Arcade Version Of Ice Climber Rereleased On Switch
For the first time since its original release in the 80s, the arcade version of Ice Climber (more commonly known on the NES) is available for purchase, thanks to Hamster and their “Arcade Archives” series.
I’ll bet you didn’t even know there WAS an arcade version of Ice Climber. There are actually arcade versions of over two dozen NES games, thanks to Nintendo’s interchangeable “Vs” arcade machine. Before some NES games were released in the US, Nintendo would sometimes “preview” them in the arcades with a modified version. Vs. Ice Climber came out in March of 1985, six months before the cartridge was first sold in New York.
Most Vs. games were visually identical to their home console counterparts, but contained extra modes and features that wouldn’t be possible on the NES hardware. In the Vs. version of Ice Climber, the player has to deal with additional elements like blizzards and wind, more enemies onscreen, plus 16 additional levels not included in the cart.
But If it’s truly unaltered from the arcade version, shouldn’t you be able to club seals? ….No, they changed that for the arcade release too.
“ICE CLIMBER” is an action game released by Nintendo in 1985.
Play as POPO and NANA to break apart blocks of ice with your hammer and defeat enemies that get in your way as you aim for the top of the mountain.
However, only one person can catch the condor waiting at the summit. Will you work together, or try to go for it alone? It’s up to you!
Vs. Ice Climber is now available on the Nintendo eShop for the same price as Hamster’s other releases: $7.99.