Hung up on that one unfinished video game: Adventure Island |
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I first got introduced to the wonderful world of gaming consoles through the NES, otherwise known as the Family Computer in Japan. Now this little wonder brought me some very fond and special memories growing up, thanks to its wholesome and now-retro 8-bit graphics. Games like Galaga, Battle City, Twinbee, Contra, and of course, the immortal Super Mario Bros. kept me company during stale afternoons, with ignored chocolate-covered donuts sitting beside me across our living room floor.
And then came a whole new generation of gaming consoles. Handhelds like the Game Boy and its successors, and even the simplistic Game & Watch, to the more powerful modern consoles we have today, all played a part - no matter how minute - in my formative years. They certainly kept me off the streets, for sure. I guess I only have them to blame for my not having developed that "streetsmart" gene in my system.
Even after all those games and gaming machines, however, I still couldn't let go of that one NES game that I never got to finish: Adventure Island.
Not that I didn't find the adventures of Master Higgins interesting or exciting enough for my own amateur taste, back then. But with the onslaught of newer game titles coming along, and with the irrational, almost neurotic desire of finishing a level without any scratch or bruise or diminished life for my Master Higgins, I did not realize that I had slowly and unwittingly pushed it to the back of the game shelves.
And then I got busy with other things - Tetris, Metroid, school, dates, friends, sneak-outs at night, the X-Files, Castlevania, high school prom, college admissions, Need for Speed Underground, Sex and the City... and good ol' Master Higgins remained in the webbed corner of my consciousness. Not to be disturbed, and more importantly, never to disturb me. Until we met again, that is.
It was only a couple of days ago that a colleague of mine sent me a link containing all the factoids about my long-lost buddy, Master Higgins. And there, it was like meeting him again for the first time. See, I didn't even know he had a name! Who would've guessed that a trunk-donning bearded man is actually lord over some house? I imagine it's big, as you don't call someone "Master" for nothing. You have to understand, I was about six when I first met him. And personal histories of made-up half-naked characters were not exactly on my priority list at that time.
Anyway, what other things I found out about him did surprise me. As to the veracity of these information, I can only assume and take in all good faith. But hey, we cook up our own little realities, anyway. So anyhow, here are some of the few facts that I only found out now about my "unfinished business":
- The cap he is wearing actually carries the brand of Marlboro
- Master Higgins is a chain-smoker (I don't know why they let a chain-smoking man run through the woods like that. It's no wonder he gets all spent up so easily. His lungs aren't made for such a physical endeavor. Then again, maybe that's why they placed those skateboards in those eggs in the first place. To give that much-needed lift when his oxygen is already running low, thanks to all the nicotine stuck in his lungs.)
- He has a physical condition (lung cancer?) that thus requires him to be always fed. This "illness" would explain why it is imperative of him to fill up his life tank with the various tropical fruits scattered about.
Now, that's as far as I got to Master Higgins' personal history. At least that question mark in my head was finally answered. So now, on to the more important matter at hand: finishing the quest I started with Master Higgins. Frankly, I only got as far as Area 6, probably, in the game. And while this side-scroller basically just "recycles" its sceneries (daytime in the forest, jumping on clouds over seas and islands, nighttime in the forest, castle of the "Big Boss"), the difficulty does increase, and so does the number of those pesky little creatures out to make your adventure just a tad bit more miserable for you.
So, that would be about six Big Bosses confronted - all looking exactly the same, with that heavy bling of a skull wrapped around their necks (Randy Jackson could've been inspired by this character) - and still, no sight of Master Higgins' lady. Heck, I don't even know how many Big Bosses I have to defeat to get to the lady! Actually, I would have to be incredulous and doubt if there ever was a lady to begin with. For all I know, Master Higgins is just one of those characters who survived the plane crash in "LOST", or he could be just out for a weekend getaway and decided he'll have an adventure in the wild.
I don't know. And frankly, I don't really want to question the motives of Hudson Soft as to why they decided to plant that guy in that island to confront those snails, and birds, and swordfish, and monsters. What I really want to do is to finally see the ending of the game. Not just to see it, but to actually finish it. Savor the triumph of my good ol' Master Higgins, now happily in the arms of his (imaginary?) lady.
Now, don't misinterpret, guys. I am not asking for someone to spoil the ending for me by sending a video clip of it (although I'm pretty sure I could find one up at YouTube). Actually, I wouldn't really mind as it's the whole experience that would count more for me. And I sure as heck bet that there are oodles of people out there who have finished their business with Adventure Island, hence it is now peacefully stashed away in their basements. I just happen to be one of those unlucky enough to still be haunted by it.
Given another chance, I would definitely love to see Adventure Island on our next-gens. But it has to be the classic one. The very first Adventure Island title. We've been seeing a lot of retro-games coming back to life, thanks to remakes and ports on content providers like Xbox Live. So maybe my wish isn't so farfetched at all.
Anyhow, my "unfinished business" rant is over (yes, news is slow like that today) and I just had to have company in my misery. So I asked the other guys here at QJ about what is their biggest "game frustration" and I found out that most of us still have some major NES hang-ups. Dang those classics.
Rica M:Crash Bandicoot
Victor B: Super Mario Bros.
Karl B:Evo
Ryan C:Contra
Ian C: Mega Man
Ryan A:Custer's Revenge (LOL!)
So, which game do you need to get some closure with?
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Comments
R-Type on the TG-16. The one game that I have never finished.
probably mega man on nes (i noly got no.3)... i can hardly pass the first lvl.
