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Summary

Deadly Towers (known in Japan as Mashō, literally “Evil Bell”) stands out on the NES for its blend of action and role‑playing mechanics that feel more like a puzzle‑filled labyrinth than a straight‑forward platformer. The game drops you into Prince Myer’s palace, where most rooms are static screens, but the main hall scrolls horizontally and the bell towers scroll vertically, forcing you to constantly adjust your sense of direction. Myer can move in eight directions and hurls a single sword at a time, so every encounter feels like a careful dance of positioning and timing, especially when enemies require eight or more hits to fall.

Coins—called ludder—are earned by slaying monsters and can be spent at fixed‑location shops whose inventories shift over time, adding a subtle layer of resource management. Hidden portals lead to Parallel Zones and Secret Rooms that hide superior gear, rewarding exploration of the game’s massive dungeons; the first maze alone spans 167 screens, while the tenth stretches to 235. The ultimate goal is to conquer the seven bell‑tower bosses, melt their bells in the sacred flame, and finally face the ruler Rubas.

What really cements Deadly Towers in retro‑gaming lore is its notorious difficulty. The permanent power‑up system blurs the line between traditional RPG experience points and arcade‑style upgrades, yet the player starts weak, with only one sword in hand, making early sections feel almost unforgiving. Critics have called it the most frustrating NES title, but that very challenge is why it still sparks debate among collectors and speedrunners today.

Storyline

In the NES title Mashou, the story opens on the eve of Prince Myer’s coronation. While pondering his kingdom’s future at a lakeside, a shadowy kami named Khan rises from the water, greets the prince by name, and warns that Rubas – the Devil of Darkness – plans to seize the Willner Kingdom using seven magic bells that can summon an army of monsters.

Khan tasks Prince Myer with traveling to the northern mountain to burn each of the seven bells in a sacred flame, which also destroys the bell towers that house them. The game begins outside Rubas’s palace, a labyrinth teeming with monsters, and the player must defeat the boss of each tower, collect the bells, and ignite them. Once all seven bells are burned, a hidden door opens, leading to the final confrontation with Rubas.