Nintendo History Through Games Quiz

Answer: 1970s

This was the first game Nintendo was involved in and it was released in 1974. It is an arcade game that had footage of a Wild West gunman projected onto a screen and your task as the player was to duel with him. The moment his eyes flashed you had to draw and shoot. If you were fast enough the next image would be that of the gunman falling down. If you weren't quick enough, it would show the gunman firing back at you.

Whether or not you were successful didn't matter as you continued on to duel against other opponents. By the end you would have faced five gunmen in total. There is a word of warning with this one... if you drew too early you would get the dreaded "foul" light. That signified doom because the system would then refuse to acknowledge any of your actions and the game became unwinnable.

(Footnote) There was a NES version of the game released by Nintendo, in 1984.

Answer: 1970s

Released only in Japan in 1978, this was a significant game in the history of Nintendo. While they had previously been involved in video games this was the first one that had been developed by their own R&D division that they would publish themselves.

The game is, essentially, a computer version of the board game that bears the same name.

Answer: 1980s

"Donkey Kong" was released in 1981 and it produced a number of significant firsts, both for Nintendo and the platform gaming industry. First up, this was Nintendo's first major success in the North American market and it represents the first game in the "Mario" franchise, though our hero, at the time, was called Jumpman. There's a touch of pleasant irony in that name as this game was the first to introduce jumping to the genre. The other significant difference with this game and other platform games at that point in time is that it had a plot.

In the game you, as the player, are Jumpman (Mario) and your job is to rescue your girlfriend. She has been kidnapped by Donkey Kong, who sits atop a series of girders that you have to negotiate to get to him. Donkey doesn't make it easy as he is releasing barrels and other obstacles at you so that you fail in your mission.

Answer: 1980s

"Mario Bros" was released in arcades in 1983 but has since made its way to countless platforms for the home gamer. This game succeeded "Donkey Kong" (1981) and it holds a special spot in Nintendo's history by being the first ever multiplayer "Mario" game. It is also the game in which we meet Luigi, Mario's brother, for the first time.

Both Mario and Luigi are playable characters in this game and, in two player mode, you can either work together or work competitively. Mario and Luigi are called upon to fight a series of monsters and creatures that have climbed out of the sewers of New York. Among them are Shellcreepers, Sidesteppers, Slipices and Fighterflies. To make things interesting our heroes are also required to keep out of the way of green and red fireballs or risk being defeated.

Answer: 1980s

Released in North America in 1984, "Duck Hunt" was called a "launch" game. It was bundled with the console as a single deal. Later, Nintendo would release the game as combo with "Super Mario Bros" (1985) and, two years later, "World Class Track Meet" was added to make it a three-pack combo. There was also a Vs. model of "Duck Hunt" released as an arcade game in North America" in 1984. The game was a highlight moment for Nintendo as it proved to be one of the most popular light gun games released for the Ninetendo Entertainment System (NES).

Basically, you had to shoot ducks. You have a faithful dog who goes out and flushes out the ducks. You have three options - one duck mode, where only one duck at a time appears, the slightly harder two duck mode and clay pigeon shooting mode. The latter had you shooting down clay discs before they hit the ground. If you shoot down five ducks, you advanced to the next level. But, if you missed five ducks, it's game over. Remember that I mentioned you had a faithful dog... well, he has a bit of mongrel in him, you miss five times and he starts laughing at you.

Answer: 1980s

"The Legend of Zelda" was another significant leap for Nintendo. Released in Japan in 1986, and a year later in North America, it is seen by most as one of the most important ever video game creations. As a testament to the, "Game Informer" magazine, in their 200th issue (2009), rated it the greatest video game of all time.

For Nintendo, the release of this game in North America was a giant leap of faith. To this point Americans had enjoyed games that were linear and provided the player with instant gratification. "The Legend of Zelda" was completely different with a free-roaming story, and with a set of mechanics that took ages to decipher and then play. They needn't have worried. America took to the game like a duck to water and over a million copies of the game were sold in the first six months of release.

