"Tako" is Japanese for "octopus". This is not robotic Mexican food.
A Beat 'em Up game by Data East based on Marvel Comics characters. It was originally released for arcades in 1991, where up to four players could play simultaneously as Captain America, Iron Man, Hawkeye, and The Vision.
The somewhat different NES version was a Platform Game in which one player controlled Captain America and Hawkeye alternately, traveling across America to rescue Iron Man and the Vision from captivity. In this version, Cap and Hawkeye are played differently: Cap can dash, float on water or stand on spikes with his shield and hangs on chains, but can only throw his shield in one direction; Hawkeye, on the other hand, can do none of that, but makes up for it by being able to shoot arrows in any direction.
Captain America also appeared in Data East's arcade Fighting Game Avengers In Galactic Storm.
OK, TROPE!!!:
- Actually a Doombot: The Red Skull you face in the last level is a robot, but don't worry, he still gets his comeuppance when you defeat the robot and it falls on him.
- Advertised Extra: Iron Man and Vision in the NES version. Both prominently appear on the box art, and both spend the entire game held hostage.
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Annoying Video Game Helper: Wasp in the NES version. Every time you leave a stage, she keeps giving you tips that are pointless by the time you reach the second boss. Doesn't help that Cap and Hawkeye respond to this with "Roger, Wasp", like they already knew this. - Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever: The Sentinel. It's so big that you don't see its entire body.
- Autobots, Rock Out!: The soundtrack really hammers the percussion hard for a Genesis game, and includes crazy solos.
- Avengers Assemble: The voice-over's opening battle cry at the start of each chapter.
- Batman Can Breathe in Space: In the Game Gear and Game Boy ports which loosely follow the arcade's story, in the second and third shoot 'em up sections which are respectively set underwater and in outer space, rather than don helmets to breathe both Cap and Hawkeye continue to ride their little jets around.
- Big Bad: Red Skull.
- Big "NO!": The Avengers really don't like getting punched, as evidenced by their belting out an over-dramatic "NO!!" every time it happens.
- "Blind Idiot" Translation: Happens with some dialogue - to the point that there is no voiceover for the dialogue aside from pre-boss battle banter.
- The end screen translates the team catchphrase as "Avengers, unite!" Despite strangely getting it right in the voice clips.
- Distressed Dudes: Iron Man and Vision in the NES version.
- The Dragon: Mandarin in the NES version.
- Dual Boss: Klaw and Living Laser, and later the Controllers.
- Energy Weapon: Several villains use them. Living Laser and Klaw have their Hand Blast attacks, the Mandarin has his Freeze Ray, and Ultron uses his Eye Beams and a Chest Blaster to rain Death from Above.
- Evil Laugh: Red Skull. "HOHOHAHAHA!!!"
- Fantasy Landmark Equivalent: In the location "Avengers' Park" there is a mountain with faces of four Avengers, an imitation of Mount Rushmore.
- Giant Mook: The Sentinel mid-boss of Scene 2.
- Grapple Move: The heroes can pick up whatever junk is nearby and hurl it at attackers. They are able to pick up some enemies as well by using a simple button combination.
- Guilt-Based Gaming: After any of the Avengers die, the announcer shouts, "AMERICA... STILL NEEDS YOUR HELP!", encouraging the player to continue.
- Healthy Green, Harmful Red: The villains, sub-bosses and bosses, Life Meters are green when full and color damage in red (the Avengers' health gauges are represented by a number of Hit Points).
- Large Ham: Mandarin's "SEEEE MY POWWWWWAAAAAHHH!" certainly counts.
- Mercy Invincibility: In the SNES version, it's the enemies who get most of it.
- Money Mauling: Whirlwind, the first boss, is encountered right after he robbed a bank. His opening attack is to throw the bag of money he's carrying as a projectile attack.
- Multi-Ranged Master: Crossbones, the Stage 5 boss, prefers to attack at range with his gun, throwing knives, and mobile land mines.
