Popeye
1982 · Action · Arcade
Overview
Popeye (1982) is Nintendo's arcade game of the cartoon sailor: catch Olive Oyl's falling hearts and notes while Bluto and the Sea Hag attack.
Deep Dive
Popeye climbs between the floors of each scene collecting the hearts, notes or letters Olive Oyl throws down before they sink into the sea, while Bluto chases him and the Sea Hag hurls bottles. A can of spinach briefly lets Popeye knock Bluto away. Nintendo had first wanted the Popeye licence for the game that became Donkey Kong; once it secured the rights, it built an arcade game around the characters. It was one of Nintendo's last major coin-ops before the Famicom took over the company's focus.
Developer Story
Popeye was developed by Nintendo in 1982. Shigeru Miyamoto had originally pitched the Popeye licence for what became Donkey Kong, but could not secure it in time. When Nintendo finally got the licence, Miyamoto built the game around the same structural ideas. Its Famicom conversion was one of the console's launch titles in Japan.
Did You Know?
- Donkey Kong was originally designed as a Popeye game — Miyamoto adapted the concept when the licence fell through, making Mario a substitute for Popeye.
- The game arrived as Nintendo was preparing the Famicom, and a home version was one of the console's three launch titles in Japan in 1983.
- Bluto throws objects at Popeye from above — a structure directly mirroring Donkey Kong's barrel-throwing.
- Spinach cans temporarily made Popeye invincible and able to attack Bluto directly — matching the character's established cartoon behaviour.
Sources & further reading
- Popeye (video game) — Wikipedia
