Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon: Konami’s Zelda with Aliens and Robots in Feudal Japan

Nintendo 64 had to deal with PSX, which ate the market in giant chunks, and many remember it from a fairly small catalog. Although he is also remembered for offering famous games such as Super Mario 64, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask, Super Smas Bros., Banjo-Kazooie, GoldenEye 007, Turok and Perfect Darkamong the others.

Away from the limelight, there are other games that deserve mention, such as Body Harvest, Rockstar’s GTA predecessor, or the eccentric Starshot: Space Cirvus Fever. The fact that they are remembered does not necessarily mean that they are the best, since sometimes they stand out due to their rarity or the fact that they go unnoticed, and today it is the turn for one of them: Mystical ninja starring Goemon, a kind of Zelda with aliens and Konami robots (Metal Gear Solid, Castlevania).

The strangest game in a saga with almost 40 years of history

The Ganbare Goemon franchise was born long before this installment, as it debuted in the mid-80s with Mr. Goemon for the arcades, just before several NES sequels appeared, but none of its chapters are as eccentric as Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon for the Nintendo 64, an adventure set in feudal Japan that was also the first in the saga in 3D..

The game’s sense of humor is evident from the first moment in which you can see how Japan has been invaded by a group of aliens calling themselves the Shogun. (…) and whose goal is to kidnap the princess of Oedo Castle, which they achieve without much difficulty. The player, of course, puts himself in the shoes of the handsome hero who, without hesitation, runs out with the intention of saving her. The problem is that the aliens have already taken her into outer space…

The mission is clear: Find four objects that will allow Goemon and his friends to travel beyond the firmament.. To do this, you need to explore a huge world that you can explore freely, delve into various dungeons and, of course, face terrifying endings.

In this sense, Mystic Ninja Starring Goemon shares many similarities with the Zelda Saga., as it also has towns to explore, shops, side missions and endless secrets. Although the most amazing thing is the possibility control a giant mech in Neon Genesis Evangelion style fight some enemies.

The only platform you can play Mystical Ninja Starring Goemon on is the same one you could use back in the day: the Nintendo 64. Because It has never been released to others and has never been remastered in any way. It is also not included in the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack.a service that allows you to enjoy classics from the Game Boy, NES, SNES and the Nintendo 64 itself. Who knows? maybe one day it will be included in the catalog…