Balloon Kid 1990 By: Nintendo

Overview:

Balloon Kid is a pretty fun side-scrolling arcade game. You pilot our heroine, Alice, on a couple of balloons, seeking her friend who has floated off holding a bunch of balloons. This game is challenging, as controlling Alice's altitude while avoiding various different hazards and/or enemies can be difficult at times. You must float over water and through forest scenes gathering balloons along the way for extra points. Graphics are of good Game Boy quality. Each individual character possesses good distinguishable detail. The scenery changes with each stage as do the hazards and enemies. A "Nintendo Song" plays along with the action and the only other sound effects are mainly the scoring beeps of collecting balloons. Some of the enemies make unique noise, such as the growling gators or the footsteps of the "walking fire". Most are silent, however. Gameplay is smooth and controls respond well. As I have mentioned earlier, controlling Alice is slightly difficult, but that is because she's floating on balloons. Balloon Kid is fun and challenging. In my opinion, it's is a good game and is worth checking out.

Directions:

Fly Alice on her two balloons through the scrolling maze-like scenery. Avoid numerous hazards, such as birds, beetles, wasps and mosquitoes. These hazards will not harm Alice should she touch them, but they will pop a balloon if they come in contact with them. If you lose one balloon, Alice can still fly, but she cannot ascend as fast. If she loses both balloons, she can run and jump along the platforms, provided you land on one. You are most likely doomed in that event, because there will be some jumps or screen areas that are impassible without at least one balloon. There are, however, some areas on each level that you must let go of your balloons to pass. Should you fall in the water, or become trapped and the scrolling screen catches up to you, you lose a life. You also lose a life by coming in contact with some hazards, like the fire or the gators. There is one balloon per round that is denoted with a "p". This one will give temporary invulnerability to your character. There are also bonus round "gameboys" on each stage that you can enter. Once inside, you collect balloons that float up out of 4 "Mario Pipes". If you collect all the balloons, get the heart that floats up last for an extra man. The stage then resumes. At the end of each stage, the scrolling stops. There will be an arrow directing you to the next round. On the Balloon Trip mode, you attempt to go as far as you can with one life. Gather balloons while avoiding "electrical charges" in the air. If you or your balloons come in contact with a charge, the trip is over. In addition to your score, you receive a rank for how far you make it in balloon trip mode.