10 year old me and my friends for a month, could not figure out how to get past level 3. One of my friends finally figured it out. That feeling of triumph was overwhelming lol, I'll never forget it. One of my fav NES games for sure.
This kid in 4th grade claimed he had beaten it, so naturally I was excited to invite him over to watch him destroy the game which had tormented me . Upon arrival, I learned he’d never played the game. It was probably the first time in my life I felt actual rage.
As a hardcore fan of this game, I have to say that I share your opinion almost completely. This game is too hard and certainly punishing as you well said, but back then it was an absolute gem and a state of the art in every aspect.
For the record, that radioactive chest belongs to Plutonium Boss, the final boss of this game. The Blaster Master novel states that with the help of the Lightning Beings, he creates underground worlds divided into 8 levels under the surface of planets of like Earth, and consumes plutonium as food and breathes methane. He uses the radioactive chests to be able to breathe methane and attract animals down to his underworld so he can mutate them into monsters to attack intruders, and he destroys planets by causing a massive radiation plague.
Great review. I was that 10 year old kid that played this game for hours on in. A lot of fond memories but watching your review I realize it's nostalgia and I'd never pick it up again but dang I loved that game
Used to play this game a lot when I was a kid, and I remember beating it when I was like in my mid-teens, it felt so great to FINALLY beat it. Once you get used the game, there's only two main challenges in your way: First, you need to kill the Level 5 boss (the crab shown in the video). Basically, the best thing you can do, is use the dungeon in Level 1 that you have to climb down a long ladder to reach. It's a short dungeon with two GUN powerups, and 4 trips into this room only takes a few minutes. Once you get that, try to take as little damage as possible, and in Level 3 there's one dungeon on your way to a boss that has a flashing GUN powerup. Now, what Pam did not mention in this video, is that the things that fire lasers that slowly move side to side, those can drop GUN powerups (they are the only enemy in the game that does so AFAIK). Full GUN makes the Lv3 boss easy, but isn't absolutely required. Once you kill the Lv3 Boss, refill your GUN at that Level 1 dungeon on your way to lv4. Also what Pam left out, is that getting hit in the overworld vehicle stages even while outside of your vehicle does not make you lose GUN power. Anyways, go through Level 4, if you do it right, you should not be getting hit whatsoever if you still have full GUN. Once you get to Level 5, drop down to the bottom of the ocean, get out and swim. Get to the Lv5 door and if you got save states, save! save often. This is the hardest part in the game, you need to get to the crab with full GUN. Pray, that if you get hit, that one of the laser enemies drops a replacement gun power. If you get to the boss missing any GUN, you are not going to win, most likely. You can try but it will be very difficult. Well, once you get Lv5 done, the next challenge part is getting through Lv8's vehicle section. Once you do that, the Lv8 boss is easy (there's a flashing GUN in his dungeon somewhere in all of those blocks!). Oh, and the last boss can be hard to learn too, because he does 2 damage per hit. You can only get hit 3 times and he takes a Lot of hits to kill. Oh, and the vehicle areas? You know you are going the right way when you hear the chirping enemies that fly horizontally in a wave pattern.
Me: "Aww Cool!! A Blaster Master Master Blaster review!!" Looks at date. October 2016. Almost 3 years ago. Pam. I'm so sorry it took me this long to find you. I binged your videos while I cooked dinner earlier. (I made chicken Bahn Mi sandwiches) I'm glad I know of you now. You're entertaining, and your voice is easy to listen to.
"Only to watch Fred run into a radioactive chest, grow to an enormous size and fall into a hole." Ahhh, classic Fred. He's always doing stuff like that.
Yeah everyone keeps bringing up The Guardian Legend recently. That was my favorite NES game too. It's about time it had an official sequel or reboot. Or something. We all remember it fondly, and it was a good story, and interesting main character. It's time for another Guardian Legend.
Okay but the conversation between Pam and Pam about the story is pretty much exactly how I always felt about the story, even as a kid. Except...so you have a pet (now-)giant frog? One (or two I think?) of the bosses is...a giant frog... the first time I killed the thing, I was like "WAIT DID I JUST KILL FRED?!"
The grenade glitch works on every other boss starting with the second boss. Also, to keep Jason oriented in one direction during boss battles, press and hold the grenade button. Then you can move laterally while shooting in one direction. I loved this game growing up!!
I just love that Jason has a massive container of radioactive material out in his yard... Just sitting there, unsupervised, no fences nothing 🤣 Gaming was so much simpler in the 80s.
No idea how we beat this game as kids without save states but we did know the pause trick to kill bosses trick. If I had to guess it was definitely not a glitch but a secret to help you along with what was a super difficult game. Video game secrets was a very common trend back then, and this always felt intentinonal
I just wanted to mention that it looked like when you fought the crab boss you didn't know how to strafe. If you hold down B, you can move without turning your body and it makes grenading the boss to death a bit easier. This can also come in handy when exploring dungeons.
Or you could grenade him on his weak spot and pause the game. This was a hack/glitch I learned. It works on most of the bosses, not all of them though. I can’t remember which ones. Also, if you take damage and pause it. You will die. The hack works both ways.
@@dinoflagella4185 The grenade and pause glitch only works on bosses in stage 2,4,6, and 7. If only it worked on the boss in stage 3 that replicates! That's just evil. lol
Spot on review😎👍 one of my favorite games of all time! I love that you played the music in the background...such good memories. This is one game that cried out for the Max controller.
