Hokuto no Ken
Hokuto no Ken (Mark III)
-From Rage Quitter 87's Fist of the North Star site

July 20th 1987 saw the release of the first Hokuto no Ken game on a SEGA console, the Mark III (known as the Master System outside of Japan). Simply titled "Hokuto no Ken", the game is a scrolling beat 'em up in the style of Kung-Fu Master. The player controls Kenshiro and has to fight through many enemies to rescue Yuria and defeat Raoh. An extensively edited version of the game was released outside of Japan (see below). Possibly the most famous thing to do with this game is the fact that Yuji Naka was the lead programmer on it, who would go on to create Sonic the Hedgehog. As well as being available on the Mark III, the game is also included in the Playstation 2 SEGA Ages Hokuto no Ken game, and can also be downloaded on the Wii's Virtual Console service in Japan.

Contents
1) Gameplay
2) Black Belt


Gameplay

Each level consists of two parts: the first part involves Kenshiro moving from left to right, defeating the never-ending stream of enemies with punches or kicks. Mini-bosses will also show up in these parts, who take several hits to kill. The second part of a stage is a boss fight, which usual involves larger sprites being used for Kenshiro and his opponent. Defeating a boss will result in Kenshiro using a Hokuto Shinken technique to finish them off.

There are 6 levels to beat, with the game loosely adapting what happens in the manga. The first level involves Kenshiro entering Southern Cross to find Shin, level 2 is the battle against the Colonel and his army, level 3 involves Jackal's gang and Devil Rebirth, level 4 takes place as the Cassandra prison, level 5 has Kenshiro facing Souther, whilst the last level has Kenshiro coming face to face with Raoh for a final showdown.


Black Belt

A few months after Hokuto no Ken was released in Japan, a version was released in America and Europe. However, this version was heavily edited so it had little to do with Hokuto no Ken. Retitled Black Belt, the graphics were changed, featuring different looking characters and levels. Kenshiro become Riki, a master of karate, who was still out to rescue his girlfriend.

Strangely, whilst the levels and characters were changed, the violence was not, so enemies still explode when killed. Whilst the Japanese version has seen a few re-releases on other formats, Black Belt has never been ported to anything else, and is a Master System exclusive. And oh yeah, you know how Master System games have terrible covers? Black Belt is no exception:



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