Kick and Run

Famicom Disk System

Famicom Disk System

Kick and Run is a soccer game from Taito which was originally released in the Arcades and later ported to the Famicom Disk System a couple years later. It uses a side perspective which would later be usurped by the more popular vertical view, and later again by the isometric perspective favored b...

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Developer
Taito

Released on
1988

Size
1–2 Players

Version
Famicom Disk System

Requirements
Nintendo Famicom Disk System

Downloads
Sports

ESRB Rating
Not Rated

Cooperative
Yes

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Description

Kick and Run is a soccer game from Taito which was originally released in the Arcades and later ported to the Famicom Disk System a couple years later. It uses a side perspective which would later be usurped by the more popular vertical view, and later again by the isometric perspective favored by the early FIFA games.

Kick and Run has something of a personality to set it apart from similar games. This includes cheerleaders during the half-time show (generally not featured in soccer matches, unlike football) and how goalkeepers will irritably kick the goalpost if the rival team scores.

Kick and Run

Overview & History

Released by Taito in 1986 exclusively for the Famicom Disk System, *Kick and Run* is a bizarrely ambitious sports-action hybrid that takes association football and injects it with pure arcade absurdity. Capitalizing on the disk format's rewritable storage and loading capabilities, Taito crafted a title where standard pitch rules are gleefully discarded in favor of martial arts combat, relentless scrolling, and fantastical boss encounters. Players embark on a globe-trotting tournament spanning various eccentric international teams, fighting their way across treacherous fields fraught with environmental hazards. Rather than focusing on tactical passing or precise dribbling, the game transforms the world's most popular sport into a chaotic spectacle of slide-tackling opponents into oblivion and executing gravity-defying bicycle kicks directly at oversized goalkeepers.

Gameplay Features & Mechanics

The core gameplay loop of *Kick and Run* relies on a side-scrolling perspective where the team constantly advances toward the opponent's goal against a ticking clock. Players control the active ball carrier, navigating past waves of aggressive defenders who do not hesitate to throw punches or deploy sliding sweeps. Controls are uniquely tailored for aggressive play: characters can perform high-flying drop kicks, devastating slide attacks to steal the ball, and powered-up special shots once a meter is filled. Navigating the pitch requires mastering both athletic endurance and offensive positioning, as stamina drains with excessive sprinting. Matches eventually culminate in surreal penalty shootouts against mutant goalkeepers and giant mythical creatures, pushing the Famicom hardware with vibrant sprite scaling and frantic, chaotic action.