This game strikes such a special chord in me. I was seven years old when Blaster Master was released in late 1988 and one of my good friends purchased the game which gave me the opportunity to play it to death and beyond (I think I borrowed it TWICE!) It is an incredibly difficult and punishing game but with lots of practice, it is amazing what you can do. You are right about the gun being off center but a quick grenade can take out those enemies that your gun can't touch. It took me decades to master all of the little tricks though. This game is still one of my all-time favorites and one of my proudest accomplishments is that I have beaten the game multiple times with one life. I am still amazed I was able to do that (it took me like 7-8 months to beat the game as a kid too...LOTS of yelling and screaming happened during that time I can assure you). ;)
Blaster Master was such a fantastic game. Loved playing through it, and yeah, totally Nintendo hard! Ended up learning it well enough to get to the last stage without dying, but never made it through there. SPIKES EVERYWHERE. Spot on about the Jason sections though. It was bad even back then. It's a shame the Genesis sequels weren't very good.
This game scared the crap out of me as a kid...why you ask? It needed a password or battery save system. It was much too long to try to beat it in one go. Super intimidating as I progressed into the game and each death was that much closer to the dreaded "game over.". Did it have unlimited continues? I didn't think so, but I don't recall.
The Blaster Master series to me is one of the best and a true lost treasure at the time it was around. If you've never read the World of Power book to this game by FX Nine you should check it out. ( It even includes some game tips including the one Pam mentions in this video about pausing to beat certain bosses. ) I can proudly say I beat this game back with no save states. It took a lot of months and trial and error when I growing up playing this as a kid, but it was WORTH IT! 😀 Also don't feel bad about the stage 5 boss. Its probably one of the most pain in the *beep* you would face without Jason's Gun Meter being at Max Power. If your looking for a challenge on the NES Blaster Master is truly a challenging game and considering when it was made it wasn't often you had password system of saves for many NES games. The good thing is you did at least have check points at certain spots if you lose a life. Amazing soundtrack. Epic boss battles. Couldn't ask for more at the the times the game was released. ( Sometimes if you boot up the game just right you could accidently turn this game into a 1 life only game. 😱 That's right no lives or continues and when you die it goes straight back to the title screen with no game over music. If you notice after the Sophia 3rd takes off into the cave scene and you don't get the 3 left screen you need to reset the game. I don't know how this happens but its just a matter of luck. ) Just curious Pam have you played nay of the other Blaster Master games from this franchise era? If so which ones? If you've never played them I highly recommend the recent remade Blaster Master Zero series avialable to download from internet stores. Or you can find a physical copy of the trilogy, but its very pricy since it was released by Limited Run. 😞 Thanks again for your time.
I loved Blaster Master so much as a kid the music of the first level is my ringtone. While it took a while to play all the way through to the end it was worth all the time it took to learn every level, every enemy, and every dungeon. I recently found out they made a new version and two new games and they were available on Steam. So I bought all three at once and loved going through the first one all over again but with the added ability to save at any time. Blaster Master and the Mega Man series will always be my favorite games of all time.
this game was incredible to play back in the late 80s, absolutely my favorite game on the NES. It's punishingly difficult for htose who don't know the layout or the stratagies to get past certain parts of the games or the bosses. But the game rewards you with feeling like you learn something every time you play and keep coming back to see how far you can get. The game is super long for those who don't know exactly how to Bee line to the correct places as the game can be beaten in as little as 45 minutes by a true Blaster Master, an average player that knows nothing will struggle to get even past stage 5 in 3 to 4 hours and I have gone through long 6+ hour marathons getting to and futily trying to beat Stage 8 (which is a brutally hard stage that punishes you for having Wall 2, and yes, it was designed to be a hinderance there, was no accedent or game bug). When you finally beat the game legitly, you feel like you conquored the world as this game probably took months or even years of constant play throughs and memorizations to finally get the right patern down, a truely satasfying experience to finally beat this very difficult game.
This and Kid Icarus are some of my faves from growing up - fair and honest review from someone experiencing it for the first time in the 2010s - you were spot on with your 10 year old comment...I was obsessed with this game till I beat it and I was 12 at the time of its release.
I grew up with this game, so there's a ton of nostalgic value for me. The graphics were superb for a 1988 game. And that soundtrack--one of the best on the NES! I use Metal covers for this game in my videos all the time. But yeah, the game is absolutely brutal! I agree with you on so many aspects--it's unnecessarily difficult at times and like you said, just plain mean. You definitely covered this game well. It was cool seeing you do some different stuff with this review. One of your best!
This game was a classic for kids growing up in the NES era. They made a sequel for Game Boy, and also rebooted the series a couple times on the PS1 and Switch. Check them out!
My favorite NES game of all time (oh the memories from 1989). This game is one of those that spawned the TVTrope term “Nintendo Hard”. Eventually I leaned to beat it in about 2 hours. Loved the end sequence and soundtrack! Loved levels 4,5,6 look and feel. Pun intended, this was a blast from the past.
This was actually my very first NES game as a kid that I received on a Christmas morning along with the console. I really enjoyed it but never fully beat it as I didn't have the time for full play throughs !
This game takes up a good portion of my bone marrow, and I had forgotten how much I loved the music! I guess I can thank TH-cam for figuring out I like this game, and introducing me to your channel. Subscribing to see more of your adorable self.
One of my all time favorites. I’ve recently started playing it again, this time on the Switch. Now I can save progress and rewind if I do something stupid like walk off a platform into water
Great review. I played this as a kid, and loved the style, but hated that there were no maps and not plenty of powerups, so I never completed it. However, I ended up playing the Blaster Master Zero trilogy this year, and 100% them all, and really loved it.
This is one of those games that I must have rented a million times when I was a kid... But don't think I ever got very far... Thanks for your awesome reviews.. Keep em coming..
I agree with all of your criticisms, and that's coming from a lifelong fan of this game who grew up with it as one of only about a dozen games on his NES.
