I was never particularly fond of Fester’s Quest growing up. While most of us were stupid kids willing to play anything in front of us during the 80s that began to change. By 1989 classics such as the Legend of Zelda, Contra, Mega Man 2, and Bionic Commando had been released. We were starting to develop taste and could spot flawed games now. Fester’s Quest is definitely in that category. This is a game that has a solid foundation but lacks the polish needed to make it good. Avoid this one.
Even to my untrained eye I knew Fester’s Quest was eerily similar to Blaster Master. According to this interview they were developed by the same team which makes sense. It borrows many elements from that title, from weapons to enemies and even graphics. Fester’s Quest was made under a very tight deadline which makes explains the recycled assets. Unfortunately there was enough time to make any last minute changes to fix its flaws which is ultimately what dooms it.
Fester initially starts with a simple gun that is upgraded in eight stages. These stages mirror Jason’s gun in Blaster Master almost identically. By the middle of the game you’ll receive a whip that has four upgrades. These are similar to Simon’s whip in Castlevania 2 not that I think about it. The leather whip upgrades to a chain whip, a morning star, and finally a flame whip. Supplementing these is an entire inventory of items. There are missiles, TNT, invisibility, and the list goes on. Many of these are given by family members and not necessary. Others like keys, money, and light bulbs are mandatory items dropped by enemies.
Although you spend the majority of the game in the overhead perspective entering buildings is done in first person. It is very similar to Wizardry or Phantasy Star and surprisingly smooth. That being said I do question their inclusion. There are no enemies in each building and outside of one no items. These are simply bridges leading to the few boss battles. The overall goal is to defeat all five bosses and assemble the clues leading to Gomez’s whereabouts. This is an average sized game for its time but whether you’ll stick around to the end is another story.
There are obvious problems right from the start. Fester moves slowly, and nearly every enemy is significantly faster. If you move even slightly off screen they respawn, sometimes infinitely until you move again. As agonizing as your slow movement is there are numerous enemies that slow you down even further. This effect can only be removed with vice grips which are in short supply. Most of the environments you explore are tight spaces, rendering your gun useless. You’ll frequently have to reposition yourself just to hit enemies. But once you do they respawn again! The whip helps but the hit detection with it also sucks. These issues make the boss battles a collection of nightmares. You can cheese them with potions but they soak up so much damage that barely works. Seriously how did no one notice this?
Fester’s Quest is not just one of the most difficult games on the NES. This is also one of the hardest games of all time. There a myriad number of reasons for this and they all combine to ruin the game. By default Fester can only take two hits before death. There are two health upgrades but you’ll have to find them first. Death comes frequently and unfortunately continuing starts you back at the beginning of the game. That means you’ll have to slowly trudge your way through every sewer and building just to retrace your steps. Toward the end of the game this is an excruciating process and liable to make you shut the game off.
There is no battery backup or passwords to save progress either. This isn’t a particularly long game but just like Blaster Master it desperately needed it. Working your way through every sewer and brutal boss battle each time to make progress is excruciating. Somehow I finished this when I was younger. But that was over the course of more than a year and slowly chipping away at it. I’d like to say I felt a sense of accomplishment but it was more like I wasted my time. Don’t make the same mistake.
In Closing
I wanted to like Fester’s Quest. In some respects I actually do like it. But not enough to ever recommend it to anyone. You would have to overlook too many crippling flaws to appreciate its good points. At that point you’re better off playing another game.
