Chew Man Fu

Chew Man Fu[lower-alpha 1] is a 1990 action video game developed by Now Production and published in Japan by Hudson Soft and in North America by NEC for the TurboGrafx-16.

Chew Man Fu
Developer(s)Now Production
Publisher(s)
Designer(s)Masami Shimotsuma
Programmer(s)Atsutane Wakisaka
Composer(s)N. Ide
Platform(s)TurboGrafx-16, Mobile phone
ReleaseTurboGrafx-16
  • JP: March 30, 1990
  • NA: 1990
Mobile phone
Genre(s)Action
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Chew Man Fu was created by Now Production, an Osaka-based game development company founded in 1986 by Toshiaki Awamura, who would later work on future projects such as Adventure Island II and Rolling Thunder 3. First released on the TurboGrafx-16, the game has since been ported for mobile phones, with new visuals and level design, and re-released through digital platforms like the Virtual Console and the Japanese cloud gaming service G-cluster, in addition to being included on the PC Engine Mini console.

Chew Man Fu garnered mostly positive reception since its release on the TurboGrafx-16; critics found the game's design to be unusual but straightforward and commended its strong action element, large and detailed character sprites, controls, technical performance and use of passwords to resume progress, but other reviewers felt mixed regarding the overall audiovisual presentation and simple gameplay, while the maze editor was criticized for lacking the ability to save levels. Retrospective commentary has been equally positive. One of the title's main characters appears in Pixel Puzzle Collection (2018) for Android and iOS devices.

Gameplay
Gameplay screenshot

The single-screen levels are inhabited by enemies, who can be killed by the firing of one of the balls.[1] When a ball hits an enemy, it will continue moving in the same direction, intervening walls, and pushing the player backwards slightly. Balls can also be pushed forwards or pulled backwards, including around corners. Once a ball is placed onto its pad, it can be still be moved. Also included is a small bonus Kick-Ball game for two players, which doubles as practice with the control system.

Development and release

Chew Man Fu was developed by Now Production, an Osaka-based game development company founded in 1986 by Toshiaki Awamura, who would later work on future projects such as Adventure Island II and Rolling Thunder 3.[2][3] The game was co-designed by Masami "Simotuma" Shimotsuma and members under the pseudonym "Yumi" and "Bimbo!".[4] Atsutane "Wakky" Wakisaka served as the game's sole programmer, while N. Ide was responsible for sound.[4]

Chew Man Fu was first published in Japan by Hudson Soft on March 30, 1990, for the PC Engine and later in North America by NEC in 1990 for the TurboGrafx-16.[5] The game was first re-released for the Wii's Virtual Console on February 13, 2007, in Japan, then in North America on February 26 and later in Europe on March 2.[6][7] The title also received a version for mobile phones in 2007, featuring new visuals as well as reworked level design and controls.[8][9] It was re-released on June 20, 2013, through the Japanese cloud gaming service G-cluster.[10] In addition, it was re-released through the Wii U's Virtual Console in Japan on July 30, 2014, and later in North America on September 21, 2017.[11][12] It was included in both the Japanese and western variants of the PC Engine Mini console in 2020.[13][14][15]

Reception

Chew Man Fu on the TurboGrafx-16 received mostly positive reception from critics,[24] most of which reviewed it as an import title. Public reception was also positive; readers of PC Engine Fan voted to give the game a 21.30 out of 30 score, ranking at the number 216 spot in a poll, indicating a popular following.[25] Famitsu's four reviewers found the game to not be as "exhilarating" as Bomberman, but noted that the action element was "quite strong".[5] French magazine Génération 4 commended its use of passwords to resume progress.[18] Joystick's Jean-Marc Demoly gave positive remarks to its visuals for being well-realized, sprite animations, sound and controls.[19] Aktueller Software Markt's Sandra Alter also gave positive commentary to the title in regards to its level editor as well as the graphics, controls, technical performance and play value.[17]