You called it. It's harder to appreciate an older game that you didn't grow up with. Mechanics and design can feel dated or frustrating. Also this was *a* time where arcades were still popular and video games were designed to be harder or involve tactics like back tracking to lengthen the game. Honestly this is one of *the* better NES classics and a personal favorite.
You don't have to worry about trying to beat the game in one go round on the virtual console release because it saves your spot when you quit the game so it makes the game even better to play!
this game was one of a kind, I never owned it but played it a bunch as a kid, it was always in the back of my mind when I'd think about nes games I played, could never remember the name and finally stumbled upon it while playing my nes emulator 5 or so years ago
Now you're talking about an absolute classic. This is one of those games that I played as a kid and have played on many occasions over the years, even somewhat recently. Great review m'lady.
I played this when I was a kid. I didn't own it, but a family I used to play with had it. I got to the boss at stage 7 but got worked up and slipped up. That's the furthest I got. I had a blast while playing it even if I never mastered it in doing so.
This game has been on my list for a long time. I got a physical copy not too long ago and will eventually get around to streaming it. Excellent vid as always Pam.
I know this review came out years ago, but if by chance you see this, please give Blaster Master Zero a try on either 3DS, Switch, PS4, or PC. It is a remake of this game and vastly improves pretty much everything about it. In fact, I actually think it's a little too easy at points because of how much it lowers the difficulty! It is a really good game though and I think you would like it if given a try.
Hey there. I'm a new subscriber and I just wanted to compliment you on your videos: They're fantastic. I've watched a few and what I really find appealing is how laid back and relaxing they are. From the intro music, to the fact that you're quite soft spoken, the videos are just very chill, and I dig it.
Blaster Master is one of my favorite games to this day. I still remember the the feeling of triumph when I finished it for the first few times. I almost felt like I could take on Battletoads. Almost.
Absolutely one of the best NES games in my book! Crazy thing is back in 1989 I got to the point where I could make it to area 8 without dying. But I still never beat the game. I remember having a hell of a time with the low enemies and spikes everywhere. Gonna give it a run again 30 years later on the emulator!!
The newer Blaster Master Zero was awesome. I haven't played the next two in the Zero line, but I felt BMZ 1 fixed a LOT of the issues with the original Blaster Master. Also: Music was excellent XD
I beat this back in the day with no save states. I also beat this game when I had it on the Nintendo Wii from the Wii Shop. I agree that this game needed a password system or a battery backup.
This is one of those games that I've always wanted to play but just haven't yet - and I actually have it! Great review, Pam. I'm jealous of that book in the background.
hey thanks for the review! With all this quarantine going on i was thinking of playing Blaster Master finally, but your very detailed and well thought out review made me realize, while it has merit, it's probably not for me. Your review answered every question i had in an entertaining presentation, i can't ask for anything better than that! You gained a subscriber and a fan, keep up the good work.
You should check out Blaster Master Zero! It's sort of a remake of the original game, but much more forgiving and with a bit more story tacked on to give a greater sense of purpose. It still has that "lose weapon upgrades if you get hit" mechanic which I don't love, but early on you can find a power-up that acts as a safety net against that as long as you don't get hit multiple times within a short period. There's a built-in map system so you can't get lost and can see where dungeons and stuff are. Also, your hover and special weapon energy naturally regenerates over time, vastly improving the "quality of life" factor. It's a quick play-through if you want to revisit this adventure with some player-friendly enhancements and some thoughtful twists. There's also an unlockable bonus world and a better "true" ending if you attain 100% completion (which is not that hard to do). It leads into Blaster Master Zero 2, and original game that I only just started playing but I have to say is way more fun and inventive than the first. The developers are no longer bogged down by trying to imitate an 8-bit Nintendo game's structure, and are free to expand and explore new territory and mechanics. Apparently a third game in this series is coming out soon, too, so clearly people like this series!
Ah Blaster Master :) Brings back memories like from 20+ years ago :D I remember my cousin had this one and I remember playing this with him a lot when we met every few months or so. Very fun and quite challenging game it was :)
I remember playing this a few times at my friend's house as a kid, seemed interesting . I might try this before checking out the updated versions. Awesome review!
Not to brag (proceeds to brag), but I was around 12 or 13 when I first played Blaster Master back in the day on the original NES. Game is indeed frustratingly difficult (cheap as hell), but it can be tamed. It took me over a year of playing it on and off to finally beat it. When I finally did I felt like a gaming God. Years later, while a senior in high school, I mentioned to a friend that it was a game I had conquered. Understandably, he didn't believe me, but begged me to come over prove I could. So after dusting off his old NES, and over a long afternoon of some trial and error (hadn't played it in years), he finally got to see the ending. Mad props to me. If only the girls went wild for that sort of thing ;)
So envious of that Guide to the NES Library book you have in the background. I've never been a fan of the where-do-I-go kind of games but who knows, I might wanna pick this one up while it's still cheap.
I feel like most NES games were pretty damn hard. Especially at 7 or 8, I could never get even halfway through some of my favorite games like Blaster Master, TMNT and Link. Glad to hear you liked the music, I forgot how much I loved it until I watched a longplay earlier!
Beat this game when I was 10, took me weeks of trying over and over again until I could get to the end and finally fight the last boss with my gun maxed out, which was nearly a necessity. This game plays like metroid, which is a big reason why I love it, and each boss is unique and so satisfying when you beat them. I still play this game on an emulator every couple years because it's just that good. This game also reminds me of another nes game which is a favorite of mine, "The Battle of Olympus" anyone who liked Blaster Master should definitely check this great game out as well.
Ahhh gods I adored this game as a kid! I wonder if I'd be any more successful at it today... I think I beat it once but usually didn't make it quite to the end, haha.
