Nerdicus NES Review #50 : Attack of the Killer Tomatoes

Title : Attack of the Killer Tomatoes

Publisher : THQ

Genre : Action Platformer

Players : 1

Release Date : 1992

Estimated Value (as of today's date) : $15-$20

Attack of the Killer Tomatoes was quite possibly one of the campiest and bizarre "B-horror" movies of its time. Well, it was a mockery of those movies, and it only had a budget of around $100,000. But that didn't matter. After its release it garnered a HUGE cult following. So huge in fact, that they even made an animated series based on the movie. And where there are animated series, there are usually video games. Thus, the ATTACK OF THE KILLER TOMATOES NES game was born. This game was also released for a slew of other systems, but hey, we're doing NES so we're going to have to stick with it. 

Now, I always thought this concept to be a bit strange, but I'm going to roll with it for now. And on a side note, I'm really craving a hamburger. WITH SOME SLICED TOMATOES! BUHAHAHAHAHAHAH!! Ahem....on to the game.

Genetically mutated, sentient Tomatoes are running rampant. To make matters worse, the evil Doctor is planning to unleash the DOOMSDAY TOMATO upon humanity. There is only one hope left for mankind, and that's Chad Finletter, the All-American boy. (that made me crack up on the back of the box...so classic.). The game is your typical 2D platformer, which plays just as you would expect it to play.

As soon as the game starts you're swarmed by a variety of Tomatoes. Flying Tomatoes, little tiny tomatoes, bigger tomatoes, tomatoes with big smiles on their faces and hair pieces....I don't know, they all look like they're straight from the movie. Unfortunately, you're only left with one basic attack, and that is to jump on the tomatoes and splatter them. Sounds easy, right? Meh, not so much.

The controls tend to be a little bit iffy in this game. When you jump, your body seems to propel a little bit forward past where you're aiming. This gets to be rather irritating, especially when you're just trying to stomp on the little guys. If you end up missing on your jump, and touching the tomatoes, well you're going to see your health drop pretty fast. It's all about timing, but good luck perfecting it.

Other than the jumping problem, the game isn't half bad. It's not as linear as some other 2D platformers. Most of the levels are a little bit like mazes where you have to work your way around different paths until you find the right one. Some lead to dead ends, other lead to power ups (mostly just paper bags filled with health). 

So if you're in the mood to stomp on some tomatoes, give it a whirl. Remember though, work on the jump. Otherwise, you're KETCHUP. OH MY GOD, GET IT!? HAAHAHAHAHHAHA! Yeah, alright. That is all.

Final Score (out of 5) :

Until next time. Keep on gaming!