History VideoGame / GhostsNGoblins

** Mimics show up in ''Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts'' and hide inside discolored treasure boxes. It's not a convicing disguise since most real chests have to be spawned and aren't lying around in the open.

* CoversAlwaysLie: The box and cartridge art for the Gameboy Color port of ''Ghosts 'n Goblins'' as a mimic on it, a monster from ''Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts''.

* DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu: You kill the Devil himself by beating him over the head with a shield.

* {{Kamaitachi}}: Among the first enemies Sir Arthur faces in the game are kamaitachi, depicted as small floating creatures with scythes that turn into tornados.

* {{Satan}}: The recurring BigBad of the series is Astaroth, and Satan is his lackey. In ''Ghouls 'n Ghosts'', the BigBad is Lucifer (Loki in the American Genesis version). In ''Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts'', the final boss Sardius is called Samael in Japanese. These are all separate entities. And in ''Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins'', Astaroth is still there as the FinalBoss, but there's a TrueFinalBoss after him: ''Hades''.

''Ghosts 'n Goblins'' (known in Japanese as ''Makaimura'', "Demon World Village") is a [[NintendoHard Hellishly-hard]] PlatformGame from [[UsefulNotes/The8bitEraOfConsoleVideoGames the 8-bit era]], created by {{Creator/Capcom}}. It pits intrepid Knight in (and [[UnderwearOfPower very frequently out of]]) [[KnightInShiningArmor Shining Armor]] Arthur against endless hordes of undead, demons, [[GoddamnedBats bats]], and the titular ghosts and goblins in a quest to [[SaveThePrincess save his sweetie]], Princess Prin-Prin, [[OneHitPointWonder with only two hit points to his name]].

As with many great titles of the time, it began as a quarter-muncher in arcades. It was followed by ports to various home platforms, including the UsefulNotes/ZXSpectrum, UsefulNotes/{{Commodore 64}}, UsefulNotes/{{Amiga}}, and UsefulNotes/{{NES}}. Later on, it appeared in updated form on the UsefulNotes/GameBoyColor, UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance, and UsefulNotes/PlayStation, and in 2007 was released on the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} UsefulNotes/VirtualConsole. The arcade game is tough enough, but the Micronics port for the NES is [[PortingDisaster miserably hard and riddled with glitches]]. Yet people [[JustOneMoreLevel still seem to love it.]]

The game received sequels in ''Ghouls 'n Ghosts'' (''Daimakaimura'', "Great Demon World Village" in Japanese) for arcades and the UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis, ''Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts'' (''Choumakaimura'', "Super Demon World Village") for the [[UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem SNES]], ''Makaimura for UsefulNotes/WonderSwan'', ''Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins'' (''Gokumakaimura'', "Extreme Demon World Village") for the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable PSP]], and ''Ghosts'n Goblins: Gold Knights'' and ''Gold Knights II'' (''Makaimura: Kishi Retsuden'', Demon World Village: Knight Chronicles) for [[UsefulNotes/IOSGames iOS]]. These tend to include [[PowerUp more projectiles and armor upgrades]] for Arthur, while maintaining the series' trademark difficulty, i.e. he loses ''all'' of his items if struck. After a whole decade of no new games in the series or its spinoffs, ''Ghosts 'n Goblins Resurrection'' (''Kaettekita Makaimura'', “Return of Demon World Village”) was revealed for the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch at the end of 2020 and released in February 2021, returning to 2D graphics and combining aspects of several of the original games into one package.

It spawned a spin-off series [[BreakoutMookCharacter starring a Red Arremer]] named Firebrand, loosely known as ''VideoGame/GargoylesQuest''. The first game, '' Gargoyle's Quest'' (''Red Arremer: Makaimura Gaiden''), is a rare example of an ActionRPG for the UsefulNotes/GameBoy. ''Gargoyle's Quest II'' (''Red Arremer II'') is a direct sequel for the NES. ''Demon's Crest'' (''Demon's Blazon: Makaimura Monshou-hen'', "Demon World Village Crest Chapter") for the SNES seemed to take inspiration from ''{{VideoGame/Mega Man X|1}}'', with Firebrand [[VoluntaryShapeshifting morphing]] into new gargoyles with varying strengths and weaknesses (similar to X's armor upgrades). ''Demon's Crest'' came and went without any fanfare, but today is it considered one of [[CultClassic the most underrated gems]] for the console.

In 1996, a Japan-only spinoff/crossover entitled ''Arthur to Astaroth no Nazomakaimura: Incredible Toons'' was released for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation and UsefulNotes/SegaSaturn that, as the title implies, sees Arthur and Astaroth replacing Sid and Al from the ''VideoGame/TheIncredibleMachine'''s sequel, ''Incredible Toons''.

** Arthur instead has vertical stripes in the UsefulNotes/WonderSwan game.

** The UsefulNotes/GameboyAdvance port of ''Super Ghouls n' Ghosts'' includes an all-new "arranged mode" with branching paths and new levels.

* WeirdCrossover: The Japanese-only game ''Arthur to Astaroth no Nazomakaimura: Incredible Toons'', released for the Saturn and Playstation in 1996, demonstrates what happens when you subject ''Ghosts 'n' Goblins'' characters to the puzzle antics of ''[[VideoGame/TheIncredibleMachine Sid & Al's Incredible Toons]]''.

* BladeOnAStick: Arthur's default weapon is a Lance, which the Japanese version originally called a "yari" (spear).

* SpiritualSuccessor: ''Maximo: Ghosts To Glory'' is the official spiritual successor, having many of the same hallmarks (medieval setting with demons, knight protagonist, power-ups that are easy to lose, and overall punishing difficulty), but in a [[VideoGame3DLeap 3D platformer]].

* YourPrincessIsInAnotherCastle: "THIS ROOM IS AN ILLUSION AND IS A TRAP DEVISUT BY SATAN. GO AHEAD DAUNTLESSLY! MAKE RAPID PROGRES!" After defeating the ''Ghosts 'n Goblins'' FinalBoss, Arthur is forced to replay the entire game, on a harder difficulty level, to get the genuine end. This is a tradition kept for the later games, with the second loops adding special weapons that Arthur needs to carry to the end to fight the TrueFinalBoss. Averted in Resurrection, as you do rescue her in the first cycle, though saving the whole kingdom requires a second loop.