A playthrough of Taito's 1991 license-based platformer for the NES, The Flintstones: The Rescue of Dino & Hoppy.
Though they had a few misses, Taito's NES output was generally excellent. Their games often boasted some of the best graphics and sound on the system, the gameplay was usually rock solid, and much like Capcom, Konami, or Sunsoft, they didn't lower their standards a bit when they were handling someone else's IP. Their Hanna Barbera titles all scream quality, and though they're not particularly popular, they're arguably on par with Capcom's Disney titles.
The Flintstones: The Rescue of Dino & Hoppy was the first of these games. It came out during the 1991 holiday season, and it met with a warm critical reception, even receiving a full-blown feature in Nintendo Power.
It's better known these days as "7 Grand Dad."
Sigh. The internet.
The game is a simple platformer that has you playing as Fred, the world's favorite prehistoric drunk, day laborer, and buffoon. An evil scientist from the 30th century has not only stolen the Flintstones' and Rubbles' pets, but has also destroyed Gazoo's time machine to prevent any heroic rescue attempts.
Gazoo says that he can fix the time machine, but he'll need Fred to collect the scattered parts. Once that's all set, Fred will be able warp to the thirtieth century in order to throw down with Dr. Butler and save his slobbery purple pal.
Fortunately, Fred is unexpectedly adept at platforming. He can dangle from and climb up ledges, collect subweapons, and power up his club for a super smash. He can fly, dive, hop around on a dino kangaroo, and even take a break to win extra lives playing basketball. Quite multitalented, he is.
The controls are tight and Fred moves with a nice sense of weight (though you have to watch out when he skids to a stop, especially on ice!), and the level layouts are thoughtfully designed. They clearly guide you while giving you just enough freedom to explore a bit, and they're full of tricky spots that can easily wipe you out if you're trying to rush through. It's a cartoon game, but it is challenging. The game is fair, though. It doesn't blitz you with unavoidable hits, but some of those bosses are merciless until you've had a bit of practice and learned their patterns.
The graphics are all true to the look of the TV show with bold lines and super vivid colors, and all of the individual details, from the animation to the enemy designs to the background objects, work together to stay true to the spirit of the show. It's a very good looking NES game and its refreshingly respectful of its source material.
The music is excellent, too. In addition to the fun rendition of the show's theme, there's a whole slew of obnoxiously catchy original tunes to keep you humming for days after.
Especially that ice stage theme! It reminds me so much of the music from Little Nemo and Chip n Dale. I love it.
If you haven't played it but you like a good platformer, this is one damned fine game. Go for it!
If you're interested in seeing more The Flintstones games, here are links to some other videos that I've made:
The Flintstones: Surprise at Dinosaur Peak (NES): • The Flintstones: Surpr...
The Flintstones: King Rock Treasure Island (GB):
• The Flintstones: King ...
The Flintstones (SMS):
• The Flintstones (Maste...
The Flintstones Movie (SNES):
• The Flintstones (SNES)...
The Flintstones (Genesis):
• The Flintstones (Genes...
The Flintstones: Treasure of the Sierra Madrock (SNES):
• The Flintstones: The T...
The Flintstones: Bedrock Bowling (PS1):
• The Flintstones: Bedro...
(I had a video of this one up for a long time, but it needed an update, so this is a brand new playthrough, recorded at 60fps!)
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No cheats were used during the recording of this video.
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