The Legend of Kage
The Legend of Kage is Taito's home version of its 1985 arcade game, released on the Famicom in Japan in April 1986 and on the NES in North America in August 1987. You play Kage, an Iga ninja sent to rescue Princess Kiri from a warlord. Kage jumps enormously high, climbs trees, blocks with his short sword and throws shuriken, but dies in a single hit. Collecting crystal balls upgrades his outfit and gives him a buffer against one mistake.
Controls
What The Legend of Kage is
The game is a side-scrolling action game set in feudal Japan. Kage fights through a forest, a moat and the outside and inside of a castle, with ninjas and monks coming at him from every direction, often from above. His huge jumps let him cross the screen and cling to trees, which makes movement feel very different from most platformers of the time.
The NES version extends the arcade structure. You rescue the princess three times instead of two, and after each rescue the season changes, from summer to fall to winter and back again. After that the cycle repeats with tougher enemies, and play continues until you run out of lives.
How it plays in your browser
This page runs the US cartridge through the FCEUmm emulator, so it starts right away. Kage attacks with his sword or throws shuriken, and the sword can also knock away incoming projectiles, which is essential because one hit normally ends a life.
Crystal balls are the main power-up. Each one changes Kage's clothes to the next colour and improves him with bigger shuriken or more speed. If he is hit while wearing green or orange, he drops back to his red outfit instead of dying, so a power-up works as a spare life for one mistake.
Tips worth knowing
- Keep moving; enemies keep arriving from the sides and above, and standing still in the forest is the fastest way to get hit.
- Use the sword to block thrown projectiles instead of trying to jump over everything.
- Grab every crystal ball you see, since the upgraded outfits let you survive a hit that would otherwise cost a life.
- High jumps are powerful but leave you exposed in the air, so check for enemies overhead before leaping.
- Climbing into the trees is a good way to get above ground-level enemies and pick them off with shuriken.
Frequently asked questions
When did The Legend of Kage come out on NES?
It was released on the Famicom in Japan in April 1986 and on the NES in North America in August 1987.
How do you win The Legend of Kage on NES?
You rescue Princess Kiri three times, with the season changing after each rescue. The game then loops at a higher difficulty.
What do the crystal balls do?
They change Kage's clothes to a new colour and give him upgrades such as bigger shuriken or more speed. Being hit in green or orange clothes removes the upgrade instead of a life.
Is the NES version the same as the arcade game?
No. It adds the crystal ball power-ups and a third rescue, among other changes.
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