Little Samson

Gameplay screenshot

The game's setup is reminiscent of Mega Man by Capcom.[3][4] The player jumps with the A button and attacks, usually in the form of a projectile, with the B button. The character's health is shown by a series of bars, stacked vertically, to the left side of the screen. Throughout the stages the characters must defeat enemies and avoid pits, all the while collecting standard power-ups including one ups, energy-replenishing hearts, and spheres which increase the capacity of the character's health meter.

The two choices of gameplay the player may choose (Easy, Normal) dictates the level of difficulty. If the player chooses Normal mode, several changes will occur in comparison to if the player chooses Easy. Characters have a limit to how much their health meter may extend (about half of their maximum in Easy mode). Levels will also sport more enemies in Normal mode, and should the player die playing with either the dragon, golem, or mouse, that character will no longer be selectable until the player either uses a potion on them or beats the level. Little Samson on the other hand is always playable, and because of which, he alone can complete almost all the levels alone (exceptions being the introductory levels and the very last level).

An uncommon feature of the game is that the player may switch characters at any point during the level. Each character has their own health gauge, but they all share the same “lives” (if the character which the player is using dies, then they lose a life and all heroes' health gauges are restored). When confronted the boss's health is displayed in a similar fashion to the player's but on the right side of the screen. There are two kinds of boss battles: regular bosses, and the dark prince's 4 henchmen. Normal boss battles consist of one fight against a creature Samson and company encounter along the way. A henchman boss battle, however, consists of two phases: their cloaked form, and the boss's true form (typically a large monster). After defeating the boss the player is shown their password.

A dark prince is freed from his seal by a thunderstorm, and begins to try to take over the world. The kingdom is in peril, and the King orders that the four heroes receive a summon. Four pigeons fly off to meet these heroes, and each reads the summon. From here, the player must navigate all four of these heroes through an introductory course.

From here, the strengths of individual characters must be utilized to get through a variety of courses. Several bosses await the heroes, and it is up to the player's strategy to choose which hero(es) will fight the boss. A few levels have branching exits, taking the player to different levels, although each one ends up taking the player to stages marked by skulls on the map. Here, the player fights one of the four wizards that serve as the dark prince's right-hand men, each of which shapeshifts into a larger boss when defeated (Green shapeshifts into a Cyclops, Blue shapeshifts into a magic-wielding knight, Red shapeshifts into a giant dragon, and Yellow shapeshifts into what appears to be the Grim Reaper).

Eventually, the player reaches what appears to be the dark prince's castle, and faces a golden wizard-knight at the end (which shapeshifts into a demonic skull). If the game is played on Easy, this is the final level. If played on Normal, the dark prince's true stronghold — a castle resting on a giant, green skull — arises, and the game continues for a few more levels, ending with a confrontation with the dark prince himself. In the end, through the utilization of all four characters, the kingdom is saved. All story development is shown through pantomimed animated cutscenes.

The game is directed by Shinichi Yoshimoto, who had previously worked on Strider and Ghouls 'n Ghosts. One of the artist for the game was Takashi "Utata Kiyoshi" Kogure.[5][6][7]

It was released in North America in October 1992 and at the time went virtually unknown with little promotion and sold very poorly. As a result, the North American version of the game has since become an expensive collector's item.[8][9][4]

AllGame editor Skyler Miller described Little Samson as one of the best platformers on the NES,[10] touting it as a "tour de force of excellent game design, attractive graphics, and pure entertainment value".[10] He also described the game's stages as "challenging and creatively designed".[10] Public reception was also positive; Japanese readers of Famimaga voted to give it a 21.2 out of 30 score, indicating a popular following.[19] In 2009, IGN placed the title on their "Top 100 NES Games" list at #93.[9]

• Little Samson at GameFAQs
• Little Samson at Giant Bomb
• Little Samson at MobyGames