Blaster Master is a true gem of the NES and remarkably good and complex for the platform. Loved it as a kid, though I never got further than world 5 with the dive upgrade on the actual console but did beat it on emulated platforms. The remake was one of my primary reasons for getting a switch actually, overall a pretty good update to what was already a great game.
@@Cannotbetamed1 it would definitely being a recommendation from me. The art is updated a bit here and there, the overhead areas look better. The weapon system in overhead is a bit more fleshed out now and it has a save system now. Some say the changes make it too easy but even as a fan of the original difficulty I still found the new experience quite enjoyable.
Love the game. Grew up with it and loved everything about it. The gameplay, the music, and even the goofy 'storyline'. I played it for so many years and never knew about the pausing glitch, I just spammed the grenade button if my gun was low power. I would agree that it can be frustrating on many points, though that does add some more appeal for me as I seem to love trying to beat a frustrating game, trying to refrain from throwing the controller or rage quitting, for that sweet completion feeling that lasts as long as my attention spa- oh man I love that in game music. Great video, informative, funny, and you are a goofball and adorable. You earned a like and a sub from this nerd, keep up the good work.
I remember playing this one at friends or renting it. The two things I remember about it were 1) Confusing maps and 2) The frog. Something about him having it rescue his pet frog just seemed so absurd. Though looking back it is a nice change from the kidnapped princess/girlfriend trope. Thanks for the review!
Awesome review, I agree with all the problems you mentioned here. The gun power especially...super frustrating to go through dungeons again and again to fill up the power and then get a cheap hit or two by enemies right before the boss. I did beat this on my original NES withouth glitches or save states and it is pretty insane. I feel its a bit weird that whenever people talk about the hardest NES-games, they never mention Blaster Master..definitely the hardest game I ever beat. Thanks for the video, keep em coming! :)
And the difference between max power and even one hit away from it seems so large. Plus a lot of those hits you take before the boss feel really cheap. The game could have used a lot more gun capsules if they needed damage to reduce power.
I played it as a kid, but didn't own it. But I remember it was fun. I did get the remake and sequel on Steam, and loved them! If anyone is wondering if the Steam versions are worth getting, I say yes!!!
All jokes aside though, do i have any memories of this game? "Yes!" back in the day, i used to beat this game within approximately of 38 minutes tops. boy.... time sure does fly by very fast! Feels almost like just yesterday, when i began the level. :D
Great review, Blaster Master and The Guardian Legend are two of my favorite games on the NES BTW thanks to your review of The Guardian Legend, I played, and finished both games last month
I loved (and still love) this game, though I still have yet to beat it! I remember when it came out, I was 10. I read about it in Nintendo Power and couldn't wait to play it. I agree with all the criticisms. I think, aesthetically, it is still a superb game despite some gameplay issues and being "Nintendo Hard". The music and graphics are top notch (particularly the music). Sunsoft made some gems, like this and the original Batman game.
10 year old me and my friends for a month, could not figure out how to get past level 3. One of my friends finally figured it out. That feeling of triumph was overwhelming lol, I'll never forget it. One of my fav NES games for sure.
I remember being 12 and finally finishing stage 8 one rainy day. So fun.
This kid in 4th grade claimed he had beaten it, so naturally I was excited to invite him over to watch him destroy the game which had tormented me . Upon arrival, I learned he’d never played the game. It was probably the first time in my life I felt actual rage.
So then, why would he lie?
I beat it in 6th grade 😎
As a hardcore fan of this game, I have to say that I share your opinion almost completely. This game is too hard and certainly punishing as you well said, but back then it was an absolute gem and a state of the art in every aspect.
If your pet frog escapes, gets mutated by radiation, and leaps down a hole, just let it go. Also, don't keep radioactive chests in your backyard.
For the record, that radioactive chest belongs to Plutonium Boss, the final boss of this game. The Blaster Master novel states that with the help of the Lightning Beings, he creates underground worlds divided into 8 levels under the surface of planets of like Earth, and consumes plutonium as food and breathes methane. He uses the radioactive chests to be able to breathe methane and attract animals down to his underworld so he can mutate them into monsters to attack intruders, and he destroys planets by causing a massive radiation plague.
Great review. I was that 10 year old kid that played this game for hours on in. A lot of fond memories but watching your review I realize it's nostalgia and I'd never pick it up again but dang I loved that game
Used to play this game a lot when I was a kid, and I remember beating it when I was like in my mid-teens, it felt so great to FINALLY beat it. Once you get used the game, there's only two main challenges in your way: First, you need to kill the Level 5 boss (the crab shown in the video). Basically, the best thing you can do, is use the dungeon in Level 1 that you have to climb down a long ladder to reach. It's a short dungeon with two GUN powerups, and 4 trips into this room only takes a few minutes. Once you get that, try to take as little damage as possible, and in Level 3 there's one dungeon on your way to a boss that has a flashing GUN powerup. Now, what Pam did not mention in this video, is that the things that fire lasers that slowly move side to side, those can drop GUN powerups (they are the only enemy in the game that does so AFAIK).
Full GUN makes the Lv3 boss easy, but isn't absolutely required. Once you kill the Lv3 Boss, refill your GUN at that Level 1 dungeon on your way to lv4. Also what Pam left out, is that getting hit in the overworld vehicle stages even while outside of your vehicle does not make you lose GUN power. Anyways, go through Level 4, if you do it right, you should not be getting hit whatsoever if you still have full GUN.
Once you get to Level 5, drop down to the bottom of the ocean, get out and swim. Get to the Lv5 door and if you got save states, save! save often. This is the hardest part in the game, you need to get to the crab with full GUN. Pray, that if you get hit, that one of the laser enemies drops a replacement gun power. If you get to the boss missing any GUN, you are not going to win, most likely. You can try but it will be very difficult.
