Manual Stimulation: Wanpaku Kokkun no Gourmet World (Famicom)

No joke, the English version of Taito's Wanpaku Kokkun no Gourmet World, called Panic Restaurant,  is one of my favorite side-scrolling platformers around.

Which isn't to suggest it's one of the best side-scrolling platformers around. It's not. It's probably not even one of the best platformers released for the Famicom or NES.



Still, I adore it. Why? For starters, I've never been shy about admitting I love games that feature food. Well, that's pretty much all you encounter while playing Wanpaku Kokkun no Gourmet World, which is set in and around a restaurant ("Eaten").



Food's about all you encounter while flipping through the Wanpaku Kokkun no Gourmet World instruction manual, too. Food and people who make food (like the cute chef showcased on the manual's cover and on pretty much every interior page), I mean.



Thankfully, the Wanpaku Kokkun no Gourmet World manual follows in the glorious footsteps of many other old Taito game manuals and depicts all of the above-mentioned food and food-making with the most brilliant of illustrations.

The illustration that serves as the backdrop of this booklet's "story" page (see above) is a perfect example.



None of the other drawings that fill the Wanpaku Kokkun no Gourmet World booklet are as massive as the one that sits behind its story text, but most are just as adorable.

Aural Gratification #1: 'Salad' from Panic Restaurant (NES)

Along with Great Greed (GameBoy) and SaGa Frontier (PlayStation), I've spent a good amount of time playing Panic Restaurant for the NES in the last week or two.

This isn't my first experience with Taito's food-centric platformer, mind you. In fact, I've been a fan of the erstwhile Wanpaku Kokkun no Gourmet World for ages--since the year or so after its release.

Although I like many aspects of Panic Restaurant--its spot-on visuals, thematic dedication and pinpoint controls among them--I think its soundtrack may be the best of the bunch.



At the very least, the tune that plays throughout Panic Restaurant's third stage, "Salad," stands out for boldly bucking the trend of cheery, boppy tracks that support every other level.

In particular, I love how this track complements the nearly barren kitchen that serves as the stage's setting. It's echo-y and lilting and even kind of chilly--all of which go hand in hand with the cool hues that coat the surrounding environment.

Are any of you also fans of this piece of game music? Or maybe you're fans of the title that contains it? Either way, share the love in the comments section that follows.

A handful of my favorite Famicom games (in honor of the system's 31st anniversary)

In honor of the Famicom's release 31 years ago (as of yesterday), I thought I'd publish a post that focuses on a few of my favorite games that were made for Nintendo's first proper console.

Note: I don't necessarily consider the titles discussed below to be the "best" that appeared on Famicom carts or disks. Rather, I consider them to be among the ones I most enjoy playing.

With that out of the way, let's get to the list.

Bubble Bobble--When I first encountered this disk-based port of Taito's classic arcade game, I wasn't all that interested in it due to the fact that it's far from a perfect conversion. Once I got over the fact that the backdrops as well as the enemy and item sprites in this iteration differed from the original, though, I began to appreciate what it brought to the table--which is some wonderfully frantic platforming that's supported by one of the best backing tunes ever to appear in a video game.

My red Twin Famicom system
playing a copy of Donkey Kong

Door Door--This cart-based puzzler-platformer is far from perfect. That's an entirely forgivable offense, though, as it was Enix's first foray into the world of Famicom development. Also, despite its choppiness and rather languid pace, this adorably rendered title is a whole lot of fun--although don't be surprised if it prompts you to pull out a few clumps of hair, too.

Meikyūjima--Known as Kickle Cubicle in other territories, this Irem joint has long been a favorite of mine due to its brightly colored visuals and its surprisingly unique gameplay (although the latter almost assuredly was inspired by HAL Laboratory's Eggerland series or Sega's Pengo). Given that, why did it never receive a sequel? I guess we'll never know.

Moai-kun--Here's another fairly recent addition to my "favorite Famicom games" list. Of course, I didn't even know about this Konami-made cart until a year or so ago. Anyway, I'd say it's well worth seeking out if you like challenging puzzler-platformers--just don't go into it expecting to encounter the best graphics the Famicom has to offer.

