I Ranked Every KEMCO game on NES

Kemco had some great titles and a few hidden gems, too! Here's a look at every Kemco NES game and where I rank them.
Rank Kemco Games - tiermaker.com/create/kemco-ne...
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[@JohnRiggs]

Let's Rank Color Dreams and Wisdom Tree NES Games - kzbin.info/www/bejne/Zpeueq1mh7ufhMU Let's Rank Broderbund NES Games - kzbin.info/www/bejne/rKGkY3asgLB0obs

[@eastcoastandloveit3857]

JohnRiggs please do a code master ranking !. I love these videos and all your videos . Your by far my fav KZbinr

[@hockeyprofit19]

Can't wait for the SOFEL video. I may be the only human to give Wall Street Kid an S! I love it so much i bought a sealed copy.

[@chrisrie9499]

I love these ranking videos. Hope there are lots more to come.

[@greenlawler]

Subscribed to your channel, this has driven me crazy. Am I missing? I mean you keep saying “ranked”? You are not actually ranking these games. You are grading them. Sure you have already explained this.

[@drhoads08]

I am loving these videos. Really helping me clean up and organize my collection into what is actually worth playing! Thank you!

[@travim4314]

Spy vs Spy was a big hit with my friends. Those two player matches would get intense.

[@scottythegreat1]

I never knew there was NES version until now. I played it on the Commodore 64

[@colinbradfield72]

The music itself makes it an A

[@jasonshiers5771]

Good to see North and South getting some mention, such an underrated game.

[@anophelesnow3957]

Find the Amiga version. It holds up, superb game.

[@canadiansoviet]

I loved N and S!

[@jimx117]

I took a chance and bought it unplayed from my local video store in the mid-90s for like 8 bucks... Ended up playing the heck out of it with my group of friends during summer vacation that year, even though we all had SNES and Genesis (some even had Ps1) a the time!

[@Duke_Togo_G13]

I feel Shadowgate, Deja Vu, and the crazy expensive Uninvited are solid S for me.

[@scipio8866]

Good games. But I feel like S’s are given out too frequently. A for me.

[@pungisotu]

Too bad Deja Vu II wasn’t ported to the NES.

[@donkeykongisytpooping3002]

Eric Kelly It was actually in the works but got canceled, a prototype is probably out there.

[@heidibenner1577]

@@pungisotu You can always play the GBC version. That is out there ya know.

[@pungisotu]

@@heidibenner1577 I don’t think I did. I’ll check it . Thanks.

[@Svankmajer]

Thumbs up for the praise of Shadowgate, Deja Vu and Uninvited. Amazing games.

[@poleythepolarbear9706]

They have Shadowgate, Devaju, and Uninvited in one package called "8-bit Adventure Anthology: Volume I" on steam.

[@parimabartender]

And you can download and play every single one for free on this cool thing I found on an Inernette cd

[@poleythepolarbear9706]

@@parimabartender I don't know what you mean be "Free", but I do suggest paying for what you play if it is within your financial means. Even if it is secondhand, and no longer going to the pockets of the developer.

[@RetroFix]

It’s weird that I have a lot of nostalgia for “Uninvited”, a game I’ve never played. Back in the 90’s my big sister told me how scary the game was. That’s my only memory of it lol. I think I’ll finally pick that one up.

[@donkeykongisytpooping3002]

Retro Fix It’s an expensive game but a fun one.

[@caiusmadison2996]

Shadowgate is good too, if you've never. They have rip off flash versions for phones, and its not even close to the original with that creepy music and constant fear of the torch burning out, making you instantly die with your next move, effectively putting a timer on how long you can even play any single run.

[@jimx117]

Honestly still creeps me out in places! The descriptive writing during the death scenes was top-tier, too.

[@Jackrost01]

@@caiusmadison2996 Shadowgate have moder PC remaster made by original dev

[@nolecol430]

Crazy Castle was released as Roger Rabbit for Famicom we got a different Roger Rabbit. This continued with the GB ones where it was Mickey Mouse for Japan and Bugs Bunny in US. Also Kid Clown is a Mickey Mouse 3 for Famicom.

