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Back to the Future cover art
Action

Back to the Future

by Beam Software·published by LJN

1 September 198925
NES

Reader score

3.8/ 10

32 votes

Where to get it

Community

Trailer

Gallery

8

About

In Back to the Future, 80s teen Marty McFly is mistakenly send 30 years into the past where he disrupts his own parents from meeting. Faced with extinction at the hands of a temporal paradox, Marty must find a way to reunite his future parents and make it back to his own time.

LJN's game differs completely from the computer versions, and plays as a literal race against time broken up by brief arcade minigames. In the main game, the player controls Marty in an overhead view as he runs down the streets of 1950s Hill Valley. A collection of period-appropriate bad guys block his path, including bullies, hula hoop girls, bumblebees, and park benches. The camera scrolls forward at a fixed speed, so the player must keep Marty on the move and away from obstacles. Hitting one causes Marty to fall and lose a life. The player must also collect clocks scattered on the street to stop Marty's photograph from fading away. If it fades completely, Marty is erased from existence.

Street running sections lead to three minigames. In these, Marty must sling milkshakes at oncoming bullies, deflect kisses (shown as hearts) from his mother, and collect notes to rock out on stage at the high school dance. The final stage resembles the street sections, as the player must control the DeLorean time machine and collect enough energy to travel through time (shown as lightning bolts instead of clocks).

Ways to play

Modes

Single player

Perspective

Bird view / Isometric

Languages

1 languages, with audio, subtitles and interface
Languageaudiosubtitlesinterface
English——

Game details

Media Type

Cartridge

Number of Players Supported

1 Player

Box art

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Facts

Developer

Beam Software

Publisher

LJN

Released

1 September 1989

Platforms

NES

Age ratings

CLASS_INDL

Standing

Top 11% by visits

Tags

Top-downLicensed