About this game
King's Knight is a 1986 vertical-scrolling action game published by Square for the Famicom — one of the company's earliest releases, arriving just over a year before Final Fantasy transformed Square into an RPG powerhouse. Developed by Bits Laboratory, the game has players control four characters — a warrior, a wizard, a monster, and a thief — each navigating their own individual stage through bullet-heavy vertical-scrolling gameplay before all four converge in a final combined run. The music was composed by Nobuo Uematsu in what was one of his earliest game music compositions.
Gallery
The Story Behind
Square in 1986 was a small publisher without a defining identity — King's Knight was among a series of titles the company released as it searched for its genre. The game arrived the same year as the Famicom's breakout period, when third-party publishers were rapidly expanding their presence on the platform. Nobuo Uematsu was a new hire at Square when he composed King's Knight; Final Fantasy, which he would compose the following year, would define both the company and his career. For collectors, King's Knight is a visible trace of Square's pre-Final Fantasy history — the before-picture of a company that was still finding its voice.
Tricks & Tales
King's Knight was Nobuo Uematsu's third video game music composition, following two earlier works. The game's structure — four characters completing individual stages before joining forces — was an unusual design for a vertical shooter, giving it a mild RPG-like flavour that may reflect Square's interests even before Final Fantasy. The four characters (Ray Jack the warrior, Kaliva the wizard, Barusa the monster, and Toby the thief) each have different movement speeds and shot patterns, effectively giving the game four different playstyles within a single title.
Collector's Guide
Region & Compatibility
Released in Japan (September 1986) and North America (September 1989). The North American NES version was published by SquareSoft and is equivalent in content to the Japanese version. The three-year gap between releases reflects the uneven pace of Famicom-to-NES localization in the late 1980s.
Available in our shop
Hand-cleaned and tested units shipped worldwide from Toyohashi, Japan. HP direct purchase exclusive: we include a printed shop owner's note card with every order.
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