Tricky Kick

Overview

Tricky Kick (JP: Tricky) is a puzzle game released on the TurboGrafx-16 in 1990 by Alfa System and Information Global Service. The goal of the game is to kick objects around a maze into identical objects, which removes both from the map. After all the objects are gone, the player moves onto the next map. As it is very easy to get oneself trapped and unable to continue, the player can hit the Run button to reset the stage.

There are six scenarios, each with ten stages apiece, and all have a different theme and playable character. For instance, one character is trying to make their way through a rough part of town, while another is fighting kaiju and another is trying to survive being in a haunted mansion.

Tricky Kick is one of a handful of TurboGrafx-16 games to be released in the US first, and then see a Japan PC Engine localization later on, rather than the more common reverse path.

Scenarios

• Oberon the Elf: Oberon must rescue his friend Shima from the evil sorceress Kymera. The sorceress is hiding in an enchanted forest. The kickable objects in this scenario are all forest creatures.
• Udon the Bionic Man of the 25th Century: An Ultraman-like hero must defeat the alien kaiju that has attacked his world (Tokyo Tower can be seen in his intro cutscene). The kaiju are the kickable objects in this scenario.
• Taro the Scaredy-Cat: Taro, a grade school student, must prove his bravery to his peers before he'll be accepted by them. He must do this by going to the haunted mansion at night. The kickable objects in this scenario are all Halloween monsters and youkai.
• Gonzo the Stone Age Man: Gonzo must procure meat for his tribe, and so decides to hunt the woolly mammoth. All the kickable objects are prehistoric creatures, like sabre-tooth tigers, as well as enemy cavemen.
• Mayumi the Schoolgirl: Mayumi has been invited to a birthday party, but has to pass through the Rude Boys territory to get there. Kickable objects are downtown low-lifes, hoodlums and stray animals.
• Prince Suzuki the Warlord: In this Sengoku-inspired scenario, Prince Suzuki is attempting to gain control over all of Japan by defeating rival warlords. The kickable objects are medieval Japanese soldiers, samurai and ninjas.