As the player, you take on the role of Link and surrender yourself to a quest to find the pieces of the Tri-Force, beat the dastardly Ganon and save the beautiful princess. But it's not easy, the overworld of the game is huge and you are required to make your way through nine dungeons that are riddled with labyrinths, obstacles and a stack of other secrets.

Answer: 1980s

"Metroid" (1986), aside from being one of Nintendo's greatest games, was their first venture into saving a player's progress in the game using a password system. The game would present you with a password whenever the protagonist, Samus Aran, ran out of energy. The password is entered via the title screen and then you have a choice; Start or Continue. Start would take you back to the beginning, Continue would lead you to a screen that asked for your password and, once entered, took you back to the starting location where you ended previously.

As Samus Aran, you are a bounty hunter, hired by the Federation to go to the planet Zebes and track down a mysterious new bio-weapon, codenamed "Metroid". The planet, however, is stacked with mazes and challenges for you to negotiate. The game is non-stop action as you try and uncover the planet's secrets and discover new weapons. "Metroid" also provides the possibility of five different endings, and the one you gain will be dependent on what you have with you when you arrive.

Answer: 1990s

Released in 1990, this game gets a nod because of mystery, hearsay and, possibly, controversy surrounding the title of the game. The game was originally packaged as "Mike Tyson's Punch Out!!". Some will argue that Tyson was removed from the game because of his 1992 criminal convictions. Nintendo's stance was that Tyson's contract expired and, after Tyson lost his World title to Buster Douglas in 1992, the lustre of his name was no longer there and they simply refused to renew the contract.

Tyson's face and name were changed to Mr. Dream. However, the boxer still moves and punches like Tyson, at least for the first 90 seconds of the bout. He even continues to use Mike Tyson's quotes. As you've probably figured, "Punch Out..." is a boxing game where you are the contender, Little Mac, and you fight your way through a number of fights to contend with Mr. Dream in the final fight. Mr. Dream, though has an imposing record... 99 fights for 99 wins, all by knockout. Best of luck.

Answer: 1990s

Released in North America in 1992, "Super Mario Kart" is, arguably, the most influential video game to this point. The most notable feature of the game was that it used a graphics system called Mode 7 within their Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). What this allowed the creators to do was scale and rotate the backgrounds without having to create a separate background for each frame in the rotation. But, the best effect, is that it generated a pseudo 3-D environment.

The other attraction was that this was a multiplayer game with eight playable characters: Mario, Luigi, Princess Toadstool, Yoshi, Koopa Troopa, Toad, Bowser, and Donkey Kong Jr. You had the options of single player or two player mode, with the latter generating a split screen to view the action. Alternatively, there was also a battle mode and a time trial mode to utilize. You chose the character you wished to be, selected one of four courses to race on, picked one of three divisions or difficulties in which to compete (50cc, 100cc or 150cc) and then you were off and racing. The first four place getters received a set number of points and the winner was decided after contesting five different races. Needless to say there are be hazards along the way and your competitors would be looking to handicap your progress with an array of weapons and obstacles.

Answer: 1990s

Released in 1998 these were the first versions of "Pokemon" that Nintendo released outside of Japan. Essentially, they were re-programmed versions of Nintendo's "Pocket Monsters" Red, Blue and Green games. And what a boon they were for the company. One of the best role-playing games (RPG) to reach the market that they bordered on being addictive and Nintendo pocketed (pun intended) billions of dollars from sales.

In the game you, as the player, are seeking to become the greatest of all "Pokemon" trainers. To do this you are required to capture and develop various species of "Pokemon"... there were 151 of them to capture. The difference with this game to other RPGs that were available at the time is that you did not go into battle yourself. Instead, you sent your "Pokemon" recruits to do this. However, whilst you may be able to capture all of the creatures you could only select a maximum of six of them to go into battle.