Fallout 1/2 ported to the PSP, and updated for high definition gaming. Square should just go ahead, and update all the Final Fantasy titles up to the PS1 versions to the PSP. Secret of Mana, Vagrant Story, and Chrono Trigger also updated with new wide screen graphics for the PSP, and PS3. Mega Man Powered Up 2, and 3 for the PSP
Never finished that game.. ever. Closest I got was like to the 4th level, then my dog comes in and trips over my power cord totally shattering my hopes and dreams. Never got back in the mood to even play it again :/
got to about level 50 then it got way to hard
I received this game on Xmas I played it constantly for a month then got stuck at the end of disc 3. A year later I blew away the dust away from my scuffed friend and placed it in my long forgotten playstation. I defeated the long despised @ss of a boss only to realize that the fourth disk had vanished. Its void filled hatred and sadness.
I do get this feeling once in a while. I often find myself *meaning* to get back to a half finished game, but sometimes it takes a lot longer then I had intended. Currently, FarCry (the original PC game) is sitting at about level 11 for me, and maybe someday I will find out how it ends. A year ago when I bought my 360, one of the first games I bought was DOA4. I intended to finish it with every character, but it ended up at the bottom of the pile after I had finished about half the characters. Years back, I was a hardcore EverQuest player, but despite that, it does somewhat bother me that the highest level I had ever gotten was only 56. World of Warcraft is similar. I have played it off and on since early beta, but despite being a bigtime MMO geek, this particular game always fails to hold my attention for more then a short while. Level 43 is the highest I have gotten.
Ultima:Exodus for the NES I just got bored of it, but I do sometimes wish that I had finished it.
Chrono Cross... A friend lent his uberly battered cds to me and i played it up to the part when the first cd ended. The second cd, however refused to play despite my desperate begging. I never got to know what happened to Serge and Kid. T___T
sonic the hedgehog for the sega mega drive.. something always happens why i try to finish that game.. like power outages so i've never finished that game..
Black manta and shadowgate on NES. I have my good old NES hooked to my 37" lcd, and I'm currently trying to get scandinavian versions of every mega man game. But they're so damn expensive.
it bricked my psp!
SHENMUE 3 I NEED TO PLAY IT, BECAUSE THE STORY DOESNT END AT 2!!
AuW1Wn S1V100 Pb004H K500ef password to the last level. That game is easy, you just suck.
So many good games l have passed and many others I have not. I'm 29 years old with two children so it takes me awhile to get through games having stop a lot. That game Adventure Island reminds me of many fun undistracted hours in my youth of the great stories and adventures I have played through. By the way, Super Adventure Island on SNES rocked as well!
At least you have to beat more than 45 bosses because that is where I got bored and quit.
I did finish this game myself, but not under this shape. Adventure Island is practically the same as Wonder Boy was on the Sega Master System, and I played the hell of that game back in the days, hehe. So many classics... I'd go with the Ninja Gaiden series :) Althought the first one I only managed to finish using an emulator with save states, because frankly its masochistic on the last levels XD
and this has somthing to do with psp's why? (p.s i never read all of it so it could be a plan for him to finsih the game or somthing i don't know)
Super muther f-ing ghouls and ghosts for the super nintendo. I could never get past the first level. never.
This game blows. I hate this game with a passion.
You shouldn't record videos when you're that high... Higgins on his skateboard can't possibly be THAT funny when you're sober.
I agree, this has nothing to do with psp.....
Kid Icarus was this Best yo!! that stupid castle is very long to past but..yes I beat that game. Feel really good afterward. By the way, I played on the original NES.. Not like some people who play ROMS and have savestate..
I never have finish that game..because I accidently Save the latest over my 2nd new save game..... The latest one is the one with the one that I am stuck because I save at a boss place and can't get out So,...basically I have to play the game over..BUT I have to do SOOO much leveling up ..so I quit..at disc 3
same here..... I hate that freaking hard game..
KID CHAMELEON!!!!! Sega Genesis game, i could never ever beat this game. I got up to level 50 or something and then i would die and there is no save state in the game... and to top it off it wasnt that great a game. But back then, i use to be obsessed with beating every game i had... this was the one game i never got to beat. To this day i wonder what happens at the end.
As a bigtime final fantasy/chrono trigger fan, I can tell you that Chrono Cross is a game I wish I had NOT finished. Chrono trigger is one of my favorite games of all time, but its sequal was absolutely god awful right up to the end. So, this is only my opinion, but you didnt miss anything good.
over 10,000 games played and finished. i'm most likely one of the oldest gamers on this site. i still remember the feeling of polishing off an atari 2600 game for the first time. the feeling only got better as the systems got better until, doom64. all that work all that time, what a BS ending. it started a trend that still lasts today. but yes, there is no game i have played i didn't beat, EVER. oh, except The Longest Journey, still playing it, gotta take 8-9 month breaks from the game after a couple weeks of play time.
The game that has haunted me for my whole life would be Solstice on the NES. The epic music and dungeon crawling, and the sheer difficulty of things made it too hard for me to finish 15 years ago, and its still too hard for me to finish today! But one day, I'll beat it...
I regret not finishing "Dead of the Brain 1&2" on Pc Engine Super CD. I LOVED that game, despite the fact it was in japanese. Search out the iso and take a look at it. It's filled with Zombie goodness!! :D
Ya i made it to the end of disc 3 just to have my memory card go missing... luckly i can now play it on my psp (thanks to custom firmware) and have since started over...again
lol, what bricked your psp
Disregard that, I suck *****s.
parasite eve 2 i got it sooo far 2nd disc almost at the end then got my memory card stolen.... tryed to replay it couldnt....... if i had a lower firmware on my psp i would really look this up cuz the original is still collecting dust lol ALSO that baby caveman game for the genesis i forgot the name but i neva beat that one if some one can tell me the name it will b great thx in advance
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