Hammerin’ Harry (NES) Playthrough

A playthrough of Irem’s 1992 platformer for the NES, Hammerin’ Harry. This video is of the English PAL version and shows both loops through the game. The second loop begins at 16:01. Hammerin’ Harry was released in North American arcades in 1990, and though the NES game was reviewed in Nintendo Power, the localized version of the Famicom game (大工の源さん, lit. “Gen the Carpenter“) was only released in PAL territories. The NES game was created by Tamtex, an Irem subsidiary best known for games like Metal Storm () and R-Type III: The Third Lightning (), and it’s a solid adaptation of the coin-op. Some obvious cuts had to be made to accommodate the weaker hardware: the physics-based behavior of stage obstacles like crates, pipes, and wrecking balls is gone; the graphics and sound have seen significant downgrades; and a stage is missing and the layouts of the rest have been simplified, but it’s still recognizable as Hammerin’ Harry. You play as Harry, a carpenter on a quest to take down the evil construction company that’s responsible for destroying his house and kidnapping his girlfriend. He totes around a giant wooden mallet that can be used to cave in enemies’ skulls, to create earthquakes that stun everyone nearby, and to smack away incoming projectiles. I’m a fan of Hammerin’ Harry’s oddball sense of humor. The last boss makes me think of Belger from Final Fight (but his chair can fly!), I couldn’t stop laughing at the way the mutated secretary boss looks as she flings herself around the room, and how about the way Harry screams, “Let’s get busy!“ at the beginning of each stage, as if the name Hammerin’ Harry itself wasn’t already a peak example of early 90s innuendo-laden ’tude. The game is short and very much on the easy side, but it’s one that’s fun to go back and play again and again. I can’t count how many times I’ve gone through it over the years. Hammerin’ Harry isn’t likely to be a life-changing revelation for anyone, but it is an entertaining way to burn a few hours. _____________ No cheats were used during the recording of this video. NintendoComplete () punches you in the face with in-depth reviews, screenshot archives, and music from classic 8-bit NES games!