Mother--Is this Americana-themed RPG a bit rough compared to its sequel, which is better known to westerners as EarthBound? No question. The original's still an intriguing title, though, as for me it's been just different enough from Mother 2 to be worth my time and attention. Of course, it hasn't yet proven to be interesting enough for me to finish, but I'm hoping to rectify that sooner rather than later.

Otocky--This is the game you show those naysayers who try to tell you that games from this era were little more than simplistic button-mashers. Actually, this one--developed by SEDIC (don't worry, I've also never heard of them) and published by ASCII--is a button-masher, of sorts, but it's far from simplistic. How so? Well, for starters, it's basically a mash-up of a shmup and a music or rhythm game. On top of that, it's one of those rare games that's a joy to experience due to the manner in which the two aforementioned genres are so seamlessly incorporated.

These early Famicom games
are pretty great, too

Pajama Hero Nemo--I'm probably not alone in admitting this, but I have a love-hate relationship with this Capcom platformer, which was given the title Little Nemo: The Dream Master when it was brought to the States. On the one hand, its cartoonish aesthetics are absolutely astounding, especially for the era in which it was produced, while on the other, it's one of the toughest Famicom games I've played. Still, for me its positives far outweigh--OK, mostly outweigh--its negatives.

Super Mario USA--I know a lot of people would name Super Mario Bros. 3 rather than its "fake" predecessor, but the fact is I've always preferred the latter to the former. In part, that's because of Super Mario USA's expansive roster of playable characters (compared to most other entries in this famed series, at least), although I also really enjoy what I consider to be its "softer" visual stylings.

Wanpaku Kokkun no Gourmet World--Truth be told, I prefer the North American localization of this EIM-developed, Taito-published platformer--mostly because the western version, Panic Restaurant, stars a far more adorable protagonist--but the Japanese sports some pretty impressive box art and, as such, shouldn't be ignored completely. Regardless of which one you decide to go with, get ready for a surprisingly tough, and surprisingly well realized (in terms of its sprite work), title. (Oh, and get ready to empty your bank account as well. Sigh.)

Warpman--This Famicom follow-up to Namco's Warp & Warp (or Wapu to Wapu) likely isn't all that well known outside of Japan, and that's a real shame, as it's a thoroughly enjoyable arcade-style romp that I like to think of as one part Robotron (although not entirely) and one part Bomberman, if that makes any sense.

Honestly, I could go on about my favorite Famicom games for another day and a half, at least, so I'll stop here. How about all of you, though; which 8-bit Nintendo titles do you consider to be the most enjoyable or fun?

Five more favorites: Famicom/NES platformers that don't involve a fat, Italian-American plumber

Just over a week ago, I published a similarly titled blog post featuring five of my favorite Famicom/NES games that didn't star Nintendo's famously mustachioed plumber.

As I'm sure you can tell from the headline above, this post covers five more such titles. Do I put them on equal ground with the games I mentioned in the last one? Not really. Still, they're all great and well worth playing, especially if you've yet to experience them.

1. Akumajō Special: Boku Dracula-kun--Often called Kid Dracula by North American heathens like myself, this Konami-made title is the platforming equivalent of the company's Parodius series of shoot 'em ups--only in this case, Castlevania, not Gradius, is the game being parodied. Anyway, thanks to its focus on projectile weapons, this one's always felt like a mash-up of Castlevania and Mega Man to me--which of course means it's a winner. Additional reasons to give this one a try: Its jaunty soundtrack and its brilliant, cartoon-ish visuals.

2. Gimmick!--My first thought upon discovering this Sunsoft-published gem a few years back was that it was some sort of Kirby rip-off. Although it definitely shares Kirby's Candy Land aesthetic (to a degree), Gimmick! plays nothing like that HAL Laboratory-developed classic. In fact, Gimmick! plays more like a Mega Man game than Kirby's Adventure, if you ask me, what with the adorable protagonist's projectile weapon (a star that spawns above his head) and propensity to bounce. Gimmick! differs from Kirby's Adventure in another important area, too--that being that it's far more challenging. In fact, it took me more than a few attempts to make it past this game's first stage. Don't let that keep you from giving this cart a try, though; tough as nails or not, this is a top-shelf platformer that should be experienced by everyone who knows their d-pad from their start button.

