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Game Over: Hardest Video Games Ever

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Even though I have been gaming for over three decades, I am still your average gamer. The 80s arcade games definitely toughened me and sharpened my skills, but there were some games that no matter how sharp I was, I could never beat them.

The following list of wickedly difficult games is an admission of sorts that I never got to see the end credits. Heck, I don’t even think I saw more than a few levels (without cheating) on any of these games.

What are some of your most hardest games ever played? Let us know via Twitter or Facebook.

OUR HARDEST GAMES LIST

Contra / Gryzor / Probotector

Ghosts’n Goblins

Mega Man

Battletoads

Bionic Commando

Green Beret / Rush’n Attack

Impossible Mission

Robotron:2084

Rolling Thunder

Defender

Robocop

Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels

ESWAT: Ciyt Under Siege

Slap Fight

Hellfire

Rick Dangerous

Airwolf

Paperboy

Game Over

 

Ghosts’N Goblins Arcade Remastered

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GnG_titleIf you’ve just plugged yourself back into the matrix, the big news of the day you may have missed is that one of the toughest platform games, Ghosts’n Goblins, has been remastered by the Nostalgia team for the Commodore 64. The game was released this past weekend and is available for download from the C64 Scene Database (CSDb) site.

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We had a play of the game and we reckon it is a solid conversion. The game is still tough, but it is definitely more playable than the original due to tight controls and excellent collision detection –  Sir Arthur can finally get further into the game this time around. This remastered version is everything the original C64 conversion should have been! Grab it now!

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For those of you that want to know why this remastered version is so good, here are a few points to whet your appetite:

* Two completely new levels added
* Existing 4 levels are twice the size
* All levels with completely new graphics
* Each level has a new unique tune
* Each boss fight has a new tune
* New Sound Effects added or changed
* New bug free sprite multiplexer
* Intro sequence added
* Game Map added
* Game Completed Animation added
* Game Over sequence added
* Two new bosses added for levels 5 & 6
* New Jumping Skeleten Enemy added
* Moving Clouds completely recoded
* Arthur can now turn around while jumping so he can shoot backwards
* Arthur can jump over obstcacles when he is touching them
* Weapon system improved
* Enemies have improved AI and a lot of them are completely recoded
* Hitting an enemy animation added
* Time Limit is much better and fairer
* Title Screen with Title Tune added
* Pause added with Quit option
* Easyflash version with High Score saver to flash and backup to disk
* Universal File version that works on any device
* PAL and NTSC supported

 

Ghosts’n Goblins: the unforgiving game

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The human condition. We are a resilient bunch. If you want to test your resiliency (and your patience), then give the unforgiving and difficult arcade game, Ghosts’n Goblins a spin.
The game sees you, Sir Arthur, a noble knight, run and jump through horizontal and vertical levels to rescue his sweetheart, Princess Guinevere (or Princess Prin Prin in other ports of the game).

           

Sir Arthur can pick up weapons like: an axe, lance, cross, dagger or firebrand. These weapons can be used to kill Satan’s army of monsters, zombies, bats, ogres, demons and ghosts. Sir Arthur can replace his armour by jumping up at certain hidden spots on some levels. This action causes a pot to appear. It is imperative the armour stays intact. Take two hits, and it is curtains for Sir Arthur. That is exactly why this game is unforgiving and damn difficult to complete.

           

It is not all doom and gloom if you know some tricks to beat this game. The developers at Capcom weren’t going to be totally cruel to us poor arcade gamers. They left us a few surprises (easter eggs) along the way to help Sir Arthur get further into the game. What were these tricks you ask ? Well, we won’t give away all of them, but one good one can be found on the third cave level. Navigate Sir Arthur to the upper level and move him to the right of the rock, just to the left of the second ladder. Then move left and right, shooting rapidly. A zombie will keep appearing and you can score 100,000 points before time runs out. Don’t worry about the time running out and losing a life, you will be rewarded with two extra lives in the process. Even with this trick, you still have to give up a life to get two back. Those Capcom developers were sadists.

Ghosts’n Goblins was, and still is, a great platform game. It is still difficult and frustrating as ever. So, if you like your games to be difficult and challanging, then you can not go wrong with this one.

Manufacturer: Capcom
Year: 1985
Genre: Platform fighter
Maximum number of simultaneous players: 2
Gameplay: Alternating
Joystick: 8-way
Buttons: 2 (Fire and Jump)
Control Panel Layout: 1 Player Ambidextrous
Sound: Amplified Mono (single channel)
Cabinet: Upright Standard
Monitor: CRT, Raster standard resolution
Levels: Graveyard and forest, town, caves, bridge, castle – lower level, castle – upper level, final boss
Ghosts