Dragon Buster (1985)

Developer: Namco
Publisher: Bandai Namco Games, Namco, Namco Bandai Games, Bandai Namco Entertainment
Platforms: Arcade, Sharp X68000, Wii, Family Computer, Wii U, MSX
Genres: Platform, Role-playing (RPG)
Rating: 3.0 of 5, 5 player ratings

The 3D catalog: game boxes on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalog in 3D

The same catalog has a room you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real games from it when you tell them what you feel like playing. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this game is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

An early arcade platformer with RPG elements featuring the first-ever double jump and a hack-and-slash fantasy quest.

retroaction-rpgfantasyfast-pacednostalgicarcadelighthearted

About

A 1984 arcade platformer with action RPG elements, Dragon Buster is notable as the first game to feature a double jump. It was also one of the first games to include a life meter (along with Flash Boy and Punch-Out), known as vitality in this game. The game featured side-scrolling platform gameplay and a hub "world view" map similar to the later Super Mario Bros. series. It also featured hack & slash combat, like the later Tritorn and Legend of Zelda series. Dragon Buster was developed and published by Namco. The game is a side-scrolling dungeon crawler, where the goal of the game is for the hero, Clovis, to rescue Princess Celia. Dragon Buster was later ported to a variety of home consoles, notably the Nintendo Entertainment System and the MSX. It runs on Namco Pac-Land hardware, modified to support vertical scrolling

Screenshots

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This page is from Underplayed Gems, a catalog of older and overlooked games. Not quite it? You can browse by platform and genre, or take this one into the 3D catalog and ask the Catbot for something closer.