I can’t get over the catchy music in Bigfoot NES. I think between that and the awesome colors is what really captivated me. Aside from that this racing style is so much fun because you have two types of races. One is side-scrolling and the other is top down view. The top down view you have to collect power-ups and cash. The side-scroll is strictly racing without burning out your engine.
How it all started
I was 4 years old when I started playing Bigfoot for the NES . It was a bit frustrating because I couldn’t get very far in this game. I would see how far my brothers would get and one of them beat it. I was just happy that I got to see then ending. Even a few years later after getting an SNES at age 7, I still would go back to play this game. I will still revisit this game as of late on my emulator and it brings me back to my childhood.
bigfoot nes mechanics
This game is interesting in its unique multiple mechanics for a racing game. When you are racing in the top down view its normal in the sense of turning and accelerating. You get to collect power-ups for your engine, suspension etc. You also get to collect cash and this chainsaw looking power-up to destroy your opponent. The side-scrolling has a completely different mechanic. In order to accelerate you have to quickly press left and right on the D-pad and you also have to change gears. But you have to do this strategically or else you will burn out your engine.
Your tires will shrink if you don’t upgrade it completely but we’ll get into that later. I still can’t get this figured out because its a little confusing so it causes me to lose some races. Sometimes in the drag racing you climb mountains which becomes challenging or pulling a trailer through mud.
What’s the purpose?
In Bigfoot you start out as the famous monster truck on the west coast. The whole purpose of this game is to win races from California all the way to New York. You have to win as many races as possible because the more you lose the less money you earn. The less money you earn the less upgrades you can do to your monster truck. When you can’t upgrade, you begin to struggle and wear out your truck during drag races. This causes the vicious losing cycle. Your only hope is during the topdown racing you collect as much money as possible.
who are your opponents?
You can play as single player or 2 player against a friend. Unfortunately you don’t have the famous monster truck vehicles. The blue truck is obviously Bigfoot but the other colors red, green and yellow are just generic trucks.
does Bigfoot NES hold up?
I may love this game a lot because of nostalgia but the reality is the mechanics were poorly designed. It is frustrating even now as an adult I can’t get it and its not easy to grasp. I love the graphics and the music but this might not be the case for everyone. The drag racing will definitely give you blisters while at the same time trying to shift gears. My method was always use both thumbs for the D-pad so I couldn’t easily shift gears.
final thoughts
Give Bigfoot (NES) a try to see if you might enjoy it. I won’t be offended if you hate it but you might like it even with its quirky mechanics. For me it hits my childhood and reminds me of happier times. Check the video down below to watch my play through to see what it’s like.
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