Wonder Boy

Adventure Island

Wonder Boy is the direct inspiration for Hudson's Adventure Island series.

C64 versions

Beau Jolly's Commodore 64 compilation Big Box features a slightly different version of the game, seemingly an earlier development version supplied to Beau Jolly by mistake. The main sprite looks different, the game's iconic skateboard does not appear, a few graphics and musical effects and enemy / platform positions have been changed, and completing the game dumps the player into what appears to be a bugged and uncompletable version of level 1.

SG-1000 version

While every other version of the game is a decent port of the arcade version content-wise, including every level, bonus and boss, the SG-1000 version of Wonder Boy is much more like a different game with a much smaller scope and content set.

Awards

• Power Play
  • 1987 - #3 Best Master System Game '87

Origin of skateboard

The discovery of an abandoned skateboard left on the balcony of the suite Westone used during development of Wonder Boy led directly to the inclusion of the object as a power-up in-game.

Information also contributed by Martin Smith