Gon (video game)


Gon is a Japan-exclusive side-scrolling action video game with platforming elements for the Super Famicom published by Bandai. The game is an adaptation of the manga series Gon by Masashi Tanaka, about the daily life of a super-deformed orange carnosaur named Gon.

Plot and Presentation

Like the manga, the game features a minimal plot and no dialogue. It advances the story using comics-style cutscenes with a focus on comic situations Gon gets himself into searching for food, interacting with other animals, or venturing into different ecosystems that made up the prehistoric world.

Gameplay

Enemies include monkeys, warthogs, polar bears, rhinoceroses, ibex, and bobcats. Sharks and orcas have the special ability to swallow Gon whole, but he can break free in most instances. There are Mode 7 chase sequences between levels, in which Gon must avoid obstacles while catching up to a monkey. The player's score is only seen at the end of each level.
Gon has three attacks: a basic self-defense biting attack, a whip of his tail, and a headbutt. The game lacks a HUD-style health bar. Instead, taking damage from enemies results in Gon getting more frustrated. If he is angered enough, he will destroy the planet, leading to a game over screen. Sound effects are based on music instrumentals and vice versa.

Legacy

Gon would later go on to play a role in the Sony PlayStation fighting game Tekken 3 in 1998. A new platform game, , developed for the Nintendo 3DS, was released in Japan on June 14, 2012 by Namco Bandai Games. A new mobile game : GON : Match 3 puzzle was released in 2013 by Lunosoft Inc. for iOS and Android.