In contrast to other reviewers, Power Play's Martin Gaksch found Chew Man Fu to be too simplistic and felt mixed in regards to its audiovisual presentation.[22] In a similar manner, The Games Machine' Warren Lapworth found the game unusual in terms of design but very simple and straightforward. Lapworth noted that the two-player mode could be fun and commended the character sprites for being large and "excellently" defined, as well as the oriental-style music and sound effects, but criticized its maze editor for lacking the ability to save levels.[20] Tilt's Alain Huyghues-Lacour gave positive remarks to the visuals, animations and sound, but ultimately found the title to be "a little boring in the long run."[21] TurboPlay's Donn Nauert felt mixed about the game's sound but also gave positive remarks to its graphics and playability.[23] AllGame's Shawn Sackenheim found its gameplay to be simple but unique and challenging, and praised the character animations for being "cute and entertaining", as well as the extra game modes and replay value. However, Sackenheim criticized both visuals and music for being repetitive.[16]

Retrospective coverage

Retrospective reviews for Chew Man Fu have been equally positive. Reviewing the Virtual Console re-release, IGN's Lucas M. Thomas compared its gameplay with both Adventures of Lolo and Mole Mania, but remarked that said gameplay could prove simplistic to most players.[26] Nintendo Life concurred with Thomas when reviewing the Virtual Console reissue, stating that the game "won't be everyone's cup of tea" but commended its bright and colorful graphics, as well as the simplistic but challenging and smooth gameplay.[6] When reviewing the Virtual Console relaunch, GameSpot's Frank Provo felt that the title was inspired by both Pengo and Pirate Ship Higemaru. Provo gave positive remarks to the increasingly difficult maze layouts, cartoon-esque sprites, "peppy" music, length, two-player mode and level editor, but he criticized its gameplay for being repetitive and plain presentation.[27] Eurogamer's Dan Whitehead noted it to be simple but addictive and accessible when reviewing the title on the Virtual Console, praising its large sprites and ball physics.[28] Hardcore Gaming 101's Aaron Vark called it "one of the more enjoyable non-shoot-em-up titles for the TurboGrafx-16", citing its styling and gameplay mechanics similar to Pengo.[1]

Legacy

One of the main characters in Chew Man Fu, Rin Rin, appears in the 2018 game Pixel Puzzle Collection for Android and iOS devices.

Notes
  1. Also known as Be Ball (Japanese: ビーボール, Hepburn: Bī Bōru) in Japan.

