Back to the Future Part II & III

Back to the Future Part II & III brings Marty McFly's time-traveling adventures to the NES in a game that tries to combine the stories of two movies into one large adventure. Released by LJN in 1990 and developed by Beam Software, the game follows Marty as he attempts to repair the damage caused by Biff Tannen and eventually make his way back home.

The first and much larger part of the game is based on Back to the Future Part II. Marty travels between 1955, 1985-A, and 2015 while exploring Hill Valley and searching for objects that have been taken out of their proper time periods. There are 30 items to recover, and finding them is only the beginning. Each object needs to be returned to the correct place and time, turning the adventure into a large scavenger hunt rather than a straightforward platforming game.

Marty can fight enemies by jumping on them or using projectiles, while keys and other objects help open new areas and challenges. The DeLorean also plays an important role because time travel requires fuel, so managing your resources becomes part of the adventure. Some areas even encourage you to think about how actions in one time period can affect another.

The second half moves the story into the Old West setting of Back to the Future Part III. This section is considerably shorter, with ten items to locate before Marty and Doc Brown can use the locomotive to return to 1985.

Back to the Future Part II & III is certainly an unusual licensed NES game. Its huge interconnected world can feel confusing and demanding, especially without an in-game map or save system, but that same ambition makes it interesting today. Fans of the movies may enjoy recognizing the different eras and characters, while retro enthusiasts can appreciate this quirky attempt to turn time travel itself into the game's main mechanic.