Friday, January 04, 2013

Manual Stimulation: Chack'n Pop (Famicom)

Given its beautiful cover art, you might think Chack'n Pop's instructional manual would be similarly bold and colorful.

Had it been released a few years later than it was (1985), that likely would have been the case. As it is, though, the manual for this Taito-made Famicom game is a nearly monochromatic affair.

That's not to suggest it's not worth your time or attention. In fact, I'd say the complete opposite--thanks in large part to the handful of adorable illustrations that are packed into the manual's few pages. The first of which can be seen on the manual's front cover, unsurprisingly enough:



Sadly, the next few pages of Chack'n Pop's manual are the definition of "ho-hum."





Things perk up again on the manual's sixth and seventh pages, thankfully--with the adorable drawing that anchors page seven being my favorite of the whole she-bang.



That's the high point of this particular illustration manual, to tell you the truth, although a few more cute illustrations can be found on its remaining four pages.





A little note for those of you who enjoy these "Manual Stimulation" posts (more of which can be found here): this is the first of four such posts that will be published here this month. The next--another Famicom game; can you guess which one?--will appear a week from today.

See also: '12 import games I bought in 2012 but didn't tell you about until now: Chack'n Pop (Famicom)'

6 comments:

Steve Pixel said...

Love this, though I wish they added some more color to it. I assume your next game manual would have to be Door Door, wouldn't it?

thegaygamer.com said...

Yes, I wish that, too, Steve. I really do think it had to do with the time of its release, as many/most early Famicom game manuals seem to be similarly monochromatic (or nearly so). Even then, they could have made them more interesting/engaging by adding a few more illustrations, don't you think?


As for your guess about the focus of the next installation of 'Manual Stimulation': I think you may be right? ;) I can guarantee, though, that the two after that one won't be Famicom games! (Just in case anyone's bored by the Famicom, etc.)

Steve Pixel said...

Yes, they definitely could've done a better job with this, especially considering the game seemed to be relatively popular considering how many systems they had already ported it to at this point.

And I must say that personally I will never be bored of your Famicom posts. Definitely prefer them to Style Savvy and Animal Crossing! (I know, I'm a terrible person ;> )

thegaygamer.com said...

I agree, Steve. Thankfully, they seemed to get better with time. Manuals, that is. At least companies like Nintendo and Namco and Taito and Square produced stellar box art even at the beginning of the Famicom's life, though.


As for you preferring my Famicom posts to those about Animal Crossing and Style Savvy: well, you're probably not alone :) Of course, I'm sure there are many others who hate retro posts and prefer ones devoted to more current games and systems.


I guess it's a good thing my posts are all over the place, eh? ;)

Kaze said...

So cute!!! I love the image of Chakkun and the enemies all eating Sukiyaki together! lol

thegaygamer.com said...

Yes, that's my favorite illustration, too, Marty. Really wish the designers would have given us a few more like it!