Little Samson

Little Samson is a action-platform video game developed by Takeru for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It was published by Taito in 1992 in Japan on June 26, in North America in November, and in Europe on March 13, 1993. The game stars four heroes summoned to stop the demon king Ta-Keed from wreaking havoc on the kingdom of Forgy. Each character has different abilities and the player can switch between the four heroes at any time.

Little Samson was directed by Shinichi Yoshimoto, who worked as a designer on Capcom titles such as Ghouls 'n Ghosts and Strider (1989). Artwork for the game was handled by Kiyoshi Utata, who worked on both Cocoron and Nostalgia 1907. The game received generally favorable reviews; critics praised its audiovisual department and noted that swapping between characters added a strategy element to the action. It is considered one of the best NES games in retrospect, and the North American release has become an expensive collector's item.

Gameplay
Little Samson is a side-scrolling action-platform game reminiscent of the Mega Man franchise. The premise takes place in a world where the demon king Ta-Keed once terrorized the world but was sealed by gods, whose power was dispersed in the form of four bells. When the kingdom of Forgy was threatened by Ta-Keed, emperor Hans VI and his aides sealed him deep within a high mountain. On the eve of emperor Hans XIV's birthday, Ta-Keed was released from his seal by a lightning. The emperor led his army into battle, but was no match for the demon king's powerful subordinates. After learning the legend of the hero who holds the four bells, Hans XIV summoned four warriors who own the bells with the task of stopping Ta-Keed from wreaking havoc.

The player chooses between one of four characters, each with their own advantages and disadvantages: the mountain climber Little Samson, the dragon Kikira, the golem Gamm, and the mouse K.O.   Samson attacks enemies by throwing bells and can climb walls and ceilings. Kikira can fly for brief periods and breathe fire that can be charged up, while her claws allow her traction on icy surfaces. Gamm is slow but strong, can walk on spikes and attack with short but powerful blows in any direction. K.O. has the least amount of health, but is fast, small to fit through narrow passages, can climb walls and ceilings, and attacks by dropping bombs.

The first four stages act as a tutorial for each character and can be played in any order. Upon completing their respective stages, the characters gather before emperor Hans XIV, who appoints Samson as leader of the team. Kikira is initially hostile to the idea of Samson being the leader and instigates a fight against him for dominance, but surrenders after her defeat. The player can switch characters at any time during gameplay and stage progression occurs in a linear sequence. There are twenty stages in total, each divided into thirteen levels with branching paths and a boss encounter. There are two difficulty levels: Easy and Normal. When playing on Normal difficulty there are more enemies, the characters' maximum lifebar is lower, and the true ending is unlocked.

Throughout each stage, the player fights enemies and avoids obstacles while collecting items and power-ups including extra lives, hearts that replenish health, crystal orbs that increase the capacity of a character's life bar and potions that fully restore health, though each character can keep one at a time. Each character has their own lifebar, but they all share the same pool of lives. If Samson dies, the player is forced to start over, but if any other character dies, they will remain dead until the current stage is completed or if one of the deceased characters has a potion to revive them. The player can resume their progress via a password system provided after defeating the boss.

Development and release
Little Samson was created by Takeru (also known as Sur Dé Wave), which had previously developed Cocoron for the Famicom. It was directed, produced, and written by Shinichi Yoshimoto, who worked as a designer on Capcom titles such as Ghouls 'n Ghosts and Strider (1989). Artwork for the game was done by Kiyoshi Utata, who worked on both Cocoron and Nostalgia 1907. The Japanese and Western covers for the game were illustrated by artists Mitsuru Todoriki and Greg Winters respectively. It was first published by Taito for the Famicom in Japan as Seirei Densetsu Lickle on June 26, 1992. The game was shown at the 1992 Summer Consumer Electronics Show and was released in North America for the Nintendo Entertainment System under the name Little Samson in November. It was later followed by a European release on March 13, 1993.

Due to poor marketing, coupled with its late release and low sales in North America, resulted in it being one of the rarest, most valuable and sought-after NES titles, commanding high prices on the secondary collecting market. In 2022, Limited Run Games CEO Josh Fairhurst stated that Little Samson was high on his list of titles to bring back and contacted Taito, which told them that the rights to the game "might be with the owner". Limited Run Games tracked down the owner, who in turn responded that he did not know who owned the rights.

Reception
Little Samson received generally favorable reviews. Japanese publication Micom BASIC Magazine ranked the game ninth in popularity in its September 1992 issue, and it received a score of 21.2 out of 30 score in a public poll conducted by Family Computer Magazine. Famitsu's four reviewers considered the game's audiovisual department to be good for the Famicom and that each character was unique but felt the action lacked intensity. George Sinfield and Rob Noel of Nintendo Power noted that swapping between four characters with their special skills added a strategy element to the game's action. Club Nintendo magazine deemed it an entertaining game, highlighting its audiovisual presentation, character and enemy animation, and level of challenge.

Video Games' Manfred Neumayer commended the game's graphics for their variety and attention to detail, likable characters, and the adequate difficulty level of the stages. Play Times Tony Jones said it was a fun and complex game, while HobbyConsolas Manuel del Campo found it highly playable due to the ability to switch characters at any time and gave positive remarks about its visuals but criticized the dull sound. Superjuegos Merche Garcia noted the animation of the characters, particularly that of the mouse K.O. Ação Games regarded it as one of the best games for the Nintendo Entertainment System, while AllGames Skyler Miller wrote that "Little Samson is a tour de force of excellent game design, attractive graphics and pure entertainment value".

Retrospective coverage
Retrospective commentary for Little Samson has been equally favorable, being celebrated as one of the best NES games. Club Nintendo magazine described it as a flawless work on the NES and highlighted the large bosses, particularly the dragon enemy. IGN called it one of the most technically impressive NES titles, citing the rotating character sprites and huge bosses. Greatkev of Jeuxvideo.com praised the game's colorful graphics, rich gameplay, and soundtrack, but found the simple plot and lack of dialogue to be weak points. Retro Gamer labelled it one of the most visually impressive NES games, highlighting its intricate sprites, imaginative enemy designs, and stunning levels.

Hardcore Gaming 101's Michael Plasket lauded the game's gorgeous visual appeal, vibrant music, gameplay mechanics, difficulty curve, and overall length. GamesRadar+ listed it as one of the thirty games they wish were included on the NES Mini. Paste called Little Samson a striking and beautifully designed platformer, while Den of Geek regarded it one of the most underrated NES titles. Destructoid's Zoey Handley gave positive remarks to the game's solid visuals and fluid character animation but questioned some of its design choices.