Clash at Demonhead

Clash at Demonhead is an action-adventure from Vic Tokai in which a young man named Billy Blitz sets out to find a missing scientist and gradually uncovers a conspiracy involving strange mutants and the mysterious Demonhead mountain. The game combines platforming combat with an open world structure that the player moves through more or less freely, gradually finding items that open new paths – from weapons and special boots to useful tools for interacting with the surroundings.

An interesting feature is the character's attribute system – strength, agility, defense – which don't increase through gaining experience points as in classic RPGs, but through completing specific tasks and finding particular items or people scattered across the world. This gives the game the feel of a puzzle, where the player has to experiment and talk to side characters to figure out what to do next. Humor and a slightly bizarre tone set Clash at Demonhead apart from more seriously toned action-adventures of the same era, which is also why it often strikes players as an unconventional curiosity among more earnest titles.

Thanks to its unconventional approach to character progression and its open world, Clash at Demonhead still holds a reputation, even years later, as one of the more interesting hidden gems of the NES library, one that will appeal to players looking for an alternative to the more straightforward action games of its time. Patience with uncovering the connections between characters and items is rewarded here more than quick reflexes, a quality action-adventures of that era rarely offered.

Why play it: For its unconventional character progression system built around completing tasks instead of gaining experience points.