[@tossingmidgetsforfun]

I was trying to remember the name of Desert Commander for so long, I loved that game. Rescue is definitely an S for me, and Spy vs Spy is S++

[@jackdonkey22]

You probably already know but Advance wars is similar, and really good

[@tossingmidgetsforfun]

@@jackdonkey22 I have only known of that game for a few years, I saw my nephew playing it on the Switch. Never knew about the old ones. But ty regardless.

[@danm6668]

That Rescue the Embassy looks a lot like Golgo 13!!!

[@FormalTreehouse]

Every time I hear "You got John Riggs here," I'm instantly in a good mood.

[@FatMarioHeads]

The sad part is we almost did get a Superman game by Sunsoft, but they lost the license and tried turning it into "Sunman" before cancelling it altogether.

[@hicknopunk]

Shadowgate is one of the top 5 NES games for sure. I loved this one so much. Deja Vu also, oh and Uninvited (uninvited is freaking hard)

[@xechecatlx]

I remember Shadowgate! took me ages to finish, at the time my english was really poor and had to check a dictionary to play RPGs and these kind of games. Felt really accomplished when I complete it. Need to play it again!

[@luciogamesmusic]

Shadowgate is the epitome of creating amazing atmosphere while working with the limitations of technology at that time.

[@hellboundTX333]

Shadowgate has the best NES soundtrack ever.

[@robertanderson2898]

Even better than the Mega Man's ? Ninja Gaiden's? Interesting, but i think not. But it's really good, yeah.

[@Kain5th]

maybe not the best, but it sure fits well with the game for sure

[@redinthesky1]

Theres so many good soundtracks for nes its ridiculous

[@SlayerRunefrost]

MegaMan 2, Castlevania 2&3, and Rygar would like a word with you.

[@Skackle]

Dang man, John Riggs is gonna make me hit up my Raspberry Pi again, I now have such a long list of NES games to go back to. Thanks John!

[@chrisgoetz3816]

Would you be interested in doing something like this but going by a games series such as going through the Zelda, Dragon Quest, Final fantasy, Lolo, Bubble bobble, double dragon, Castlevania, Mario's bros. etc. Or any other games your into. I would really like to see that.

[@JohnRiggs]

Plan on it eventually.

[@xreev0x]

Wow! Spy vs Spy is an S for me! I have such great memories playing it with my brother.

[@cedurion]

Shadowgate and Déjà vu are the only NES games I know to have been translated into Swedish. Translation might have been a little too fast though; you got a printed note with the game that explained a small amount translation errors, sometimes quite funny such. But kudos for translating them!

[@Criticalhitkoala]

This whole time I thought Rocket Ranger was The Rocketeer (based on the movie). I have this vivid memory of seeing screen shots of it in Nintendo power with the Rocketeer title. Talk about eye opening.

[@Johnodog]

There is a Rocketeer game

[@AustynSN]

A friend and I thought pretty much the same thing until one of us realized the title was different. We were convinced it was the video game equivalent of those crappy direct to crap vhs movies that use similar names to big blockbusters to capitalize on their popularity.

[@BM-wh5qk]

I never knew WTF to do playing NES Superman. I don't think even Nintendo Power covered it. I just walked around the city looking at that unhelpful map. Deja Vu I rented so many time before finally just buying it so I could beat it at last.

[@CinemaMack]

I can hear the music from Bugs Bunny Crazy Castle in my head.

[@Omn1Slash]

man I remember Shadowgate used to scare the hell outta me when I was a kid... such a great game. Great list!

[@bezerker99]

I remember my uncle used to rent North and South a lot on weekends. I never played it but he loved it!

[@GamerFNG]

Love these videos. Not only does it bring nostalgia but also some great recommendations.

