The Adventures of Rad Gravity (1990). Play online

Summary

I’m still amazed by The Adventures of Rad Gravity, a truly oddball NES platformer that let you bounce across several alien worlds with a hero who looks uncannily like Bruce Campbell. The graphics are bold, and the guy’s oversized head makes each jump feel both goofy and heroic, especially when his early‑game lightsaber‑like beam slices through foes.

The level on Turvia sticks in my mind because gravity flips upside down – the whole screen, enemies and player alike are drawn inverted, turning a simple jump into a mind‑bending puzzle. That reverse‑gravity mechanic feels like a playful nod to the arcade classic Strider, which also featured ceiling‑walking stages and a plasma sword.

When it first rolled out, reviewers praised its creativity; Simon Burns of VoxelArcade even called it "one of the most interesting and innovative NES games" – a solid endorsement that still feels fresh whenever I dust off the cartridge.

Storyline

The Adventures of Rad Gravity takes place in a distant future where humanity has spread across countless worlds. Advanced biotechnology gave rise to sentient Compuminds, networked beings that could instantly share information between planets. A mysterious villain disabled the entire Compumind network and scattered the units, hiding them across the galaxy. The hero, Rad Gravity, teams up with the lone surviving Compumind, Kakos, to recover the eight missing units. Their quest leads them to distinct worlds such as the neon‑lit cyberpunk realm of Cyberia, the lush jungle of Sauria, and the toxic trash‑filled wasteland of Effluvia, each housing one of the hidden Compuminds.