Irem

[NeoZeedeater]

Although their presence is far more subdued today, Irem has made a huge number of great games throughout their history.

Capsule Invader(Arcade, 1979)
I honestly don't know what this game's about. I'm betting it's a Space Invaders clone.

UniWar S(Arcade, 1980)
Very similar to Namco's Galaxian.


Sky Chuter(Arcade, 1980)
You shoot down planes with your tank. It's nothing too memorable.
http://images.webmagic.com/klov.com/...Sky_Chuter.png

Panther(Arcade, 1981)
A tank shooter. Irem ported it to MSX1 a few years later.

Red Alert(Arcade, 1981)
This was very similar to Sky Chuter although much nicer looking.

Moon Patrol(Arcade, 1982)
Published by Williams in the West, Moon Patrol was the first major hit for Irem and was definitely one of the best games of the early '80s. You controlled a tank that could jump and shoot in multiple directions. The graphics were very advanced and had some nice parallax scrolling.


Moon Patrol was ported to 2600, 5200, 800, C64 and ST by Atari. Dempa ported it to MSX1. More recently it appeared in Arcade's Greatest Hits: The Midway Collection 2 for PS1 and PC.

Tropical Angel(Arcade, 1983)
A waterskiing game. I didn't play it until a year or two ago through emulation and I'm amazed this is from 1983 with its smooth animation and detailed graphics.


Traverse USA AKA Zippy Race(Arcade, 1983) A colourful racing. It reminds me of Spy Hunter without the combat. It was ported to the Famicom by Irem and to the SG-1000 by Sega.


10 Yard Fight(Arcade, 1983) This football game was also ported to the NES and MSX.

Lode Runner(Arcade, 1984)
Irem ported Broderbund's computer game to the arcades. The Famicom port was done by Hudson but Irem did release Super Lode Runner for the Famicom Disk System. They also ported Broderbund's Spelunker and made a Famicom sequel.

The Battle Road(Arcade, 1984)
A driving game similar to Zippy Race except with the ability to shoot other vehicles.

Kung Fu Master(Arcade, 1984)
This was a fantastic martial arts side-scroller. You fought all sorts of opponents(including midgets) and it had simplistic yet adrenaline pumping background music.


Data East published the arcade game in the West and got Berkeley Software to do the computer versions. Nintendo did the NES version, titled Kung Fu. Absolute released it on 7800. Activision made a 2600 version.

In Japan, Kung Fu Master was based on the movie/book Spartan X. Spartan X 2 was released for the Famicom in 1991.


Irem also made a new one for Game Boy.

Horizon(Arcade, 1985) - Some shooter.

Atomic Boy(Arcade, 1985)
http://images.webmagic.com/klov.com/...1050915638.jpg

Lot Lot(Arcade, 1985)
Some sort of puzzle game, I think. It was ported to MSX1.
http://images.webmagic.com/klov.com/...L/wLot_Lot.png

Sqoon(NES, 1986 in Japan) A submarine-themed shooter developed by Homedata and published by Irem.

Kineko(Famicom, 1986)
A picture puzzle game. It had a sequel in '87.
http://www10.xdsl.ne.jp/~yoshi225/fa..._08/kineko.gif

Deadly Towers(NES, 1986 in Japan/1989 in NA)


Kid Niki: Radical Ninja(Arcade, 1986)
Cartoon-ish ninja action. The NES port is more widely known.


A couple Kaiketsu Yanchamaru(Kid Niki)sequels were made in the Famicom's later years, one in 1991 and the other in 1993. Here's a pic of the third game, which is my favorite of the three. It was cool stuff; you can do spring flips off walls.


Battle Chopper(Arcade, 1987)
A light-hearted shooter featuring Mr. Heli where you could shoot things to uncover money and buy weapons. It was ported to PC Engine.


Yokai Yashiki(Famicom Disk, 1987)
This was a port of Casio's MSX platformer.
http://www10.xdsl.ne.jp/~yoshi225/fa...ukaiyasiki.gif

R-Type(Arcade, 1987)
R-Type is one of the most revered shooters of all time. Its unique feel and wicked bosses made it stand out from the crowd.


