Anyone who’s poked around the emulation scene for a while knows that ROM hacking - decompiling a game’s code and getting it to do new things - has been around almost as long as the emulation scene itself. Perhaps longer, if the Brazilian video game market (where pirating games has been legal since the days of the Atari 2600) is taken into account.

Given the NES’s status as being one of the major cultural touchstones of an entire generation now in their mid-20s to mid-30s, it shouldn’t be surprising that the NES features so many ROM hacks. It is, after all, a very large part of our collective childhoods… everyone, it seemed, had one, and such things as the Super Mario Bros. theme, the Konami Code, and Metroid’s “JUSTIN BAILEY” password have become indelibly woven into the tapestry of our pop-culture upbringing.

It therefore shouldn’t be surprising that the NES is the most prolific emulated console for ROM hacks to appear on. All you need to do is find one of those mall kiosks that hawk Taiwanese NES/Famicom “1000-in-1″ systems to see the proof; most of the advertised games are graphics hacks of SMB, or the original Bomberman, or some other allegedly “classic” first-gen NES game, that are in there only to inflate the game count (which in most cases would otherwise be at only about a dozen or so truly different games). Sadly, most hacks don’t go beyond just changing the graphics, as anyone who’s ever waded through literally thousands of bad/buggy/incomplete SMB patches featuring nude Marios, KKK Marios, liberal applications of the F-bomb, Esperanto translations, and Zelda cameos can attest. (And yes, these are all real hacks that are floating around out there.)

Fortunately, there are some gems out there - hacks that not only change the way a game looks, but how it plays as well. And while many such projects end up abandoned or otherwise unfinished, there are three that I feel are worthy of special mention. They are discussed below.

(DISCLAIMER: While the .IPS files that patch the ROM data are in fact legal software, they still require a copy of the actual game ROM to be useful. In the eyes of US copyright law, it is illegal to download or use a ROM you do not own a physical cartridge for or did not otherwise purchase, no matter how old the game is or if it’s still being sold in stores or not. We at WotG respect copyright and do not advocate software piracy; all requests for ROMs will be ignored, except for purposes of us making fun of you.)

1. Metroid X (based on Metroid): There have been many Metroid hacks over the years, and even some that have altered the layout of the maps. But few if any have achieved the notoriety of Metroid X, one of the first “hacks” that was actually considered by the highly-discriminating Metroid fanbase to be as good, if not better, than an actual Nintendo-released NES sequel might have been. Featuring a entirely new map and a significantly increased difficulty level, Metroid X sends everyone’s favorite spacefaring female bounty hunter, Samus Aran, on a new adventure that seems both comfortably familiar and entirely new; many have compared it to that feeling of exploring uncharted territory that they got from playing through the original Metroid for the first time, lo these many years ago.

2. Zelda Challenge: Outlands (based on The Legend of Zelda): Another oldie-but-goodie patch, this one features an entirely different story, new graphics, an Overworld that only vaguely resembles the Hyrule we all know and love, reprogrammed enemies, and exponentially higher difficulty. It’s recommended only for those who can beat the Second Quest of the original Zelda game in their sleep. All the dungeon entrances and layouts have changed, and some of your old strategies for beating enemies will no longer work. You’ll find some surprising cameos from later Zelda games here, as well. There’s even a completely new title screen and remixed music. If you were one of the many who were disappointed with how different Zelda II: The Adventure of Link was from the original, this is the NES sequel you probably dreamed about back in the day.

3. Mario Adventure (based on Super Mario Bros. 3): And to complete the trifecta of Nintendo’s classic franchises, here’s quite possibly the most elaborate and complete NES ROM hack ever. Keeping the gameplay (and basic look-and-feel) of SMB3, arguably the most popular game in the series, while totally throwing out the semi-linear gameplay and turning it into something of an exploration game/scavenger hunt (in the vein of Super Mario 64), Mario Adventure definitely offers up something different for the experienced player. It even adds an autosave feature, something the real SMB3 really could have used!  In fact, this hack is so polished, the new levels so professional-looking, and the transformation of the gameplay so flawless you could be forgiven for thinking it came from Nintendo themselves. (I don’t provide a link, alas, because the only page I can find for this game contains the actual patched ROM itself, which is technically a no-no. Google is your friend, however; that’s all I’ll say…)

Give any or all of these “re-imagined” classics a look; you probably won’t be disappointed. It’s a long way from replacing Mario with Pitfall Harry, or giving Mega Man a gender change…

If you liked that, try...

1. Retro-Active: NES Tetris Revisited
2. Who needs Madden 08 when you can have Tecmo 08?
3. Retro-Active: Bionic Commando (NES)
4. Retro-Active: Kid Icarus
5. HOWTO: Fix a “Flashing” NES

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