Shao-Lin's Road (Game)

Shao-Lin's Road

GAME » on March 1985

Amstrad CPC (Platform)Arcade (Platform)Commodore 64 (Platform)Nintendo Switch (Platform)PlayStation 4 (Platform)ZX Spectrum (Platform)

As a practitioner of a secret form of Shaolin kung-fu, kick your way to victory in this arcade beat-'em-up platformer by Konami. GUTS!

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Overview

Shao-Lin's Road (known in the US arcade version as Kicker, also known in Japan as Shourinji-e no Michi, or "Road to the Shaolin Temple") is a martial arts beat-'em-up platformer developed and released by Konami (Company) for arcades in March 1985 (in Japan) and April 1985 (worldwide.

Similar in theme to Konami's earlier arcade game Yie Ar Kung-Fu, Shao-Lin's Road has players maneuvering their martial artist around the screen and using their kung fu to beat their opponent into submission. Unlike Yie Ar Kung-Fu, which uses an early form of fighting game mechanics in a one-on-one scenario, Shao-Lin's Road features a multi-tiered open arena with freedom of movement (making it a progenitor to the platformer-fighting game genre) and has players fighting both boss characters and their numerous henchmen.

In Shao-Lin's Road, players control of Wanpyou (Character) (known in some versions as either "Kicker" or "Lee"), an apprentice of a secret form of Shaolin (Location) kung-fu (known as "Chin's Shao-Lin"), as he is ambushed by the evil Yamucha Gang in their temple. Wanpyou must venture through five stages (each with their own unique three-tier layout) in order to escape the temple and defeat each member of the Yamucha Gang. Along with a variety of kick-based attacks, he has access to multiple special abilities as power-ups.

The game later received computer ports by The Edge (Company) in Europe to the Commodore 64 (Platform) and ZX Spectrum (Platform) in 1986, followed by the Amstrad CPC (Platform) in 1987. The original version was later included in the 1999 PlayStation (Platform) compilation Konami Arcade Classics (Game), the 2007 Nintendo DS (Platform) compilation Konami Classics Series: Arcade Hits., It was later digitally released as part of Microsoft's Game Room (Game) hub on the Xbox 360 (Platform) and PC (Platform).

Gameplay

Power-Ups

Along with normal henchmen (wearing purple pants), there are special henchmen (wearing green pants) that throw special "Crystal Balls" (in an upwards arc) when they are defeated (as long as Wanpyou does not currently possess a special ability). Depending on the color of the Ball, Wanpyou temporarily gains one of three special abilities:

Purple Crystal Ball - Gives him a spiked ball, which can be kicked through opponents and can be maneuvered left and right using the joystick. However, he cannot kick while the ball is being maneuvered, leaving him open to attacks. He can "catch" the spiked ball for another kick and can perform a jumping "slam" instead of a jump kick while holding onto the ball.
Yellow Crystal Ball - Instead of kicking, he fires two fireballs (one to the left and one to the right). While useful in ranged combat, he cannot perform quick close-range attacks (and is an easier target for enemies above and below).
Green Crystal Ball - A glowing ball surrounds him, acting as a barrier. However, he is not completely invincible, and can still get hit by enemies if the player is reckless.

The game cycles between Purple, Yellow, and Green for each Ball dropped by an enemy. Once the power-up time expires, a Ball of the same power-up is discarded from Wanpyou (or the spiked ball, if it is in mid-air). With careful play, players can manage to catch the new Ball to regain the same ability.

Reviews

Magazine	Issue	Page	System	Rating	%	Reviewer	Language
Sinclair User	01/1987	23	ZX Spectrum	4 out of 5	80 \|\|Graham Taylor\|\|English
Your Sinclair	02/1987	78	ZX Spectrum	8 out of 10	80 \|\|Phil\|\|English
Computer + Video Games	02/1987	34, 35	ZX Spectrum	8 out of 10	80 \|\|Tim\|\|English
Svenska Hemdatornytt	02/1987	29	C64, ZX Spectrum	75 out of 100	75 \|\|-\|\|Swedish
Computer + Video Games	06/1987	39	Amstrad CPC	7.5 out of 10	75 \|\|Paul\|\|English
Your Sinclair	09/1990	76	ZX Spectrum	69 out of 100	69 \|\|Jon Boy\|\|English
Crash	02/1987	34	ZX Spectrum	67 out of 100	67 \|\|Ben, Mike, Paul\|\|English
Datormagazin	04/1987	12	C64	3.3 out of 5	66 \|\|Tomas Hybner\|\|Swedish
Computer + Video Games	07/1987	30	Amstrad CPC	6.5 out of 10	65 \|\|David\|\|English
Popular Computing Weekly	11/27/1986	18	ZX Spectrum	3 out of 5	60 \|\|Peter Worlock\|\|English
Micro Hobby	05/1987	17	ZX Spectrum	5.7 out of 10	57	-	Spanish
Commodore Force	08/1993	20	C64	53 out of 100	53	-	English
Zzap	05/1987	20	C64	47 out of 100	47 \|\|Steve Jarratt, Julian Rignall\|\|English
ASM (Aktueller Software Markt)	04/1987	35	Amstrad CPC, C64, ZX Spectrum	3.8 out of 12	32	Michael Suck	German
Commodore User	04/1987	56	C64	3 out of 10	30 \|\|Chris Cain\|\|English
Popular Computing Weekly	10/30/1986	32	ZX Spectrum	-	- \|\|-\|\|English

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