[@GreenDragonPainting]

I love Shadowgate SO MUCH! I guess you have already played the Nintendo Switch remaster? I purchased a physical copy but haven't set down with it just yet. Love these videos, hope you do them forever ❤

[@Metaphor9696]

I love these lists. Right after each one, I almost immediately break out the system and an Everdrive and give something I've never played before a shot because you make it sound fun. I'm going to play that Kid Clown game now and I never even heard of it before. Thanks John!

[@cloficc7234]

To me, if there ever was an S tier game on the NES, it was North & South, absolutely brilliant game, even the mini games in between fit in perfectly! Edit: Just noticed your hat, love it 😂👌🏻

[@PabstOban]

I am a huge Shadowgate fan. My friend got it and I was always at his house playing this with both of our minds working together to make it to the end. The music is haunting and the story was so memorable. This game consumed my mind as a kid... I remember having dreams about it. I also remember it was the only company that had a free 1800 tip line. When we got really stuck, we called them and they would give us hints but not the answers which was really cool. I’m a huge Bithead1000 fan, and a while back when he started up his Patreon, he had a tier where you could pick the game he reviewed. I really wanted him to do Shadowgate because he has never played it and was a big fan of Beyond Shadowgate. I also knew it would frustrate the hell out of him and BitHead really shines when he gets fired up about something and boy did it frustrate him. I can tell he appreciated the game and I’m so sad he got to the very end and didn’t know he was at the very end. He never ended up finishing it. His review is definitely worth checking out... especially if you are as big a fan of the game as me.

[@rydog11]

These lists always improve my Fridays.

[@JoKoKilla]

Aw man I have great memories with KEMCO games! I LOVED all the text adventure games as well as Rescue, and Dessert Commander (DejaVu has a very adult themed storyline BTW) . Those games are embedded in my nostalgic childhood memories. My uncle would give me Kemco games for Christmas and my birthday. Later in life I realized he was getting them from the bargin bins at his local game/computer shop. Bless his heart. Thank you Uncle Julian and thank you Mr Riggs for these great videos. As for Rocket Ranger, the "fun" or "strategy" is in completing the side missions successfully without loosing gasoline so you can fly out and destroy the Zepplin (freakin' rock n roll). The main flaws can be found in the those side missions, specifically in their playability (or lack of). lol. Such as the fighting mode. lol! Amazing what we played and enjoyed because that's what we had. I'm going to try Ghost Lion, heard of it, but never played it.

[@jNetDowling]

I've never stopped playing NES games since the 80s and love turn-based JRPGs, and I had no idea that Legend of the Ghost Lion existed. So thank you for that!

[@EternalDarknessAboveTheBlueSky]

Kemco had great chemistry with the NES.

[@BB-te8tc]

I unironically like Superman on the NES. The open world nature of the game kept me interested and was fun to explore as a kid.

[@jasonblalock4429]

The big appeal of Rocket Ranger was its cinematic quality, as well as the somewhat open-end gameplay. It had a very early kind of branching narrative, where failing specific segments wouldn't necessarily end the game, but rather send you off on different missions than if you had succeeded. That was novel for the time and, combined with the semi-randomized map, it had a lot of replayability. But you do need to learn the various minigames before it really starts to come together. (And like most complicated NES games, reading the manual is a near-must.) That said, the NES port was definitely not as good as the original version - they had to heavily censor it, because the original had Nazis as the baddies. Plus it left out a few segments. But I didn't play the original until many years later.

[@cheshiredon]

I love the old Text adventure games. Funnily enough I got my copy of Uninvited from John Riggs himself a few years ago at PRGE in a trade for a handful of Famicom Disk System games.

[@paulpederson1677]

Shadowgate Top 5? That is high praise. I've owned 450 NES carts at some point (ballpark), but Deja Vu the only Kemco & thought it was great. Always wanted to play through both Shadowgate & UnInvited, now feel obligated. Thanks for another informative video J.R.

