Famidaily - Episode 0214 - Woody Poko (うっでいぽこ)

Even reading Japanese websites, this game totally baffled me. But in fairness, that seems to be everyone's reaction to Woody Poko.
Famidaily is my attempt to catalog all of the commercially released Famicom games.

[@samp1862]

those jittery clerks are unnerving to watch

[@TheLohoped]

The inventory/shop music is very cool. Not exactly pleasing to listen to but it has cool rhythms between melody and bass.

[@ChrisBrown-si1vg]

Sounds like some pent up frustration with the hole->drowning water mechanic. :P

[@Emery_Pallas]

What a cute video game. I wonder what other cute and fun games this developer may have made/j

[@Xhalonick]

The developer telling school children the Easter egg and not the guide is so weird lol

[@DragoonEnRegalia]

This one's frustrating because it plays considerably better on some of the PC releases (MSX and FM-77AV specifically, though X1 has the best music by far). The Famicom port's additions are either minor improvements to movement (jumping without a power-up) and more starting items/gold, or downgrades to saving and other aspects (plus the infamous bakery clerk secret). For instance, characters' shadows extend farther into the scene on PC, making it easier to line up shots and jumps. The game players slower in general (for both you and monsters), so the gotchas come fewer and farther between. You even got a world map in the original manual, plus more hints and tips on how to get started vs. the Famicom manual which spends more time showcasing characters in galleries. PC players still complained about the difficulty of finding progression items and more money, but it's more fondly remembered and appraised today for its innovations/experiments than by Famicom players who rightly call out the port as an underwhelming product. Respawning right over death pits also isn't a thing in the PC original since you can save anywhere (up to 10 slots!) and will respawn at the side you entered that screen, not in the exact position. Not having to grind through text boxes just to get one item is handy as well. It's a shame you couldn't get farther into Woody Poko since it's got some fun tricks up its sleeve. To say there's nothing worth revisiting the game for isn't fair to the PC original. I don't think it's a masterpiece of game design (and the sexism is just weird), but the Famicom version's changes deviate from the 1986 game in mostly negative ways. I'd only play it on Famicom now just to abuse Girl Mode, something the PC game lacks (you can transform into Girl for similar benefits using an item, but not start the game as her). Having multiple save slots makes a huge difference, and I think Woody Poko plays better in bursts rather than the more frantic pace of the console port.

[@BagOfMagicFood]

This is the first Famicom game I couldn't find on MobyGames! I'd like to think there's an Emperor of the Night involved in this story, but I'd settle for one of the shopkeepers being Spamton G. Spamton.

[@garycoleman8906]

the game Michael English Daibouken / Michael's English Great Adventure which came out one day before Woody Poco also can't be found on MobyGames (although that's a FDS game).

[@Nemo2342]

That has got to be one of the weird forms of difficulty selection, though it may just be pure sexism based on the whole ripping clothes off the bakery clerk thing.

[@darktetsuya]

wow and I thought borderlands 2 pioneered the 'girlfriend mode' ... man there just seems to be so much wrong with this one. like respawning you right over the water that killed you? not a particularly great design choice. sounds like an easy pass from me.