- Near Victory Fanfare: When you get a boss down to one third health
, a voice shouts "Okay Go!" and the main theme starts up. - Never Say "Die": After defeating the Grim Reaper, he admits that the Red Skull brainwashed him into fighting the Avengers "To the finish." His opening taunt does mention death, however.
- No, You: Whirlwind's comeback before his boss battle at the end of the first stage:Avengers: You can't escape!
Whirlwind: You will be the one escaping! - One-Winged Angel: The robot Red Skull has impersonating him turns into a giant SkeleBot 9000 after it takes enough damage and is revealed to be a robot.
- Prepare to Die: In the back of the box art for the NES version of the game, and the "Now Playing" section in the October 1991 issue of Nintendo Power, there is a screenshot for the early version of the game's intro in which the Mandarin lifts up the magic rings and says, "Say your prayers, Avengers!" before blasting Vision and Iron Man into unconsciousness. However, this was Bowdlerised in the final version, when the Mandarin now says, "You're in trouble, Avengers!"
- Power Echoes:Mandarin: "See my power!"Grim Reaper: "You came here to die!"
- Reformulated Game: The NES game is a Platform Game.
- Rogues' Gallery Transplant:
- The Juggernaut is a villain here. While Juggy has menaced Avengers members such as Thor and Hulk in their own titles, he rarely fought the Avengers as a team. Additionally, Hulk and Thor aren't even in this game. He's also slightly shorter than the player characters, has what looks like a ship's porthole where his face should be, and attacks by rolling around.
- There's also a Sentinel as a boss. (Its Life Meter calls it a "Giant Robot", but it's obvious what it is.) Aside from the Onslaught storyline, Sentinels are almost always only a problem for the mutant teams.
- The Wizard is usually a foe of the Fantastic Four.
- Sinister Scythe: The Grim Reaper's weapon, which he can also use as a propeller blade to float around.
- Space Base: Red Skull has a moonbase, complete with giant laser cannon.
- Spin Attack: Whirlwind, true to his name, twists himself into a tornado to attack, either by Collision Damage or the debris that gets uprotted in his wake.
- Spotlight-Stealing Title: Despite the title and Cap's Arch-Nemesis the Red Skull as the main villain, it's mainly an Avengers game. There are other Avengers as playable characters and most bosses are Avengers villains who are not usually associated with Captain America.
- Not to mention non-player appearances from other Avengers, specifically Wonder Man (who gives Cap and Hawkeye jets to work with when they need it and pilots their ship so they can escape in the ending), Wasp (as an assist character in the shoot-em-up sections) and Quicksilver (who shows up on occasion to drop health pickups); with Namor (who is simply identified by his Sub-Mariner title and shows up in the third level to give the Avengers directions), he and Cap have a history as war buddies, so it's fairly appropriate anyway.
- Theme Music Power-Up: Odd to see it in a video game, but when the players knock off about 2/3 of a boss's health, the background music that was playing will turn upbeat and heroic-sounding."Ok, GO!!"
- Trap Door: Players will fall down one while clearing out Red Skull's base.
- Trick Boss: Red Skull.
- Under the Sea: Part of Scene 3, including an Underwater Boss Battle.
- Unexpected Shmup Level: Parts of Scene 2, Scene 3, and Scene 5.
- The Unfought: Red Skull ironically enough. After you defeat him, it turns out to be a robot, which then turns into a giant. Red Skull is instead defeated when his robot is defeated and falls on him.
- World of Ham: If the dialogue is an indication, Red Skull, The Mandarin, and even some of the lines spoken by of our superheroes are this.
- Written Sound Effect: Comicbook-style fight noises appear on screen.
- Your Princess Is in Another Castle!: So after defeating Mandarin in the NES version, you thought you would get Vision and Iron Man back, right? Wrong! You still have to move on to another planet and fight Red Skull before you can get both heroes back.