[@adriangonzalez3600]

Thanks for giving RESCUE some love, it's such a fun replayable game and the music gets me going every time

[@westlancsflips3126]

John. These ranking videos are awesome. Please keep them coming. Thanks

[@senzomcmanus]

Thanks for the morning video Riggs! Working on pinball machines today and bingeing Riggs vids 🤟

[@Xx1SailorScoutxX]

Vic Tokai and SNK called; they are still waiting on their turn

[@jean-philippetessier6354]

Data East, Jaleco too.

[@Duke_Togo_G13]

Vic Tokai.. some crazy games... G13 and Clash at Demonhead are their best. Non NES title goes to Silverload.

[@josealvarado1938]

@@jean-philippetessier6354 Taito and Natsume too

[@robertanderson2898]

@@josealvarado1938 And I think Nintendo should be the last one

[@Mycoolzee]

Kemco definitely had some gems. Nice variety of games. Really looking forward to jaleco and data east games. North and South is great. My bro RIP Chris loved that game. I have to add it to my collection for him. Thanks for getting my weekend off to a good start.

[@jeremysteelman2900]

I really enjoy these. Thanks alot man, i appreciate the entertainment and nostolgia

[@CJMadsen79]

I'll never forget that Crazy Castle gave away the password to the final level, on the box! :P I love the Yakima shirt, btw, I've spent a LOT of time there, and love it.

[@TheGameBeaters]

Been really enjoying this series. Been thinking about doing Sachen NES games over here. Lol. Could be a fun one. Anyway keep it up man. Always dig your vids.

[@nesmegavanialink350]

Superb job making these NES Ranking videos! I love watching and mostly agree with each ranking that you give.

[@DavetheNESGuy]

Love these videos. Authentic and insightful.

[@Kyle-nw3wk]

hell yeah i'm down to watch a top 10 favorite nes games from the man himself!

[@dennisvandijk1442]

I love your videos man! Your enthusiasm really wants me to replay many NES games. Thank you and keep up the good work. Greetings from The Netherlands!

[@Cuuuuuuurtis]

Bug Bunny's Birthday Blowout is one of my all time favorites on the NES. So much fun and incredibly underrated.

[@frankcornell2538]

Love these videos. Great work John!!!!

[@NESADDICT]

Hey John Riggs! Love these buddy!

[@superduty2023]

Thanks for all these ranking videos!!

[@nkb3324]

These are GREAT. Would love to see this extend to the SNES and the Genesis as well. 😁😁😁

[@rocketgamingfun5624]

That pole vault on snoopy was the only event that I could never figure out how to consistently do well at. I loved spy vs spy with friends. It was intense and hilarious! Shadowgate is in my top 5 nes games.

[@juicybear1986]

Always saw you on MJR videos and thought you were a cool dude. Wish I woulda discovered your youtube sooner. I really love the content and it takes me back with the good nostalgia feels in my tum tum :-P. Keep up the good work my guy.

[@jeffflavin5391]

Great videos!! I really enjoy your let’s rank videos.

[@User-wq9ri]

I loved Shadowgate as a kid. I got it one year for Christmas. Took me a while to get through it. I just got a Super console x pro and I can't wait to play it. I'm also looking forward to trying out Deja Vu and Uninvited. Never played them before.

[@Scorch6969]

Yes! Kemco list! I haven't clicked on a video faster in my day recently lol most of the Kemco games do have excellent soundtracks.

[@brianmoritz2283]

Oh man, I forgot about North and South! I LOVED that game as a kid!

[@villain5873]

4:06 is that “Tina Yothers?” (Jennifer Keaton) on “Family Ties”.

[@woodeyelyegaming1401]

Shadowgate and Rescue are 2 of my favorite nes games! I never beat shadowgate and I probably never will unless I cheat and use a walkthrough but what's the fun in that? Lol. The mystery of not knowing what comes next is what's so spooky to me. I might actually give shadowgate another go later today now that we're talking about it!

[@TheWarrrenator]

There were five commercial breaks for this video. I know that’s KZbin’s doing but I wanted to inform you. Loved shadowgate! Great video.