Well, once you get Lv5 done, the next challenge part is getting through Lv8's vehicle section. Once you do that, the Lv8 boss is easy (there's a flashing GUN in his dungeon somewhere in all of those blocks!). Oh, and the last boss can be hard to learn too, because he does 2 damage per hit. You can only get hit 3 times and he takes a Lot of hits to kill.
Oh, and the vehicle areas? You know you are going the right way when you hear the chirping enemies that fly horizontally in a wave pattern.
Me: "Aww Cool!! A Blaster Master Master Blaster review!!"
Looks at date. October 2016. Almost 3 years ago.
Pam. I'm so sorry it took me this long to find you. I binged your videos while I cooked dinner earlier. (I made chicken Bahn Mi sandwiches) I'm glad I know of you now. You're entertaining, and your voice is easy to listen to.
"A wizard is never late, Frodo Baggins. Nor is he early. He arrives precisely when he intends to."
I didn't find out about her until like the month before last, so don't feel too bad :p
I used to have this game when I was a kid
@@devo076 ☻
@@dreamykid I arrived late to the party too! But I love the retro-reviews! Ahh, memories!
"Only to watch Fred run into a radioactive chest, grow to an enormous size and fall into a hole." Ahhh, classic Fred. He's always doing stuff like that.
Blaster master is underrated, it reminds me of my favorite NES multigenre game 'The Guardian Legend'. Great review
Excellent comparison, both very ambitious games for the 8 bit era. If they were remade today it would hold up
Yeah everyone keeps bringing up The Guardian Legend recently. That was my favorite NES game too. It's about time it had an official sequel or reboot. Or something. We all remember it fondly, and it was a good story, and interesting main character. It's time for another Guardian Legend.
Totally agree... Another game I never owned but rented many times when I was a kid...
I loved Guardian Legend. There should be a remake with more story elements.
It is a great game 😊
Man, this was definitely one of my favorite games back then. I loved the implementation of the tank.
Okay but the conversation between Pam and Pam about the story is pretty much exactly how I always felt about the story, even as a kid. Except...so you have a pet (now-)giant frog? One (or two I think?) of the bosses is...a giant frog... the first time I killed the thing, I was like "WAIT DID I JUST KILL FRED?!"
Oh no, I didn't even think of that.
@@Cannotbetamed1 Ack, your innocence! I'm sorry!
Cannot be Tamed 🍿
The grenade glitch works on every other boss starting with the second boss. Also, to keep Jason oriented in one direction during boss battles, press and hold the grenade button. Then you can move laterally while shooting in one direction. I loved this game growing up!!
I just love that Jason has a massive container of radioactive material out in his yard... Just sitting there, unsupervised, no fences nothing 🤣
Gaming was so much simpler in the 80s.
Finally a proper review with gameplay details matching the video. A cool game with good music and gameplay.
No idea how we beat this game as kids without save states but we did know the pause trick to kill bosses trick. If I had to guess it was definitely not a glitch but a secret to help you along with what was a super difficult game. Video game secrets was a very common trend back then, and this always felt intentinonal
I just wanted to mention that it looked like when you fought the crab boss you didn't know how to strafe. If you hold down B, you can move without turning your body and it makes grenading the boss to death a bit easier. This can also come in handy when exploring dungeons.
I did not know that. You'd think they'd put something like that in the manual.
Or you could grenade him on his weak spot and pause the game. This was a hack/glitch I learned. It works on most of the bosses, not all of them though. I can’t remember which ones. Also, if you take damage and pause it. You will die. The hack works both ways.
@@dinoflagella4185 Yeah that's a common strat but it does not work on the crab boss.
@@Cannotbetamed1 pretty sure it's a glitch.
@@dinoflagella4185 The grenade and pause glitch only works on bosses in stage 2,4,6, and 7. If only it worked on the boss in stage 3 that replicates! That's just evil. lol
Spot on review😎👍 one of my favorite games of all time! I love that you played the music in the background...such good memories. This is one game that cried out for the Max controller.
Blaster Master got a Reboot on 2017 called Blaster Master zero. Which improved both story and gameplay while maintaining the feeling of the original.
Just got done beating this game once again. I can play Blaster Master over and over again. One of the greatest Nes games. The music is awesome too.
This game strikes such a special chord in me. I was seven years old when Blaster Master was released in late 1988 and one of my good friends purchased the game which gave me the opportunity to play it to death and beyond (I think I borrowed it TWICE!) It is an incredibly difficult and punishing game but with lots of practice, it is amazing what you can do. You are right about the gun being off center but a quick grenade can take out those enemies that your gun can't touch. It took me decades to master all of the little tricks though. This game is still one of my all-time favorites and one of my proudest accomplishments is that I have beaten the game multiple times with one life. I am still amazed I was able to do that (it took me like 7-8 months to beat the game as a kid too...LOTS of yelling and screaming happened during that time I can assure you). ;)
Blaster Master was such a fantastic game. Loved playing through it, and yeah, totally Nintendo hard! Ended up learning it well enough to get to the last stage without dying, but never made it through there. SPIKES EVERYWHERE. Spot on about the Jason sections though. It was bad even back then. It's a shame the Genesis sequels weren't very good.
This game scared the crap out of me as a kid...why you ask?
It needed a password or battery save system. It was much too long to try to beat it in one go. Super intimidating as I progressed into the game and each death was that much closer to the dreaded "game over.". Did it have unlimited continues? I didn't think so, but I don't recall.
The Blaster Master series to me is one of the best and a true lost treasure at the time it was around.
If you've never read the World of Power book to this game by FX Nine you should check it out.
