Kung-Fu Master (arcade)
200x100 GFX Company: IREM
Genre: Beat 'em up
Released: USA: 1984
Thomas, the hero, must rescue the kidnapped Silvia from the Devil's Temple pagoda. The building is swarming with henchmen and traps but it's deadliest feature is that each one of it's five floors is ruled by a member of "the 5 Sons of the Devil." Thomas must battle his way to the top of the pagoda where the gang's leader, known as Mr. X, awaits and guards Silvia.

Many consider Kung-Fu Master is the point in side-scroller gaming where the beat-em-up began. While it lacks the grappling and throws (for the player), tall playfield and other trappings of the genre, it's definitely a non-stop beatdown festival with none of the hazard jumps that platformers are known for. There is also a lifebar which becomes yet another beat-em-up standard. This game rewards bravery as the long distance kicks only give you 100 points while using the closer punches gives you 200 points. If you manage to kick multiple opponents at once, you'll get even more bonus points.

Kung-Fu Master is known as Spartan-X in Japan and is based on characters from the HK flick Wheels on Meals (Kuai can che) featuring Jackie Chan as Thomas and Lola Forner as Sylvia along with Yuen Biao, Sammo Hung (also the director), Benny "the Jet" Urquidez (who did some work on the 1st live-action Street Fighter movie) and legit Karate Champ Keith Vitali. I haven't seen it yet but I plan to buy it and try to find if there are any more links between the game and movie. Besides, it's an extra excuse to buy a Jackie Chan flick.

No trivia section about Kung-Fu Master is complete without mentioning the French film where a 40-year-old woman falls in love with a 15-year-old teen who is addicted to playing Kung-Fu Master. The drama was originally titled Kung Fu Master! but was sometimes renamed so people wouldn't be confused about the movie's genre. Seriously. IMDB.com also has a listing for a 2005 series named a TV series named Kung-Fu Master with very little information about it.
Screenshots (click to see full-sized):
The Start Screen Story 1 Story 2 Introduction note The more you can hit in one attack, the higher you score.
ScrollBoss Section Links:
Sprites - Sprites from Kung-Fu Master
Custom Sprites - IREM page
Logos - Logo
Mini Logos - IREM mini-logo section

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