References
  1. Vark, Aaron (December 3, 2015). "Chew Man Fu". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on 2021-07-08. Retrieved 2021-10-13.
  2. CRV (September 17, 2007). "Now Production". Game Developer Research Institute. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
  3. Fahs, Travis (December 12, 2008). "Standing in the Shadows Vol. 1: Now Production — One of the biggest devs you've never heard of". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
  4. Now Production. Chew Man Fu (TurboGrafx-16). NEC. Level/area: Staff!!.
  5. "NEW GAMES CROSS REVIEW: BE BALL (PCエンジン)". Famitsu (in Japanese). No. 98. ASCII Corporation. April 13, 1990. p. 17. (Transcription by Famitsu.com. Archived July 28, 2014, at the Wayback Machine).
  6. "Chew Man Fu Review (TG-16) — Fried rice and egg rolls are in danger!". Nintendo Life. Nlife Media. February 27, 2007. Archived from the original on 2021-01-17. Retrieved 2021-10-20.
  7. Tsukui, Kazuhito (February 13, 2007). "バーチャルコンソール配信ソフト3タイトル追加！（2/13）". Inside Games (in Japanese). IID, Inc.. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
  8. Dredge, Stuart (February 21, 2007). "Hudson Entertainment Brings Chew Man Fu To Both Wii(TM) Virtual Console(TM) And Cell Phones — Classic TurboGrafx Game Entertains A New Generation of Gamers with Arcade Puzzle Fun!". GamesIndustry.biz. Gamer Network. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
  9. Dredge, Stuart (February 22, 2007). "Chew Man Fu gets a mobile game makeover — Oldie TurboGrafx game coming to phones". Pocket Gamer. Steel Media Ltd. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
  10. Tsukui, Kazuhito (June 20, 2013). "KONAMI、本日発売のクラウドゲーム機「G-cluster」で『グラディウス』『高橋名人』など16タイトルを配信開始". Inside Games (in Japanese). IID, Inc.. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
  11. Tsukui, Kazuhito (July 23, 2014). "Wii Uバーチャルコンソール7月30日配信タイトル ― 『弟切草』『謎の村雨城』『ニュートピアII』『BE BALL』『ロックマンエグゼ バトルチップGP』の5本". Inside Games (in Japanese). IID, Inc.. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
  12. Richards, Brian (September 20, 2017). "Shockman, Chew Man Fu hitting the North American Wii U Virtual Console tomorrow". Nintendo Everything. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
  13. "【PCエンジン mini全タイトルレビュー！】「ALIEN CRUSH」や「CADASH」に注目！全6タイトルをご紹介 — 海外タイトルレビューその1（レース・パズルほか編）". GAME Watch (in Japanese). Impress Corporation. March 19, 2020. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
  14. Sam Machkovech, Sam Machkovech (April 15, 2020). "TurboGrafx-16 Mini review: Mostly best-in-class retro gaming, sometimes WTF". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on 2021-07-11. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
  15. "PC Engine Mini review – all 57 games reviewed, from Snatcher to Splatterhouse". Metro. April 15, 2020. Archived from the original on 2021-02-26. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
  16. Sackenheim, Shawn (1998). "Chew Man Fu (TurboGrafx-16) – Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on 2014-11-15. Retrieved 2021-10-20.
  17. Alter, Sandra (June–July 1990). "Konsolen: Zum Kugeln! — Be Ball (PC-Engine)". Aktueller Software Markt (in German). No. 43. Tronic Verlag. p. 82.
  18. "Tests PC Engine: Be Ball". Génération 4 (in French). No. 23. Computec. June 1990. p. 68.
  19. Demoly, Jean-Marc (June 1990). "Consoles Magazine – Nec PC Engine: Be Ball". Joystick (in French). No. 6. Sipress. p. 93.
  20. Lapworth, Warren (August 1990). "Reviews: Be Ball (PC Engine)". The Games Machine. No. 33. Newsfield Publications. p. 57.
  21. Huyghues-Lacour, Alain (September 1990). "Rolling Softs: Be Ball (PC Engine)". Tilt (in French). No. 81. Editions Mondiales S.A.. pp. 100–101.
  22. Gaksch, Martin (July 1990). "Power Tests — Videospiele: Be Ball (PC-Engine)". Power Play (in German). No. 28. Markt & Technik. p. 119.
  23. Nauert, Donn (February–March 1991). "TurboPlay Rates the Games – Chew Man Fu". TurboPlay. No. 5. Larry Flynt Publications. p. 25. Archived from the original on 2021-10-19. Retrieved 2021-10-20.
  24. "TurboPlay Rates the Games – Volume 2: Chew Man Fu". TurboPlay. No. 11. Larry Flynt Publications. February–March 1992. p. 26. Archived from the original on 2021-10-20. Retrieved 2021-10-20.
  25. "PC Engine All Catalog '93 10月号特別付録 – ビーボール". PC Engine Fan (in Japanese). Vol. 6, no. 10. Tokuma Shoten. October 1, 1993. p. 136.
  26. M. Thomas, Lucas (February 26, 2007). "Chew Man Fu Review — A puzzling quest to save the world's supply of rice". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on 2019-05-03. Retrieved 2021-10-20.
  27. Provo, Frank (April 20, 2007). "Chew-Man-Fu Review — Chew Man Fu is a challenging maze puzzler that earns its keep with loads of levels, support for two players, and a built-in level editor". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 2019-07-14. Retrieved 2021-10-20.
  28. Whitehead, Dan (June 15, 2007). "Virtual Console Roundup • Page 3 — F-Zero X, Bonk, Mystical Ninja and friends". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on 2018-04-04. Retrieved 2021-10-20.
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