( It even includes some game tips including the one Pam mentions in this video about pausing to beat certain bosses. )
I can proudly say I beat this game back with no save states. It took a lot of months and trial and error when I growing up playing this as a kid, but it was WORTH IT! 😀
Also don't feel bad about the stage 5 boss. Its probably one of the most pain in the *beep* you would face without Jason's Gun Meter being at Max Power.
If your looking for a challenge on the NES Blaster Master is truly a challenging game and considering when it was made
it wasn't often you had password system of saves for many NES games.
The good thing is you did at least have check points at certain spots if you lose a life.
Amazing soundtrack. Epic boss battles. Couldn't ask for more at the the times the game was released.
( Sometimes if you boot up the game just right you could accidently turn this game into a 1 life only game. 😱
That's right no lives or continues and when you die it goes straight back to the title screen with no game over music.
If you notice after the Sophia 3rd takes off into the cave scene and you don't get the 3 left screen you need to reset the game.
I don't know how this happens but its just a matter of luck. )
Just curious Pam have you played nay of the other Blaster Master games from this franchise era? If so which ones?
If you've never played them I highly recommend the recent remade Blaster Master Zero series avialable to download from internet stores.
Or you can find a physical copy of the trilogy, but its very pricy since it was released by Limited Run. 😞
Thanks again for your time.
I loved Blaster Master so much as a kid the music of the first level is my ringtone. While it took a while to play all the way through to the end it was worth all the time it took to learn every level, every enemy, and every dungeon. I recently found out they made a new version and two new games and they were available on Steam. So I bought all three at once and loved going through the first one all over again but with the added ability to save at any time. Blaster Master and the Mega Man series will always be my favorite games of all time.
this game was incredible to play back in the late 80s, absolutely my favorite game on the NES. It's punishingly difficult for htose who don't know the layout or the stratagies to get past certain parts of the games or the bosses. But the game rewards you with feeling like you learn something every time you play and keep coming back to see how far you can get. The game is super long for those who don't know exactly how to Bee line to the correct places as the game can be beaten in as little as 45 minutes by a true Blaster Master, an average player that knows nothing will struggle to get even past stage 5 in 3 to 4 hours and I have gone through long 6+ hour marathons getting to and futily trying to beat Stage 8 (which is a brutally hard stage that punishes you for having Wall 2, and yes, it was designed to be a hinderance there, was no accedent or game bug). When you finally beat the game legitly, you feel like you conquored the world as this game probably took months or even years of constant play throughs and memorizations to finally get the right patern down, a truely satasfying experience to finally beat this very difficult game.
This and Kid Icarus are some of my faves from growing up - fair and honest review from someone experiencing it for the first time in the 2010s - you were spot on with your 10 year old comment...I was obsessed with this game till I beat it and I was 12 at the time of its release.
I grew up with this game, so there's a ton of nostalgic value for me. The graphics were superb for a 1988 game. And that soundtrack--one of the best on the NES! I use Metal covers for this game in my videos all the time. But yeah, the game is absolutely brutal! I agree with you on so many aspects--it's unnecessarily difficult at times and like you said, just plain mean.
You definitely covered this game well. It was cool seeing you do some different stuff with this review. One of your best!
Thanks so much!You know, even though I mentioned the year in the video, it didn't really sink in. You're right, this looks amazing for 1988.
I loved the offset shooting. It made you think more strategically with your shots
This game was a classic for kids growing up in the NES era. They made a sequel for Game Boy, and also rebooted the series a couple times on the PS1 and Switch. Check them out!
Inti creates remake blaster master zero is a vast improvement in every possible way
One of my favorite games growing up and still play today
My favorite NES game of all time (oh the memories from 1989). This game is one of those that spawned the TVTrope term “Nintendo Hard”. Eventually I leaned to beat it in about 2 hours. Loved the end sequence and soundtrack! Loved levels 4,5,6 look and feel. Pun intended, this was a blast from the past.
This was actually my very first NES game as a kid that I received on a Christmas morning along with the console. I really enjoyed it but never fully beat it as I didn't have the time for full play throughs !
This game takes up a good portion of my bone marrow, and I had forgotten how much I loved the music! I guess I can thank TH-cam for figuring out I like this game, and introducing me to your channel. Subscribing to see more of your adorable self.
Welcome to the channel
There are a few people who reviewed this title, and I chose yours. Keep up the great work !!
Thanks!
One of my all time favorites. I’ve recently started playing it again, this time on the Switch. Now I can save progress and rewind if I do something stupid like walk off a platform into water
Great review. I played this as a kid, and loved the style, but hated that there were no maps and not plenty of powerups, so I never completed it.
However, I ended up playing the Blaster Master Zero trilogy this year, and 100% them all, and really loved it.
This is one of those games that I must have rented a million times when I was a kid... But don't think I ever got very far... Thanks for your awesome reviews.. Keep em coming..
Not enough people talk about this game, when I was a kid I thought everyone meant this game when they said "metroid" No one else played this gem
You make very enjoyable retro game reviews, and the selection of games covered is awesome as well.
Thank you!
I agree with all of your criticisms, and that's coming from a lifelong fan of this game who grew up with it as one of only about a dozen games on his NES.
You called it. It's harder to appreciate an older game that you didn't grow up with. Mechanics and design can feel dated or frustrating.
Also this was *a* time where arcades were still popular and video games were designed to be harder or involve tactics like back tracking to lengthen the game.
Honestly this is one of *the* better NES classics and a personal favorite.
My favorite NES game of all time, BLASTER MASTER. Also my first game on the Switch.
I love this game. Never gets old for me. And the sound track is the best.
You don't have to worry about trying to beat the game in one go round on the virtual console release because it saves your spot when you quit the game so it makes the game even better to play!
this game was one of a kind, I never owned it but played it a bunch as a kid, it was always in the back of my mind when I'd think about nes games I played, could never remember the name and finally stumbled upon it while playing my nes emulator 5 or so years ago
Why did the story line to this game make so much more sense to me when I was 8?
