A Good LJN Game: T&C Surf Designs on the NES

This will probably be on the shorter side. Since some of the other posts are taking me a little longer than I would like, I’m going to be looking at a game from when I was a kid. This time it is T&C Surf Design.

This is a collection of mini games that I played with my friend Eric. The more I think back to the games that I played with him, the more LJN games keep cropping up. I had nearly forgotten that he owned this.

The first thing that I wanted to know about this game was where the name came from. When I was a kid, I had no idea how licensing deals worked. Instead of a movie, comic book, or TV show, this game was part of a licensing deal with a surfboard company based in Hawaii.

TLDR: It is a fun party game, but not much else.

Narrative

There isn’t a story in this game. All you have to do is compete in three mini games. It will alternate between surfing and skateboarding. This works well for a party game.

Gameplay

The gameplay in T&C Surf Designs is very simple. The game’s subtitle, Wood and Water Rage, sums up what you’re going to experience in this game. This is a party game with only three game modes, which you alternate between.

 There are four characters in this game, and they all play the same. Here are the four of them:

• Thrilla Gorilla
• Tiki Man
• Joe Cool
• Kool Kat

There are three stages. It is a short party game where you aim to score as high as possible. Here are the three stages:

• Street Skate Session
• Big Wave Encounter
• Wood and Water Rage

The controls felt a little off when I was playing this. It was a little awkward when I first started playing. As I kept playing, things got a little easier as I adjusted to the game. This isn’t something you should have to do, but that is me looking back at this with a modern lens.

Back in the late 1980s and early 1990s, this wouldn’t have been a problem. It is fairly standard for it to take some time to get used to how a game plays. It wasn’t like every developer did things the same way, and even development teams in a company were different.

That is all there is to the game. It’s a fine game that I have some fond memories of playing. When I went back to play this, I realized how much more fun the game is when you have a friend with you.

Visuals

It looks perfectly fine. I don’t have any problems with the graphics. This blends in with all the other NES games released in 1988. The characters are the best part of the graphics.

You have a gorilla, a cat in a tuxedo, some guy in a tiki mask, and a generic 80s cool kid. I like the look of each character, and it would’ve been cool to see all of them in a better game. The three levels you compete in look good enough, but there are only two of them.

Sometimes the graphics for a game are simply okay. The character sprites stand out, but nothing else does. At least the graphics don’t negatively impact the gameplay.

6/10. While I think this is one of the better LJN games, there isn’t too much here. It is a simple party game that you can enjoy with your friends for a while. It feels like an average console game from 1988.

Pros

• Fun Gameplay
• Decent Graphics
• Great Characters

Cons

• Short Game
• Controls Can Be Rough

Conclusion

I had no idea what Town & Country Surf Designs was when I first played the game. I grew up in Michigan, and I was six or seven when I first played it. The little town I grew up in wasn’t exactly known for surfing.

Town & Country is well known if you follow surfing. It is hard for me to really write about this because I know little to nothing about it. Thankfully, they have a website, so I can link to the history page for people who are interested in learning more (Link).

This game is one of the better LJN games. It is a unique license for them to get, and I think the developers did a decent job with it. There is a sequel to the game that would be a more complete game than this one.

If you liked this post, please check out my other LJN game reviews, such as Spider-Man and X-Men.