Gauntlet: A Good, not Great, NES Game

Gauntlet was originally released in the arcades by Atari in 1985. It borrows heavily from the game Dandy, which was released on Atari’s 8-bit computers in 1983. Like several other arcade games that Atari released, the rights to this game would eventually be bought by another company.

I never had the chance to play this game in the arcades. The way I first learned about it was through the NES port of the game. It isn’t a terrible way to play the game, and I remember enjoying it. I also had fun with the game when I played it a few years ago.

This is one of the NES games I played at a neighbor’s house. I can’t really call them friends because I didn’t really hang out with them. Our parents got together for a movie night, and all of the kids came along with them. I was the youngest kid there, so I got to watch the older kids play NES games.

The NES version of Gauntlet was just one of the games I remember playing at these get togethers. What I don’t remember is if we rented the game or not. When I started collecting games, I eventually got the two NES games.

This story is part of a larger project that I’ve tried to write a few times. At some point, I’ll write a larger post on this series. Right now, I just want to focus on the NES port of Gauntlet.

TLDR: A fun little game that does a decent job of bringing the arcade experience to the NES.

Narrative

When I first played this game, I had no idea what the story was, and it didn’t matter. Gauntlet is one of those games where the story is nice to have, but isn’t overly important. I had to go to the game’s manual to find out what the story was.

The manual is trying a little too hard to make this sound like a grand adventure to defeat some bad guy (Link). Apparently, you’re fighting Morak the Evil One. He’s created the Gauntlet for you to travel through.

There is some talk of a Sacred Orb, which you’ll need to defeat Morak. Without it, you and the people of Rendar will be helpless against his evil magic. So, the game takes place in the land of Rendar, where there is a Sacred Orb that you need to find, and you can regain the treasures of Rendar that Morak plundered. Sure, why not?

The story is fine, but you don’t really need it. Gauntlet isn’t a game that needs a story to enhance the gameplay. While it is nice to know what you’re looking for and who you need to beat, none of that is necessary. The story is just nice to have.

Gameplay

Gauntlet wasn’t optimized for a home console. This isn’t all that surprising, as most of the arcade ports in the 1980s and early 1990s weren’t altered too much in terms of gameplay. I do like that there are four playable characters.

There are four playable characters, each with their own stats. This makes them feel a little different. I also like that they have names, even if it is a little odd. Here are the four characters:

• Thor, a warrior.
• Merlin, a wizard.
• Thyra, a Valkyrie.
• Questor, an elf.

In the arcade game, they were just referred to by class. The machine would make announcements about how close the player was to dying or if they shot the healing items. It’s a very cool feature that I wish were in more games.

The core gameplay is pretty simple. You shoot waves of enemies until you can destroy the object that is spawning them. There are health items and bonus points scattered through the levels. You also have to find keys to advance, and each stage has an exit.

There are a lot of annoying things that hold it back from being great. Much of this has to do with the game’s arcade origins. Some things work well in an arcade game where the goal is to get the players’ quarters. When a game transitions to a console game, those features are more of an annoyance than they should be.

Overall, I love the gameplay! It is simple and easy to understand. You don’t really need a tutorial to understand what is going on, and it is easy to explain. While it is easy to get into the game, it is harder to master. Exactly what you want from an arcade game.

Visuals

Gauntlet looks decent. It isn’t the best looking NES game, but it is better than the worst. There are a lot of sprites on the screen, even if they don’t all have animations. The level design isn’t too bad either.

The graphics took a hit when the game was ported to the NES. This is common when it comes to arcade ports. I don’t think the game looks bad; it simply isn’t as good as the arcade game.

I like how the enemies and the players’ characters look. They aren’t too detailed, but it is better than trying to use your imagination. I didn’t notice any slowdown or flickering when I played this game.

The game’s level design is pretty good. It is easy to see everything and where you have to go. I like that you don’t have to use your imagination on most things. The graphics don’t get in the way of the gameplay.

Overall, this is a good looking NES game. It isn’t going to wow anyone, but it is much better than many of the NES games out there. It looks much better than the other unlicensed games on the NES. This is one of the weird things about the Tengen games.

7.5/10. Despite being plagued by some arcade mechanics, this is a very fun game! I enjoyed going back to play Gauntlet. It has simple gameplay that is easy to pick up and difficult to master.

Pros

• Good Controls
• Decent Graphics
• Easy to learn gameplay

Cons

• Can be too difficult on single player
• Four-player mode wasn’t possible when the game was released

Conclusion

Gauntlet is one of the arcade games that I first heard about on the NES. It is in the same boat as Rampage and BurgerTime. I had no idea these games were ports of arcade games, mostly because I didn’t grow up near an arcade. Whenever I say or write this, I feel a little weird, especially when random people on the internet seem surprised by it.

There is a level of snobbery when it comes to stuff like this. I’ve never understood it, and I probably never will. It doesn’t matter to me which version of a game you play, as long as you enjoy yourself.

While I don’t have as many memories of the NES game as I do of other arcade ports, Gauntlet is a game that I enjoy. It is much better when you have someone to play with! I suppose that can be said about many NES games, especially when you play some of the “bad ones.”

This is one of the games you can easily pick up and understand how to play. While it gets more complex as things go on, it isn’t all that difficult. I prefer the Gauntlet games that were released in the late 1990s more than the first few.  

This version of Gauntlet was published by Tengen. It’s an interesting company, and the story behind it is pretty fun. Others have told it in various formats. While I like the story, I don’t think there is anything that I can add to it at this point.   

If you liked this post, check out some of my other posts about NES games. Such as TMNT III or Bucky O’Hare.