A lot of nintendo games had nonsensical storylines like this.
@@devo076 agreed 😊
because you filled in the blanks with imagination, something people lose as they age.
Loved this game I remember when this game came out in 1988 classic. I was 9 years old. It was tough but fun.
Now you're talking about an absolute classic. This is one of those games that I played as a kid and have played on many occasions over the years, even somewhat recently. Great review m'lady.
Thanks!
Cannot be Tamed you're welcome...no you're welcome...NO, you're welcome!
I played this when I was a kid. I didn't own it, but a family I used to play with had it. I got to the boss at stage 7 but got worked up and slipped up. That's the furthest I got. I had a blast while playing it even if I never mastered it in doing so.
I’m 4 years late but I’m finally watching this!
I loved this game, one of the very first games I bought for my NES when I was 16. Still love it actually.
Best NES game...Great graphics, music, and gameplay
Great review.
I have so many fond memories of playing this game as a kid... mainly of dying and being lost :)
Thanks! I got a lot of experience dying.
The hardest game I have ever played. Never knew about the boss glitch.
This game has been on my list for a long time. I got a physical copy not too long ago and will eventually get around to streaming it. Excellent vid as always Pam.
Thanks! It's worth a play through, thought it's frustrating.
Thank you! The game is worth playing.
I know this review came out years ago, but if by chance you see this, please give Blaster Master Zero a try on either 3DS, Switch, PS4, or PC. It is a remake of this game and vastly improves pretty much everything about it. In fact, I actually think it's a little too easy at points because of how much it lowers the difficulty! It is a really good game though and I think you would like it if given a try.
I'll give it a try at some point, it looks cool.
Hey there. I'm a new subscriber and I just wanted to compliment you on your videos: They're fantastic. I've watched a few and what I really find appealing is how laid back and relaxing they are. From the intro music, to the fact that you're quite soft spoken, the videos are just very chill, and I dig it.
Thanks so much, that's very nice of you to say.
Blaster Master is one of my favorite games to this day. I still remember the the feeling of triumph when I finished it for the first few times. I almost felt like I could take on Battletoads. Almost.
It did feel like an accomplishment to beat it. Even with cheating.
Absolutely one of the best NES games in my book! Crazy thing is back in 1989 I got to the point where I could make it to area 8 without dying. But I still never beat the game. I remember having a hell of a time with the low enemies and spikes everywhere. Gonna give it a run again 30 years later on the emulator!!
The newer Blaster Master Zero was awesome. I haven't played the next two in the Zero line, but I felt BMZ 1 fixed a LOT of the issues with the original Blaster Master. Also: Music was excellent XD
One of my all-time favorite NES games. Love the music!
The music is great :)
I beat this back in the day with no save states. I also beat this game when I had it on the Nintendo Wii from the Wii Shop. I agree that this game needed a password system or a battery backup.
This is one of those games that I've always wanted to play but just haven't yet - and I actually have it! Great review, Pam. I'm jealous of that book in the background.
Thanks! I just picked up the book at RetroWorld Expo.
hey thanks for the review! With all this quarantine going on i was thinking of playing Blaster Master finally, but your very detailed and well thought out review made me realize, while it has merit, it's probably not for me. Your review answered every question i had in an entertaining presentation, i can't ask for anything better than that! You gained a subscriber and a fan, keep up the good work.
Thanks! Welcome to the channel
You should check out Blaster Master Zero! It's sort of a remake of the original game, but much more forgiving and with a bit more story tacked on to give a greater sense of purpose. It still has that "lose weapon upgrades if you get hit" mechanic which I don't love, but early on you can find a power-up that acts as a safety net against that as long as you don't get hit multiple times within a short period. There's a built-in map system so you can't get lost and can see where dungeons and stuff are. Also, your hover and special weapon energy naturally regenerates over time, vastly improving the "quality of life" factor. It's a quick play-through if you want to revisit this adventure with some player-friendly enhancements and some thoughtful twists. There's also an unlockable bonus world and a better "true" ending if you attain 100% completion (which is not that hard to do). It leads into Blaster Master Zero 2, and original game that I only just started playing but I have to say is way more fun and inventive than the first. The developers are no longer bogged down by trying to imitate an 8-bit Nintendo game's structure, and are free to expand and explore new territory and mechanics. Apparently a third game in this series is coming out soon, too, so clearly people like this series!
Sounds like it's worth a play.
Ah Blaster Master :) Brings back memories like from 20+ years ago :D I remember my cousin had this one and I remember playing this with him a lot when we met every few months or so. Very fun and quite challenging game it was :)
Hey there Pam. The crab boss here looks so much like the one in the Seiken Densetsu (Mana) series.
Since you've covered Blaster Master on the NES, will you also cover the 2 new Blaster Master games by Inti Creates?
ANOTHER CLASSIC JEM ON NES!! PLAYED THIS FOR HOURS WHEN I OWNED THIS YEARS AGO!! PAM YOUR THE BEST SWEETS, THX FOR THE REVIEW OF THIS GREAT GAME!!!
I remember playing this a few times at my friend's house as a kid, seemed interesting . I might try this before checking out the updated versions. Awesome review!
Thanks!
Not to brag (proceeds to brag), but I was around 12 or 13 when I first played Blaster Master back in the day on the original NES. Game is indeed frustratingly difficult (cheap as hell), but it can be tamed. It took me over a year of playing it on and off to finally beat it. When I finally did I felt like a gaming God. Years later, while a senior in high school, I mentioned to a friend that it was a game I had conquered. Understandably, he didn't believe me, but begged me to come over prove I could. So after dusting off his old NES, and over a long afternoon of some trial and error (hadn't played it in years), he finally got to see the ending. Mad props to me. If only the girls went wild for that sort of thing ;)
1:54 omg thank you for this Pam on Pam moment… so funny XD
So envious of that Guide to the NES Library book you have in the background. I've never been a fan of the where-do-I-go kind of games but who knows, I might wanna pick this one up while it's still cheap.
I just bought that this past weekend at RetroWorld Expo!
Cannot be Tamed I want that book so bad but the price is kind of steep :(
Buttered Toast With the awful Canadian dollar is was so expensive >< But it's a really nice book.
Cannot be Tamed You live in Canada? Huh, cool :) it does look really nice....I need it so much >_
I enjoyed your review and this game immensely back in the late 80's. Very well worded and you make very good points. Subscribed for more. Thank you :)
Welcome to the channel :)
The talking to yourself aspect in this is hilarious 😆
I feel like most NES games were pretty damn hard. Especially at 7 or 8, I could never get even halfway through some of my favorite games like Blaster Master, TMNT and Link. Glad to hear you liked the music, I forgot how much I loved it until I watched a longplay earlier!
I’m so happy this is one cheap games you get for $10 bucks every time I see a nes or snes game I start thinking it’s gonna be over $100 bucks
Beat this game when I was 10, took me weeks of trying over and over again until I could get to the end and finally fight the last boss with my gun maxed out, which was nearly a necessity. This game plays like metroid, which is a big reason why I love it, and each boss is unique and so satisfying when you beat them. I still play this game on an emulator every couple years because it's just that good. This game also reminds me of another nes game which is a favorite of mine, "The Battle of Olympus" anyone who liked Blaster Master should definitely check this great game out as well.
Ahhh gods I adored this game as a kid! I wonder if I'd be any more successful at it today... I think I beat it once but usually didn't make it quite to the end, haha.
oh wow, I remember this game. fun seeing it again
I loved this game, quite a blast. I remember playing a newer version on the Playstation as well.
Blaster Master is a true gem of the NES and remarkably good and complex for the platform. Loved it as a kid, though I never got further than world 5 with the dive upgrade on the actual console but did beat it on emulated platforms. The remake was one of my primary reasons for getting a switch actually, overall a pretty good update to what was already a great game.
I haven't tried the new one yet.
@@Cannotbetamed1 it would definitely being a recommendation from me. The art is updated a bit here and there, the overhead areas look better. The weapon system in overhead is a bit more fleshed out now and it has a save system now. Some say the changes make it too easy but even as a fan of the original difficulty I still found the new experience quite enjoyable.
i still remember most of the map levels and music.
Love the game. Grew up with it and loved everything about it. The gameplay, the music, and even the goofy 'storyline'. I played it for so many years and never knew about the pausing glitch, I just spammed the grenade button if my gun was low power. I would agree that it can be frustrating on many points, though that does add some more appeal for me as I seem to love trying to beat a frustrating game, trying to refrain from throwing the controller or rage quitting, for that sweet completion feeling that lasts as long as my attention spa- oh man I love that in game music. Great video, informative, funny, and you are a goofball and adorable. You earned a like and a sub from this nerd, keep up the good work.
Thanks! Welcome to the channel
One hell of a game! The fastest way to beat this gun is to use the NES Advantage controller.
I remember playing this one at friends or renting it. The two things I remember about it were 1) Confusing maps and 2) The frog. Something about him having it rescue his pet frog just seemed so absurd. Though looking back it is a nice change from the kidnapped princess/girlfriend trope. Thanks for the review!
No problem!
Awesome review, I agree with all the problems you mentioned here. The gun power especially...super frustrating to go through dungeons again and again to fill up the power and then get a cheap hit or two by enemies right before the boss. I did beat this on my original NES withouth glitches or save states and it is pretty insane. I feel its a bit weird that whenever people talk about the hardest NES-games, they never mention Blaster Master..definitely the hardest game I ever beat. Thanks for the video, keep em coming! :)
And the difference between max power and even one hit away from it seems so large. Plus a lot of those hits you take before the boss feel really cheap. The game could have used a lot more gun capsules if they needed damage to reduce power.
ah, the memories; I beat this game once; never had the patience to do it again
I played it as a kid, but didn't own it. But I remember it was fun. I did get the remake and sequel on Steam, and loved them! If anyone is wondering if the Steam versions are worth getting, I say yes!!!
Master Blaster was my favorite NES game.
All jokes aside though, do i have any memories of this game?
"Yes!"
back in the day, i used to beat this game within approximately of 38 minutes tops.
boy.... time sure does fly by very fast! Feels almost like just yesterday, when i began the level. :D
I beat this as an 11 year old back in 1989… no save states, just me and that old NES.
Well done
Great review, Blaster Master and The Guardian Legend are two of my favorite games on the NES
BTW thanks to your review of The Guardian Legend, I played, and finished both games last month
Awesome, I love hearing that!
I remember this well, as a kid I loved it and hated it at the same time. Just as some other titles on the NES like Turtles and Captain Planet.
For someone whos completely new to this series, would this be a good pickup or nah?
Awesome review, I’m terrible at this game lol. I see you have Pat Contri’s NES book. Such a great book.
I loved (and still love) this game, though I still have yet to beat it! I remember when it came out, I was 10. I read about it in Nintendo Power and couldn't wait to play it. I agree with all the criticisms. I think, aesthetically, it is still a superb game despite some gameplay issues and being "Nintendo Hard". The music and graphics are top notch (particularly the music). Sunsoft made some gems, like this and the original Batman game.
Ahhh I love the gun powerups but I sometimes prefer the level 4 gun over the level 5, 6, 7, or I think 8 gun...