Literally unbeatable games.

[PressureCooker2600]

I know of only two games that had a programmer screwup and make the game unbeatable.

 

Rastan for C64 and Impossible Mission for 7800.

 

Any others I may be missing?

[raindog151]

Baby Boomer for the NES, last I knew.

 

Only other thing that sticks out in my head is that DS bubble bobble from last year. (Not retro, I know..)

[Crimefighter]

R-Type for the C-64. Boss won't take damage and you're practically stuck at the first level.

[A Sprite]

R-Type for the C-64. Boss won't take damage and you're practically stuck at the first level.

 

 

Level 3.

 

First game that comes to mind is a helicoptor game covered by Retro Gamer a year or two ago for computers in the 80's. Sorry I can't be more help than that.

 

The others I know that can't be beaten were either unfinished (BS Zelda), or are due to a glitch that can occur in normal play, but can easily be avoided with the help of a detailed online FAQ. ( Shenmue for Dreamcast, and Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars for GBA)

Edited October 8, 2007 by A Sprite

[Tempest]

Many old computer games only appear to be unbeatable because they were cracked copies that had something screwed up (I had a few of those for the Apple II). Sadly most of the roms floating around out there are of cracked copies as well.

 

Baby Boomer is indeed beatable. I did it a LONG time ago. The only thing that makes it hard is that the game SUCKS!

 

Tempest

[2600Lives]

I could have sworn that I heard Wrath of the Black Manta for the NES was unbeatable. The last boss was supposed to have some sort of glitch to where you couldn't beat him, no matter in what order you used your Ninja Arts.

 

There was a game for the PS2 called Primal that has a mid-level glitch that won't let you progress any further. Unfortunately, a good buddy of mine bought it. Wow, was he ever pissed.

[PressureCooker2600]

I haven't played Black Manta in awhile.......I never got to the last boss.

 

I'll have to pull that game out tonight and try it again.

[raindog151]

Baby Boomer is indeed beatable. I did it a LONG time ago. The only thing that makes it hard is that the game SUCKS!

 

Well that's what I get for listening to the internet. I'm more impressed by the fact you did it, I agree that game was god awful.

[Texguy1968]

Wasn't one of the Battletoads games unbeatable?

[A Sprite]

Wasn't one of the Battletoads games unbeatable?

 

No, but the Amiga 32 conversion of the original comes close. Fall through glitches to your death as you struggle to master the single button on a six button pad that controls both jumping and attacking at the same time...

[2600Lives]

Battletoads wasn't unbeatable, just immensely HARD. One of those games that you love to hate. Excellent design and gameplay crippled by unreasonable difficulty.

[Impaler_26]

Ren & Stimpy for the SNES.

[AtticGamer]

R-Type (any)

Contra (any)

Ghost N' Goblins

Ghouls N' Ghosts

Super Mario Bros. 2 Japan

Zelda II The Adventure Of Link

 

 

 

 

Animal Crossing (well....you can't beat it).

Edited October 8, 2007 by Atari_kid

[2600Lives]

Beat Contra (come on, the 30 men code makes it EASY). Super C only had a 10 men code, but it was still a breeze.

Beat Ghouls N' Ghosts (just takes patience)

Beat Zelda 2.

 

R-Type is just one of those games where the difficulty is so high, you simply stop playing.

Same with Ghosts N' Goblins. Ugh, that damned Red Arrimer bastich. Makes you want to never play it again.

Mario 2 Japan, you mean the Lost Levels? I blew through that in like an hour on the Mario All-Stars cart.

[Gentlegamer]

R-Type (any)

Contra (any)

Ghost N' Goblins

Ghouls N' Ghosts

Super Mario Bros. 2 Japan

Zelda II The Adventure Of Link

None of these are literally unbeatable.

[boog]

Ubisoft has a couple of recent games with bugs that make them impossible to complete.

 

Rayman Raving Rabbids for the Wii and Sprung for the DS both have coding errors that make it impossible to get all the extras.

 

I put a LOT of time into Rayman Raving Rabbids on the Wii, trying to unlock all the bonus videos, and it was pretty disappointing to find that the final video could never be unlocked. When I asked around online about the Raving Rabbids bugs, other people noted that there was a similar problem with unlocking all the extras in Sprung. ubisoft hasn't even provided fixed versions for either.

 

One of the Gran Turismo games on PS1 had a bug that made it impossible to reach 100% complete, but I think Sony released a fixed version.

[godslabrat]

I haven't played Black Manta in awhile.......I never got to the last boss.

 

I'll have to pull that game out tonight and try it again.

 

Black Manta is beatable. I did it myself many moons ago. Not a whole lot of fun, but doable.

[shadow460]

Final Fantasy X-2. If you side with New Yevon on your first play through, you can only get 99% complete. You also can't get all the dresspheres on a single play, either.

 

Aside from that, the game's pathetically easy to beat. Although it doesn't make the game impossible (quite the opposite, in fact) I do believe the 99%/New Yevon thing is a bug.

 

EDIT:

 

Let me drop Mortal Kombat into the "impossible to get 100% in some instances" category. It is impossible to beat Reptile with Sonya--in fact, she cannot even fight him. This is due to the fact you have to hit "block" to perform her fatality. Perhaps this was an oversight on the part of the programmers, and they might have allowed one to perform the fatality and still fight Reptile.

Edited October 9, 2007 by shadow460

[7800Lover]

How about Monster Party for the NES? It wasn't beatable per se; it's just that the game was a Mobius strip.

 

When you beat the game, the dragon Bert gives the hero Mark a gift, a lovely princess. When he gets back to Earth, she becomes a monster. Mark screams...and then wakes up. It was all a dream. Then Bert shows up and the game starts all over.

 

And this cycle went on forever and ever!

 

I wonder if this was just a ploy to get you to play through the game a few times and see if there was a real ending.

[shadow460]

Isn't Blast Corps beatable, or does it just keep stripping the medals away?

 

Missile Command isn't beatable, but that's definitely not a bug.

[nester]

Contra's not so hard if you practice a while. I've never used any codes and have no trouble with it. Zelda II is harder than the first one, but not outside the realm of possibility.

 

 

Now, is it possible to get past that lion boss in the first level of Conan for the NES? I don't really see how it can be done. I don't know if it's technically impossible, but it sure is close.

[Uzumaki]

No one mentioned Cheetahmen2??? Anyone actually finish one level and not commit suicide?

[SINGLE TOOTH]

I haven't played Black Manta in awhile.......I never got to the last boss.

 

I'll have to pull that game out tonight and try it again.

 

Black Manta is beatable. I did it myself many moons ago. Not a whole lot of fun, but doable.

 

My dad surprized me when he came home with that game in his hand. I was a happy boy, and threw the game into the system.

 

The game sucked ass. Luckily he only rented it.

[+FujiSkunk]

Interesting that no one has mentioned Raiders of the Lost Ark yet. You can finish it, sure, but it seems you can never get the maximum number of points implied by the final screen.

 

Also, Descent II when first released was unbeatable on the two highest skill levels; a quirk in the damage arithmetic made the final boss invincible. Fortunately the company later patched this bug.

[TheRedEye]

No one mentioned Cheetahmen2??? Anyone actually finish one level and not commit suicide?

 

Actually, this one counts, it is literally unbeatable. When you beat one of the bosses, he disappears and nothing happens, you're forever stuck on the screen. There is a level after that, but you can only get to it by hacking the ROM.