Web site:
Category: Games
Sub-Category: Platform
Platform: Arcade, Sega master System/Genesis/Game Gear, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum, MSX, Amiga, Apple II, Atari ST, PC Engine, PlayStation 2/3/4/5, Xbox 360/One/X/S, Nintendo NES/Wii/Switch, Windows
License: Proprietary
Interface: GUI
Wikipedia: Wonder Boy
First release: April 21, 1986
Wonder Boy (ワンダーボーイ, Wandā Bōi) – an adventure, platform game series, also known as the Monster World (モンスターワールド, Monsutā Wārudo) series, is a franchise of video games published by Sega.
The first installment in the series was released in 1986 and was developed by Escape, which shortly thereafter renamed itself Westone Co. Ltd. It was initially published by Sega for arcades. Later, Sega itself developed conversions for the SG-1000, Master System, and Game Gear (in the US, this version was titled Revenge of Drancon), while Activision developed the home computer versions. Wonder Boy was released for the C64, the ZX Spectrum, and the Amstrad CPC. In 2004, Sega released a faithful adaptation of the arcade version for mobile phones.
The main character in the first installment was called Tom-Tom, and the goal of the game was to free Tom-Tom’s girlfriend Tanya, who had been kidnapped by the monster Drancon. Wonder Boy was presented as a left-to-right scrolling platformer. The main task was to collect fruit, which filled an energy bar. This not only served as a display of life energy, but also as a kind of clock that continually ticked down. If all life energy was used up, you lost a life. In addition, you had to fight numerous enemies, including large snails, snakes, and bees. Prehistoric-looking hammers could be used as weapons. These, along with other objects like a skateboard or a magical elf, were hidden in large eggs that you had to break by jumping on them. The game consisted of a total of nine different areas, each with four stages. At the end of each area, there was a fight against Drancon. The stages differed graphically, for example, depicting caves or forest landscapes.
Series:
– 1986: Wonder Boy
– 1987: Wonder Boy in Monster Land
– 1988: Wonder Boy III: Monster Lair
– 1989: Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap
– 1991: Wonder Boy in Monster World
– 1994: Monster World IV
– 2018: Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom
