Regardless of whether these ’80s games are still played today, these quotes live on.
The '80s were a wild landscape for video games. Consoles had appeared before the NES, but Nintendo's system changed everything. Without the NES, the console market would have been very different. There are a lot of classic games that are still fun to play from the NES today.
However, not everything about them holds up. Some translations are very awkward. That’s because it was harder to do back in the '80s. It’s not just the NES either. Arcade games and other systems also had a problem with translations. Among the many bad lines, which are still the most memorable for better or worse? Some are still referenced to this day.
Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link is an underrated classic in the series that is often forgotten. That said, the original game had some questionable lines of poorly translated dialogue. None of them compare to this NPC telling Link, “I am Error.”
That’s a fun line to use in the real world when introducing names or when real errors pop up. It’s a nerdy piece of trivia, but Zelda fans always enjoy the reference. The Adventure of Link could use a remake on the scale of Link's Awakening.
The first Metal Gear is simple in its design. Sneak around, attack enemies, fight bosses, and repeat. There were story elements but things did not get as convoluted as the sequels. However, that’s not to say there wasn’t any text in Metal Gear. More importantly for this discussion, some of it was laughably translated.
If a player shoots an enemy with a tranquilizer they should say, “I’m feeling sleepy.” Instead, they say, “I feel asleep.” The soldiers must be really exhausted to spout lines like that.
Pro Wrestling is one of the more obscure games from the NES era. Westerns may think it’s just a geneticist fighting game with weird wrestlers, but it’s actually based on an anime called Ultimate M.U.S.C.L.E. This entry was the third in the series, not that it matters much. Pro Wrestling was fun for its time but probably the most memorable thing about it is the reward screen.
If players manage to get to the winner’s circle, they will be congratulated thusly, “A winner is you.” It’s not poorly mistranslated. It’s just a weird way to phrase, “You are the winner.”
Ghostbusters for the NES has a similarly poor winning message as Pro Wrestling. “Conglaturation” is not even a poorly worded phrase – it’s just a bad spelling of a common word. It’s important to know if someone spells that out on a cake or a card in the real world, it’s not an accident. The gift-giver is probably trying to reference this game.
This quote would have been a great reference to include in the latest Ghostbusters film since it dedicated so much effort into cramming in as many Easter Eggs as possible.
Punch-Out is a great fighter mixed with a puzzle game for the NES. There are two charming things about this release and others in the series. First, the colorful cast of opponents from the brittle Glass Joe to the humongous King Hippo. The other best part is the player’s coach, Doc, who sometimes gives out advice on opponents.
Occasionally he will spout nonsense like telling players to join a fan club. That doesn't seem helpful in a fight. That just feels like a marketing ploy. Whatever the case may be, it’s a memorable line.
Bad Dudes may not have had a long-lasting legacy, but it was popular in the '80s and '90s as a classic brawler. It features a plot that was seemingly in a lot of games at the time.
If players weren’t rescuing a princess or some other damsel then rest assured the President had to be rescued. Damsels in distress are an outdated trope, but rescuing world leaders would be fun to see again. The question is, “Are you a bad enough dude?”
Sinistar was a well-known, deeply challenging arcade shooter during the '80s. While fun, it was not the reason why players flocked to it. It was one of the earlier games to feature some creepily spoken lines. “Beware I live” and “I hunger” still linger in the minds of many kids who played this game.
It’s the way the titular villain says the lines that make them so striking rather than the quotes themselves. These voice samples are not going to outdo a scary movie, but it is fun to say them. The design of Sinistar as an alien skull on a cross is also just cool looking.
Zero Wing is another shooter from the arcade era. It skirts the line as an '80s game since it was released in 1989 in Japan but in 1990 in North America. Nevertheless, it should still count given the game's original debut date. This quote is one of the most memed gaming lines of all time. It would be criminal to leave it out.
The line should probably read more like “All of your bases are ours” or “We have captured all of your bases.” Even though the current line is wrong, it’s more fun to say. That’s not the only mistranslation either. Zero Wing is full of bad text but in a fun way.
Call of Duty: Vanguard players are testing just how applicable the new Attack on Titan execution is mid-combat to dodge bullets.
Tristan Jurkovich began his career as a journalist in 2011. His childhood love of video games and writing fuel his passion for archiving this great medium’s history. He dabbles in every genre, but he’s particularly fond of RPGs and portable consoles. Aside from writing, Tristan also produces a plethora of videos on his YouTube Channel, ReActionExaminer. Check it out!
