A playthrough of Nintendo's 1986 action-arcade game for the NES, Balloon Fight.

Balloon Fight's arcade mode has twelve unique stages that loop endlessly, so the game doesn't have a true "ending." I played until I got a game over during Phase 20. At 12:12 I begin the Balloon Trip mode and play until I hit the top rank.

The original Balloon Fight game was released in arcades as a Nintendo Versus System game, Vs. Balloon Fight, in 1984, and was it was brought to the NES in America as a "black box game" in mid-1986, shortly after the nationwide launch of the console.

Like so many of Nintendo's first-generation NES games, Balloon Fight is easy to pick up and play, but it has enough depth to keep things interesting far longer than you might expect given the seeming lack of content.

You play as a guy that can fly thanks to the balloons that he has attached to his helmut. You get lift-off by flapping your arms (B button for continuation flapping, A button for one flap), and if an enemy comes into contact with one of your balloons, it'll pop, which makes flying a far more difficult, cumbersome affair. If you get hit again and lose your second balloon, you'll plummet to your death. It feels a like Joust in many ways.

The goal is to knock out all of the enemies, all of whom are also flying about with balloons. Once you've popped an enemy's balloons, you have to hit him while he is stranded on the ground to kill him, unless he fell into the lake and got eaten. That's always pretty satisfying to see.

The strategy comes with figuring out how to efficiently clear a board without getting yourself wiped out. What order should you tackle the baddies in? Do you hover near the top, or do you actively lure them into hazards? Do you risk going after the bubbles they leave behind for a higher score, or do you merely finish each stage as quickly as possible? It's all pretty enjoyable without being frustrating, and the impressively done pseudo-physics add hugely to the general appeal.

The Balloon Trip mode controls the same way, but instead of single-screen stages filled with platforms, it's made up of a single auto-scrolling stage filled with stars. It's big obstacle course, essentially.

Balloon Fight is a cool, innovative game that bears all of the early 80s Nintendo hallmarks, and it would've made for a great value back when it was new thanks to its replayability. It has never been among my favorite NES games, but it's hard to deny just how well made it is.
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No cheats were used during the recording of this video.

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