[@cannonballkid]

Love these ranking vids 🥳

[@mrtuttle76]

Thanks for these vids riggs, peace and love and good health to you and your family

[@flashjohnstone]

Love these videos, can't wait for you to rank Double Dragon 2 and 3.

[@dleeeckhardt]

Love these type of videos! Keep up the good work sir!

[@kevintrjohnson]

Rocket Ranger was originally a Cinemaware game for the Amiga. They also made the original versions of Defenders of the Crown, Three Stooges, King of Chicago, Wings, and It Came From the Desert. I loved their games as someone who grew up with an Amiga, and Rocket Ranger was one of their best. The graphics were incredible for the late 1980s. Never could beat it, but I loved it. Speaking of Amiga games, me and my brothers played the hell out of the Amiga version of Spy vs Spy. Not so fun playing against the computer, but it was one of our go-to games when we were feeling competitive.

[@masterchief247]

Lmao!! Your character in Rescue Embassy Mission looks just like Cobra Commander from the GI JOe 80's cartoon

[@DeEvolveMe]

Love the list John, can’t wait for more maybe from other systems too work your way up through 8bit, 16bit, etc

[@SeekerLancer]

I loved Bugs Bunny's Birthday Blowout as a kid and I remember beating it but man I can't handle the scrolling today, it really messes with my brain. My college roommate was absolutely obsessed with Spy vs. Spy. It was maybe his favorite NES game. It's fascinating the mark certain games can leave on a person if they hit you at the right time.

[@kurtbrownside4926]

Awesome Video!! Did I miss a ranking of the NES SNK games? Those are some of my favorite!!

[@BlUsKrEEm]

Hmm, just figured out I am a Kemco fan. Thanks for the list

[@urmie]

You can play Shadowgate, Deja Vu, Uninvited on modern consoles and Steam via 8bit Anthology. Rarely mentioned.

[@daronofennell3474]

Holy crap man you are over 80k subs now! Awesome Video btw

[@bencox5994]

These are all wonderful videos dude

[@L0v3_Murd3r_0n3]

I loved Bugs Bunny's Birthday Blowout as a kid. Had so much fun playing it. When I started collecting games and wanted what I had as a kid, that was one I needed to get at the beginning.

[@mccorkleknight]

I think you were very fair here. That Superman game cost me days of my life. I REALLY wanted to love it as a kid and it just made me crazier.

[@adz693]

It's funny how Kemco seemed to pick up a lot of games that started life as 8 bit and 16bit computer titles. Here in Europe 'North & South' 'Hostages' (the original name of Rescue: The Embassy Mission') (both Infogrames) and 'Rocket Ranger' (Cinemaware) were big on the home computers. The ICOM simulations trilogy of Deja Vu, Uninvited and Shadowgate started life on Mac and Apple IGS but got ported to just about everything. I loved those games but had a hard time playing the NES versions as the interface on a gamepad is horribly clunky compared to how they were played on computers with a mouse - plus there's quite a bit of content cut or changed from all of them. I was surprised to see from the comments that there's a lot of love and nostalgia for those NES versions.

[@iankempster7007]

Great video as always

[@briannorthFW]

Thanks for another ranking video, they are becoming one of my favorite videos that you do, maybe even surpassing “Open Cart Surgery” 🤔

[@Curbjaw]

I had forgotten ALL About Rescue: The Embassy Mission... that game was so amazing back in the day

[@dave4shmups]

I would love it if the soundtracks to both Deja Vu and Shadowgate were available to purchase, even if it they only came out on vinyl.

