''Inspector Gadget'' is a 1993 side-scrolling

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video game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System based on the television show of the same title. The game was released by Hudson Soft, with developers who also worked on Hudson's video game adaptations '' SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron'' and '' An American Tail: Fievel Goes West''. The normally bumbling Gadget is portrayed as fairly competent as he must rescue his niece Penny from the clutches of Dr. Claw and his M.A.D. terrorist organization. Dr. Claw's face makes a rare appearance in the game, unlike the cartoon, which keeps his face hidden. A hidden debug menu is used to test certain options like god mode, a stage select with every playable level available, and a complete test of all the sound effects/music found while playing the game.

Gameplay

The player controls Inspector Gadget as he travels around the world to rescue his niece Penny, who has been kidnapped by the terrorist organization M.A.D. and its leader Dr. Claw. Each level is preceded by a short intro at Gadget's house, reprising the

running gag A running gag, or running joke, is a literary device that takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling. Though they are similar, catchphrases are no ...

of the series in which Gadget blows up Chief Quimby via self-destructing messages. When hit by an enemy, Gadget's clothing falls off, leaving him wearing only boxer shorts. The next hit causes Gadget to lose a life. Additional coats are hidden in breakable bricks and can be acquired to restore his second

hit point Health is an attribute in a video game or tabletop game that determines the maximum amount of damage or loss of stamina that a character or object can take before dying or losing consciousness. In role-playing games, this typically takes the f ...

. Gadget's primary weapons are his extendable limbs, which can be used to punch and kick enemies. A power-up allows Gadget to extend the maximum reach of his limbs. Various gadgets can also be collected and used, including a helicopter rotor,

plunger A plunger, force cup, plumber's friend or plumber's helper is a tool used to clear blockages in drains and pipes. It consists of a rubber suction cup attached to a stick (''shaft'') usually made of wood or plastic. A different bellows-like des ...

s and arrows. Gadgets can be powered up as well, which has various effects depending on the gadget, such as making the arrows deal more damage. Most gadgets are powered by hats, with each gadget requiring a certain number of hats to operate. Additional hats can be collected in levels by breaking certain bricks. Common enemies in the levels include M.A.D. agents and each level has a fixed time limit. Running out of time costs Gadget a life. When there are seventeen seconds left in the timer, a frantic melody plays, warning the player to hurry up and finish the level. The levels are based on actual locales from the television series. They are: Count Dracula's castle in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, Cuckoo Clock Maker's clock tower in Switzerland, Jungle Bob's jungle hideout in

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

, King Tutonpoot's

tomb A tomb ( grc-gre, τύμβος ''tumbos'') is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called ''immureme ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

and Dr. Claw's Winterland Castle. Each level boss is Dr. Claw himself, who battles Gadget in various different ways. At the end of the last level, Dr. Claw escapes into an

airship An airship or dirigible balloon is a type of aerostat or lighter-than-air aircraft that can navigate through the air under its own power. Aerostats gain their lift from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air. In early ...

and Gadget must face him in a

Mech In science fiction, or mechs are giant robots or machines controlled by people, typically depicted as humanoid walking vehicles. The term was first used in Japanese after shortening the English loanword or , but the meaning in Japanese is ...

. After the fight, Claw retreats and Gadget saves Penny who is falling from the ship. Gadget then receives a note from Chief Quimby informing him Dr. Claw had now captured Quimby, much to Gadget's chagrin.

Reception

Allgame RhythmOne , previously known as Blinkx, and also known as RhythmOne Group, is an American digital advertising technology company that owns and operates the web properties AllMusic, AllMovie, and SideReel. Blinkx was founded in 2004, went publ ...

gave ''Inspector Gadget'' a rating of 2.5 out of 5. ''

Electronic Gaming Monthly ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' (often abbreviated to ''EGM'') is a monthly American video game magazine. It offers video game news, coverage of industry events, interviews with gaming figures, editorial content and product reviews. History The m ...

'' praised the game for the variety of items that must be used and for the graphics, which they felt were reminiscent of the cartoon series. They gave the game a rating of 6.6 out of 10. ''

Nintendo Power ''Nintendo Power'' was a video game news and strategy magazine from Nintendo of America, first published in July/August 1988 as Nintendo's official print magazine for North America. The magazine's publication was initially done monthly by Ninten ...

'' covered the game in its February 1994 issue.

Power Unlimited ''Power Unlimited'' is a Dutch multi-format video games magazine. It is the biggest gaming magazine in the Benelux. The first issue was released in June 1993. History ''Power Unlimited'' started in June 1993 in Bjørn Bruinsma's basement as a ne ...

gave a review score of 89% summarizing: "Inspector Gadget is a refreshing platform game. Of course the cartoon was already one of the coolest out there, but the game beat everything. Just as fun as the cartoon and maybe even better. Laughable, original and varied."

References

External links

''Inspector Gadget''
at SNES Box {{Inspector Gadget 1993 video games Detective video games Fortyfive games Hudson Soft games Video games based on Inspector Gadget North America-exclusive video games Platform games Single-player video games Super Nintendo Entertainment System games Super Nintendo Entertainment System-only games Video games about police officers Video games developed in Japan Video games scored by Saori Kobayashi Video games set in England Video games set in Egypt Video games set in South America Video games set in Switzerland Side-scrolling platform games