How can people beat NES games?

So I just got an NES off of ebay and some games. Super Mario Bros. Metroid and Castlevania. They all seem fun, but how am I supposed to beat any of them? There isn't any sort of save system(I thought there was in Metroid, but that just takes you back to the beginning, but with all of your power ups) So I have to ask this, is the only way to beat any of these games is to to play through the whole game in one sitting?

its possible ive beaten those games in one sitting you just got to have paitence with old games

yeah old games were harder, but not impossible. longer games have a save feature or a password system.

Some games have saves like Kirby and Zelda. Lots of other ones have passwords when you get to certain points like punchout. And some you have to sit down and play through in one sitting.

So I just got an NES off of ebay and some games. Super Mario Bros. Metroid and Castlevania. They all seem fun, but how am I supposed to beat any of them? There isn't any sort of save system(I thought there was in Metroid, but that just takes you back to the beginning, but with all of your power ups) So I have to ask this, is the only way to beat any of these games is to to play through the whole game in one sitting?

clubsammich91

Through willpower and dedication! NES games are difficult, and take effort; but if you get a lot of time going for you, then they CAN be beaten

NES games consist of something 90% of games today lack: difficulty.Superzone

I agree, I've started playing NES/SNES/Genesis again for a challenge. Metal Slug anthology and Ikaruga are also constantly being played over and over.. I love that action.

practice and memorization. back in the day games were still $60 and if you got a game with a battery back up it was usually more expensive than that. so because games were so expensive, part of the replay value was the difficulty and getting it fairly balanced so that you didn't feel like the game was trying to cheat you (battletoads speederbike levels) or gimping you to try to kill you (ghosts n goblins) smb is hailed as one of the best games ever because they managed to make the game hard without being terribly unfair and thats what made it fun. same with castlevania (i actually thought castlevania wasnt bad)

Castlevania is an afternoon to finish. In the old days of gaming you just had to finish the game in one sitting sometimes. Be lucky your not playing Blaster Master that must be completed in one shot. A tough all-nighter. NES games were usually tough to beat anyway. That's why the game Genie first came out for The N.E.S (early cheat device) Have fun with Metroid, Castlevania, Super mario bros.

At the risk of sounding like an old fart (I'm 28!) I think it's very touching to see someone apparently too young to remember the 8-bit days and it's great to hear about him playing games from then. Kids these days are only interested in superb graphics and sound. I still play on my Master System and Game Boy and it brings a tear to my eye every time.

[QUOTE="Superzone"]NES games consist of something 90% of games today lack: difficulty.reznor420

I agree, I've started playing NES/SNES/Genesis again for a challenge. Metal Slug anthology and Ikaruga are also constantly being played over and over.. I love that action.

Most NES games are designed to be beaten in one sitting. I've gotten so good at Super Mario Bros. that I've beaten it 3 times in a row before...Aside from finding that there is no 3rd difficulty I wasted only a few hours.

do you have a wii? you can pause the game at any point and continue any day you feel up to it..at your own pace. doesnt work for n64 games.

I feel you on the Medusa heads. What I did was I would wait until they are below me; and back up. It's all about getting their patterns down and sidestepping; don't worry about killing them as you'll only die. I was an N64 gamer growing up (1993 I was born) but the classics are way better; games are easy these days. I still try to play as many as I can; but no systems can top the NES, SNES, and Genesis. Atari 2600 gets a mention as well; of course. Now Battletoads; THAT is one hard game.

i think one of the final fantasy games had a save system battery backup where you had to hold down the reset button for a few seconds and that was how it saved. haha so archaic.....and i miss it

There are only a small number of games in the 8 bit and 16 bit generation I actually managed to complete. That's what made games so good back then. When you completed a game you actually accomplished something. Completing a game was something special. Nowadays you can easily complete every single game you buy. There's no sense of accomplishment any more.

NES games consist of something 90% of games today lack: difficulty.Superzone

i wouldnt go that far. I think there are plenty Current Gen games that are just as hard if not harder than NeS games. and really Tons of NES games were easy too.

NES games consist of something 90% of games today lack: difficulty.Superzone

Nowadays you can easily complete every single game you buy. There's no sense of accomplishment any more.

burgeg

I go ahead and feel a sense of accomplishment anyway.

[QUOTE="Superzone"]NES games consist of something 90% of games today lack: difficulty.Talldude80

i wouldnt go that far. I think there are plenty Current Gen games that are just as hard if not harder than NeS games. and really Tons of NES games were easy too.

Do you mind naming any? I can't think of any.

yeah old games were harder, but not impossible. longer games have a save feature or a password system.

painguy1

You just gotta buckle down and do it. Make sure you have lots of time before you play NES games. I'm gonna try and go through Castlevania in one sitting tommorow night and I plan on playing for at least 6 hours straight :?.

Super Mario 3 had no save option and took HOURS.I most likely burned the NES by leaving the thing on pause, forgetting about it,and returning days later to finish. Get a small TV and make it your dedicated NES setup, then hit PAUSE. Just know that it will burn ... eventually. And then it's back to pushing reset and blowing inside to get it to work.

Just because of this thread, I'm going to go out and buy a Wii points card and then buy some old NES games. I would just play the NES but I'm too lazy to bend over and blow into it every 10 seconds....

I also liked to stick to the NES games that either had a save system (ZELDA :D ) or didn't need one (Duck Hunt, Blades of Steel, anyone).... Other than that, it's just an excuse to play games even longer!

[QUOTE="Talldude80"]

[QUOTE="Superzone"]NES games consist of something 90% of games today lack: difficulty.Heirren

i wouldnt go that far. I think there are plenty Current Gen games that are just as hard if not harder than NeS games. and really Tons of NES games were easy too.

Do you mind naming any? I can't think of any.

[QUOTE="Superzone"]NES games consist of something 90% of games today lack: difficulty.trick6952

lol, that was the easiest one!!

someone mentioned blaster master as an all nighter, wizards and warriors 3 was the same. i think it took me about 3 or 4 hours straight to beat that game.

[QUOTE="Talldude80"]

i wouldnt go that far. I think there are plenty Current Gen games that are just as hard if not harder than NeS games. and really Tons of NES games were easy too.

Do you mind naming any? I can't think of any.

How can people beat NES games?

75% pure skill, 25% memory of enemy patterns & level design.

You be wanting a Pen and Paper.

With a hammer.

At the risk of sounding like an old fart (I'm 28!) I think it's very touching to see someone apparently too young to remember the 8-bit days and it's great to hear about him playing games from then. Kids these days are only interested in superb graphics and sound. I still play on my Master System and Game Boy and it brings a tear to my eye every time.

jamyskis

Absolutely the same here - I'm 29 by the way...

I can beat Super Mario Bros. in no more than 2 hrs., the other two would take longer because they are different types of games, there more quest driven. And both of those other games have a password feature to save progress. JReefer1

huh? smb2 and3 have no password system at all.

those were the great games they test youre skill and withs to the limit, try also ninja gaiden for NES