Black Tiger Longplay (Arcade) [QHD]

Developed and published by Capcom in 1987
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The more I delve into the history of arcade games, the more I'm surprised by just how many games exist where developers tried to mesh traditional side-scrolling arcade mechanics with high-fantasy RPG elements. Given the number of titles from the likes of Capcom and Taito, it's clearly a genre with some popularity, and Black Tiger is yet another example. The technology and maturity of hardware of the time means it leans much more heavily to traditional platforming than the kinds of mechanics that would appear in later Capcom RPG-themed games, but you can see the beginnings.

As a game in it's own right, Black Tiger is really impressive. The vast levels, with their meandering platforms and multiple pathways, are more engaging than similar games of the time, and the pixel artwork is surprisingly detailed for the time.

Less surprising is the difficulty curve, which is typically aggressive - you'll definitely need a stack of coins in your wallet to get to the end of this one.

Game/Longplay Notes
I think I collected all of the hidden bonus items; these are hidden behind destructible parts of the scenery. The best strategy to finding these is to shoot a stream of projectiles at walls and look for the tell-tale orange flames.

Chapters
00:00 Attract mode
00:19 Stage 1
03:34 Stage 2
07:40 Stage 3
14:49 Stage 4
20:14 Stage 5
25:03 Stage 6
30:34 Stage 7
37:13 Stage 8
43:30 Final boss
44:40 Ending

#blacktiger
#retrogaming
#arcadegames