Can’t find a working NES emulator to save my life…for now, I’ll just list some noteworthy games that I was able to beat clean (i.e. no Game Genie).
Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out: Oh, man, this was a blast (especially at my tender, pre-Beatmania IIDX state). I once played this for, like, two hours straight, pretty remarkable considering only fourteen different fights. Pure vintage 8-bit videogaming, nothing but reflexes and patterns and nerves. BTW, the toughest opponent is Mr. Sandman. Once you’ve beaten him, taking out Super Macho Man and Mike Tyson is just a matter of time.
Master Blaster: Yeah, this was a real bear, but somehow, it held my attention just enough to keep soldiering on. Beat it a total of three times, IIRC (plus at least a couple of heartbreaking close calls).
Adventures of Bayou Billy: It took me a while, definitely hit or miss, but I got it. I dunno; I’ve dealt with so many ultra-painful insane psycho bonecrushing games, this never struck me as all that special. Some tips: Complete the practice stages, which give you much-needed benefits (when the game says “You’re as powerful as Gordon!” or whatever, you’re good to go). Learn the jumpkick; it’s the key to beating the hand-to-hand scenes. In stages 1 and 3, get an Ugly Stick at the first chance and hold onto it; forget the ineffectual Footlong Blade. Against Luis Tor-Ture, do nothing but punch furiously, and he’ll go down in short order. Memorize the locations of the rocks in stage 4, which are a far greater threat than traffic or bombs. Most importantly, DON’T DIE in stage 7. That way you can take a whip and bulletproof vest to stage 8, which, trust me, are an absolute must. As for the final bosses, go to the bottom right, jumpkick until one of them grabs you (he’ll face the wrong way, so you’re safe), run away and circle back to the corner, and repeat. You can also just use the whip if you have it, but that takes forever.
NARC: Like most of the later arcade ports, it lost a lot in the 8-bit conversion, but it was still a decent game. It’s actually pretty easy since there can only be 3 enemies onscreen at a time. My only tips are: 1. Really rack up arrests for both big points and lives, and 2. against the final skull boss, move near the top of the screen to get the point you’re supposed to be hitting in the proper position; you’ll NEVER get it otherwise.
Castlevania 2, Simon’s Quest: This was an adventure game, so victory was largely a matter of finding all the items and learning what was effective against which enemy. And you get some extremely powerful weaponry, including an upgrade which DOUBLES the strength of your strongest whip. The unfortunate result is that all the bosses are pathetically easy by the time you get to them, including Dracula himself, who I demolished in roughly 10 seconds.
Double Dragon 2, The Revenge: I struggled with this for a while mainly due to the speed of some of the enemies (don’t waste a moment using those weapons!). It got a lot more managble once I learned the continue codes and a trick for gaining a few extra lives. The absolute, stone cold, lead pipe cinch 100% most important thing to remember is that the Hyper Uppercut ALWAYS connects. Big, small, ducking, leaning, cartwheeling, doesn’t matter, there’s no escape from that punch. So make good use of it (immediately after a whiffed Hurricane Kick is always a good time). The last boss really is no big deal, especially since you get two free lives before facing him. Just keep Hurricane Kick-ing or even plain 'ol back-kicking. He’ll do some damage but give out far before you do.
Should I even get into the games I almost finished? Ah, perhaps another time. In the meantime, anyone know of a good, reliable NES emulator?
). Considering the games only take about 15 minutes or so, you could easily bang it out in about 3 hours.