES classic. With the outstanding gameplay, great story, revolutionary sound, and great character design (ninjas!) Bad Dudes is a classic any NES fan should have in his library. Pull it out from time to time and show your friends what a great game they're missing.

Rent or Buy?

Buy, most definitely buy.

Final Score - 10/10 (not an average)

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 11/08/03