[@tristanjacobucci]

Heck yes let's goooo! Love these

[@lurkerrekrul]

Rescue: The Embassy Mission - I loved this game on both the C64 and Amiga. Rappelling down the building took some getting used to, but I used to be able to clear all the missions without losing anyone. Rocket Ranger - Another game that got a lot of hype on the Amiga, but I never saw the appeal of it. The action segments were fun, but it was too much of a strategy game for my liking. Not that I hate all strategy games, but all the magazines showed the action segments and then I got the game and found out that 75-80% of the game takes place on a map screen. Spy vs. Spy - I loved the simulated 3D presentation and exploring the building, but I never really found it all that much fun. Each trap has something to counteract them, but unless you're watching the other window, you have no idea what trap you're going to encounter, so it's just random whether you use the right item or not. You can also just barricade yourself in one room with traps and wait for the other spy to get killed by them, then take their stuff. The same applied to the sequels. I used to put them into two-player mode just so that I could explore without worrying about getting killed. Deja Vu/Shadowgate/Uninvited - I never got very far in these games. The NES versions are censored from the computer originals and the text descriptions are somewhat cut down to fit the NES's lower resolution.

[@digitolwonder]

Wow! I honestly have never heard of Ghost Lion, thank you for sharing that!

[@Wyrdwad]

Man... I love watching these old ranking episodes from you, and am really grateful to you for making them, but I'm constantly reminded that you and I do NOT have similar tastes whatsoever. Heheh. Spy vs. Spy, a D?! Man, Spy vs. Spy is THE best two-player game on the NES. For me, it's literally an S. My trifecta of two-player NES games -- the ones I played with friends and family more than any others -- are Spy vs. Spy, Archon, and Anticipation. I sank untold hours into all three of those games (more the MS-DOS version of Archon than the NES version, but the NES version definitely got its due!), and adore them all to death. Very interesting to see your takes on these titles, but I would definitely urge you to give Spy vs. Spy another chance sometime (and Archon, for that matter!) -- preferably with your kids, or with fellow retro enthusiast friends of yours, as while both games are fun in 1-player mode, they REALLY shine as 2-player experiences.

[@arq.abrahamgrajeda9143]

Finally some love for Shadowgate!!!

[@DennyZ1976]

John, love the classic rating games videos you do. Will you please do the NES data East games. I know you did some on the multicart releases. Thanks I’m advance

[@thatwasprettyneat]

You should do a compendium of all your s-rated games and go more in-depth on them

[@paxhumana2015]

@JohnRiggs, I think that the other games that you were talking about when you were covering Desert Commander were the Famicom Wars games, as well as the Advance Wars games, both of which are very similar to the TurboGrafx-16/PC-Engine game that you had mentioned, as well as the aforementioned Desert Commander.

[@anthonytd103]

I remember the AVGN review of bugs bunny birthday blowout.

[@robertanderson2898]

check out Crazy Castle too, it's better

[@taipion64]

ghost lion was based on this really obscure Film Beyond the pyramids:legend of the white lion. Which was made in English but only released and subtitled in Japan as far as I know. So you can have fun playing through the game and watching the movie on KZbin at the same time if you like.

[@oaf-77]

Does that make it a rare movie license game that actually good?

[@VanishedPNW]

Dude is that a New Kids hat?! Riggs okay you're the best. The Yakima Shirt, retro gaming video AND NKOTB hat?! Automatic sub.

[@BlackMoore82]

The Legend of the Ghost Lion, the game with the Skinemax cover haha. I loved Snoopy's Silly Sports Spectacular! and Spy Vs Spy growing up but haven't played either in years so unsure if either aged well or not.

[@rayfincham1595]

Rocket Ranger was originally a PC game that ended up being heavily censored on the NES. The best way I can describe it is the Rocketeer with a sci-fi element to it. The game had you fighting against the Nazis and they were after iirc a time traveling device. My brother loved it but I couldn’t get into it that much. Just want my cup of tea, now Shadowgate, Deja Vu, and Uninvited all hold a dear place in my heart. I still have my originals along with the re-releases, I loved those games that much.

[@t.b.8837]

You should definitely do a Top 10 favorite NES games. 👍

[@dcrock1592]

Your shirt Riggs! HAHAHA! Nice!!

[@maxpower10k]

Man they made both Rescue and North v South? 2 of my absolute favorites as a kid! Haha 🍻