Interestingly, this arcade game was published by Nintendo yet there was never an NES port. Sega did an excellent port for the Master System which had an extra hidden level although it was surpassed by Irem's own port for the TurboGrafx. In Japan, the game was split into two different HuCards. Irem later released an import Super CD version with added cut-scenes called R-Type Complete. http://pcengine.gamehall.com.br/rtype/rtype.htm

Irem also ported it to MSX1, MSX2, and X68000. Factor 5 did the Amiga and C64 versions. Irem also made a Game Boy version which NST remade years later on GBC. R-Type finally got a near arcade-perfect port in 2000 alongside R-Type II in R-Types.

R-Type II wasn't anywhere near as popular as the first game but it was a good sequel.


The SNES got its own sequel with the launch title Super R-Type. Unfortunately, like most first-gen SNES shooters, it suffered from major slowdown.

The arcade release R-Type Leo in 1992 was more of a side-story since its gameplay didn't have the usual R-Type feel.


R-Type III(SNES, 1994)
This was much better than Super R-Type.


R-Type Delta(Playstation, 2000)
R-Type goes polygonal.


R-Type Final(Playstation 2, 2003)

Irem published Compile's Famicom game shooter/adventure game Guardic Gaiden. Broderbund later released it domestically as The Guardian Legend.

Napoleon Senki(Famicom, 1988)


Hototogisu(Famicom, 1988)


Vigilante(Arcade, 1988)
This was similar to Kung Fu Master except with a late '80s beat 'em up vibe. Sega ported it to the Master System, Irem ported it to the TurboGrafx and U.S. Gold released it on home computers.


Ninja Spirit(Arcade, 1988)
One of the biggest travesties in gaming history is that Ninja Spirit never had a sequel. It was an amazing, dark, and atmospheric action game similar to Taito's Legend of Kage series with its super high jumping except it's much better than those games. It's my favorite Irem game and must-own for ninja fans. Irem's TurboGrafx port was excellent. It was also ported by Activision to home computers.


Meikyuu Shima(Arcade, 1988)
This was a neat puzzle game where you kicked blocks around. The arcade version never was released outside of Japan as far as I know but it did get an NES port called Kickle Cubicle.


Image Fight(Arcade, 1988)
I think this was one of Irem's lesser shooters. It was ported to the NES, PC Engine and X68000. I haven't played its 1991 sequel. http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?...=8181&letter=I

X-Multiply(Arcade, 1989)


Image Fight and X-Multiply were re-released in a Saturn Arcade Gears compilation by Xing.

Dragon Breed(Arcade, 1989)
Before there was Panzer Dragoon there was Dragon Breed, a nifty dragon-riding shooter. A PC Engine version was planned but never came out.


Legend of Hero Tonma(Arcade, 1989)
This was also released on PC Engine.
http://images.webmagic.com/klov.com/...Hero_Tonma.png

Blue Train Satsujin Jiken(Famicom, 1989)

This adventure game had a sequel in 1990 called Super Express Satsujin Jiken.

Holy Diver(Famicom, 1989)
Similar to Castlevania but nowhere near as good.


Major League(Famicom, 1989)
http://www10.xdsl.ne.jp/~yoshi225/fa...ajorleague.gif

Gekitotu Yonku Battle(Famicom, 1989)
http://www10.xdsl.ne.jp/~yoshi225/fa...ekitotu4ku.gif

Ken-Go(Arcade, 1989)
A generic samurai side-scroller, very disappointing after stuff like Ninja Spirit.

Hammerin' Harry(Arcade, 1990)
"Let's get Busy!". Smash things with your mallot. The Famicom got a port and a sequel.


Air Duel(Arcade, 1990)
A forgotten vertical shooter. It has that classic Irem ultra-detailed look.

Paaman(Famicom, 1990)
A very odd platformer but kind of cool. A Famicom sequel was made the following year.


Pound for Pound(Arcade, 1990)
Overhead view boxing. http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?game_id=9097

Metal Storm(NES, 1990)
A classic mech action game. You got to love the gravity flipping. It was actually released in North America before Japan.
http://www.vgmuseum.com/images/nes/01/metalstorm.html

Major Title(Arcade, 1990)
A golf series. http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?game_id=8603

Gallop(Arcade, 1991)
This was an excellent shooter that looked a lot like R-Type II.


