Famicom Mukashi Banashi: Yuuyuuki

Pax Softnic

Nintendo

Adventure

2600.00

Yuuyuuki is much like Shin Onigashima, except it's based on Chinese folklore – Journey to the West, specifically – rather than Japanese. Even the interface, with the vertically oriented text on the left side of the graphic window, is identical. The main character is a Chinese girl named Chao, who investigates a nearby meteor crash and finds a mischievous monkey inside named Goku. The game ultimately culminates in a quest to take down the evil Demon Bull King Gyuumaou. In addition to Chao and Goku, there are three other characters: Sanzou the monk, Hakkai the pig, and Gojou the kappa. Like Shin Onigashima, you can switch between your friends, though you're never traveling with all five at once, so it doesn't get too confusing. There are many small improvements, like faster animations, easier puzzles, and fewer sudden death sequences. Much like its predecessor, it's also an incredibly silly game. Right at the beginning, when Goku crawls out of the meteor, Chao hides behind the outside of the graphic frame, an amusing fourth-wall breaking gag. Goku is constantly admonished by Oshasama, a god who desperately attempts to get the troublemaker on the right track. The adventure takes the heroes to Siberia and then eventually Hawaii, and one of the major characters is a talking scooter. At one point you meet Gyuumaou’s wife, who everyone insists is a gorgeous beauty, but is really just a gigantic face with arms and legs sticking out of it. Some of the Shin Onigashima cast make brief appearances, too, including Donbe and Kintarou. Unfortunately, Yuuyuuki was never re-released outside of the initial FDS publication. Some of the characters do make cameos in a few Kirby games. In Hoshi no Kirby 2 (Kirby's Dream Land 2 for the Game Boy), if you defeat a midboss and you're already riding one of your animal buddies, there's a chance that Chao will pop outside instead. The sound test also features Chao at a piano, in a replication of a scene from Yuuyuuki. Both Goku and Chao also appear in a level of Kirby's Dream Land 3 for the SNES