Mario's Panic Restaurant

You know what? I'd love it if Nintendo made a game that somehow combined its Mario Bros. series with Taito's kitchen-centric platformer, Panic Restaurant.

I can't see the company brass green-lighting a full-fledged release based on that premise, but maybe they would find a downloadable one (sold through the eShop, for instance) a bit more palatable?

As for what prompted this epicurean epiphany: I just stumbled across the following t-shirt design, produced by Los Angeles-based artist herky (aka Flickr user Lucky1988):

If you find this design--called "Trouble in the Kitchen of the Ristorante"--to be as delicious as I do, cast a vote in favor of it at shirt.woot.com between now and next Thursday at noon.

See also: More of Lucky1988's designs

Five favorites: cooking-themed games

It should be obvious to anyone who stumbles upon this blog that I love gaming. Likely not as obvious is my similar love of cooking.

Anyway, once in a great while those two interests collide in a cooking-themed video game. I've played a number of such games over the years, with the following being my favorites:

1. BurgerTime (Arcade, 1982)--As far as I can tell, this is the original cooking-themed video game. To say it's still one of the best wouldn't be an understatement, in my opinion. OK, so the cooking here involves assembling giant hamburgers by running over each ingredient--bottom bun, burger, lettuce and top bun--in order while avoiding crazed eggs, hot dogs and other food items, but that's still cooking in my book, so I'm including it on this list.

2. Panic Restaurant (NES, 1992)--I'd like to give a good pat on the back to the person who came up with the idea for this game--which focuses on a Chef Boyardee-esque protagonist who races through a cursed restaurant in pursuit of his chief rival--and another to the publishing exec who gave it the green light, as it is, sadly, one of the very few cooking-themed platformers to hit store shelves over the years. Thankfully, it's a delicious, if a tad difficult (and expensive), gem of a game.

3. Cooking Fighter Hao (PlayStation, 1998)--Nippon Ichi may be best known for its tactical RPGs (like Disgaea and Phantom Brave), but one of its very first releases seemingly took its cues from that campy Food Network mainstay, Iron Chef. Unfortunately, this sometimes-annoying, button-mashing arena battler--which, admittedly, features some nice spritework--fails to evoke any of the fun that's a hallmark of its boob-tube-based inspiration.

4. Ore No Ryouri (PlayStation, 1999)--The folks who made Cooking Mama and its ilk--which includes the following entry on this list--owe a lot to those who made Ore No Ryouri. The protagonist in each of these games is a wet-behind-the-ears chef who has to work his (or her) way up the proverbial ladder of the restaurant world, after all. In Ore No Ryouri, that means chopping a lot of onions, frying a lot of meat and pouring a lot of beer--all while utilizing the pair of analog sticks on the original DualShock controller, of course.

5. Order Up! (Wii, 2008)--Take Ore No Ryouri, replace the Japanese setting with an American one, change the art style so the characters look like Weeble Wobbles (in a good way--honestly!) and alter the controls so it works with the Wii Remote and, basically, you have this charming, Supervillain Studios-developed title. Read this review (part of "The Great Gaymathon" series) for more information on this criminally overlooked release.

See also: Previous 'five favorites' posts

$3,600 for a sealed copy of Panic Restaurant?

I've played a lot of games the last few days. Among them: Taito's Panic Restaurant (aka Wanpaku Kokkun no Gourmet World in Japan), released for the NES in late 1992.

For those of you who have never heard of Panic Restaurant: It's a cute platformer which puts players in control of a chef named Cookie ("Naughty Kokkun" in the Japanese version) who has to make his way through a cursed restaurant. (See part of it in action here.)

Anyway, I've been playing the game using an emulator because, well, it's pretty darn expensive. Case in point: One eBay auctioneer is trying to sell a sealed copy of it for $3,599.99. (Another is selling a similarly pristine copy of the game for just $1,799.99.)

Opened copies of the game are cheaper, of course, although I'd hardly call them cheap. Loose copies, for instance, commonly command prices above $100.