Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Fighters

Released for the NES in 1994, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Fighters was a major departure from Konami’s earlier TMNT games. Instead of another side-scrolling beat ’em up, this game turns the Turtles into a one-on-one fighting game, clearly taking inspiration from the fighting-game boom of the early 1990s. Interestingly, the NES, SNES, and Genesis versions are quite different games rather than simple ports.

The NES version features Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo, Donatello, Casey Jones, Hothead, and Shredder. In Story Mode, you choose one of the four Turtles and fight through a series of opponents before facing Shredder. The game also includes Vs. Player, Vs. CPU, and a Tournament mode supporting up to four players, with two fighters battling at a time.

Combat is surprisingly straightforward. Punches and kicks form the foundation of each character's moveset, while directional combinations allow you to perform special attacks. Fighters also have unique throws and special techniques, giving each Turtle a slightly different personality in battle. During some fights, a floating Splinter monitor drops a Fireball power-up into the arena, creating another reason to keep an eye on the battlefield.

The NES version is definitely more limited than its 16-bit counterparts, but that also gives it a certain charm. The fights are quick, colorful, and easy to understand, while the option to adjust difficulty and battle speed adds some replay value.

For TMNT fans, Tournament Fighters is an interesting experiment that shows Konami trying something completely different with the franchise. It also holds a special place in NES history as one of the platform's later fighting games.