Gun Force(Arcade, 1991)
A fine run 'n gun game. It's too bad the SNES port was nowhere near as good.

It had an arcade sequel in 1994 which looks freakin' awesome.
http://images.webmagic.com/klov.com/...1058642626.jpg

Blade Master(Arcade, 1991)
Okay, this dude needs to ease up on the steroids a tad.


Irem release some arcade Bomberman games in the early '90s. I'm not sure if they were ports of Hudson's games or just licensed from
them.

Hook(Arcade, 1992)
A beat 'em up based on the movie. http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?game_id=8134

Mystic Riders(Arcade, 1992)


Undercover Cops(Arcade, 1992)
A quality beat 'em up with very weird characters. It was ported to the Super Famicom.


Taiyou no Yuusha Firebird(Famicom, 1992)
A shooter based on an anime, if I'm not mistaken.


Gekibo(Photoboy)(PC Engine, 1992)
A game where you take pictures of things. I hear good things about it and its PS2 sequel but I haven't played them yet.
http://www.vgmuseum.com/images/tg16/02/photoboy.html

In The Hunt(Arcade, 1993)
Irem released another great submarine shooter. It was ported to Saturn and Playstation.


Ninja Baseball Bat Man(Arcade, 1993)
I think the coolness factor here is self-explanatory.


Perfect Soldiers(Arcade, 1993)


Fire Barrel(Arcade, 1993)
A Raiden-ish shooter.

Irem Arcade Classics(Playstation/Saturn, 1996)
A compilation containing Zippy Race, Spartan X, and 10-Yard Fight released by I'Max.

Gussun Paradise(Playstation, 1996)


Carton-kun(Playstation, 2000)


Sub Rebellion(Playstation 2, 2002)
http://www.gamingworldx.com/ps2/images/subr.jpg

Disaster Report(Playstation 2, 2002)

And I have no clue what these games are about - http://www.irem.co.jp/products/pp/index.html

Your thoughts on Irem? Did I miss any games?

[gamevet]

Wow! I had no idea, that Irem developed Moon Patrol. It was defineatly a defining moment, for arcade gaming in the 80's.

[Regus]

Man, Gun Force is a really cool run and gun game. I love how you can interact with almost any vehicle you come across.

[epmode]

wow, thanks for reminding me about ninja spirit, neo. i loved the turbo grafix version. i had no idea that it was originally an arcade game. too bad mame.dk's downloads are disabled (again)..

[skelly]

I've never really seen what's so great about Ninja Spirit. (Same with Strider.) It's OK, but nothing special as far as I can see.

The "falling into pit onto ninjas with swords" bit really ticks me off.

[Korian]

I believe that Irem had a hand in the 2-D mascot platformer Rocky Rodent. It was a cool little SNES game that is mostly forgotten.

What about Street Combat did they just publish that? Horrible game anyways.

[NeoZeedeater]

Oh yeah, Street Combat. It did suck. It was also originally a Ranma 1/2 game in Japan.

[Grave]

Whoa, very educational. I didn't know Irem developed a lot of these games... and I'm surprised how many I've played and enjoyed.

The "falling into pit onto ninjas with swords" bit really ticks me off.

I've almost broken TG16 controllers over this. Making it so far and... Agh! Dead again! Makes me wanna pull the system out and play the game again... in fact, I think I will.

This is my first post, by the way. Hi.

[James]

With the revelation that Moon Patrol is an Irem game, they've gone from being a company I kind of like to being one of my all-time favorite developers. There isn't an arcade game out there that got more play out of me than Moon Patrol, and it's one of the greatest warm-'n'-fuzzy arcade memories I have.

Mystic Riders looks awfully cute, I need to check that out.

James

[Son of Bryce]

Gun Force 2 looks and plays incredibly similar to Metal Slug. It's a Neo Geo game as well, right? Was Metal Slug made by some of the people from Gun Force? They seems so similar to be pure coincidence.

This looks like a great list, I'm gonna try and Mame all of these game. A lot of them look like fun.