The Goonies, When a Treasure and a Galleon Were Better Than the Upside Down!

The Goonies is a cult film for the Eighties generation, just as Stranger Things is for today's, and even now it still draws millions of fans through reunions, trade fairs, and themed events: 2025 marked its fortieth anniversary, and it was the perfect opportunity to pick up the Famicom controller again and dust off its video game adaptation, a fun title that is quite challenging in certain parts.

The game bears the Konami name and is undoubtedly one of those titles that we would today define as “children of their time,” an expression that is usually synonymous with something unflattering, but that would not be at all fair to it.

This is because I Goonies is a highly respectable platformer in my opinion, with carefully crafted level design, despite its structural simplicity, and the need to learn enemy patterns, resembling giant rats (?), in order to overcome them. But above all, it carries within it the essence of the Arcades, and that means that, besides the map, a canteen, and a great deal of courage, in the backpack of the teenage young adventurer we will be called to be (or rather, to become again), there is one single keyword we must carry with us: patience. 

From a visual standpoint, The Goonies makes wise use of the NES's limited palette. This is something I already said about other titles reviewed in this column, and I repeat it here: Nintendo knew very well how to make the most of its own capabilities, “hiding” its flaws with the experience of developers who even today are a model for newcomers.

The contrast of the colors is really effective, and each area is immediately recognizable as soon as we step into it. Putting aside the imaginative interpretation of caves and pirate ships, the use of many graphical effects and sprites taken from other games branded by the Big N (the flames identical to those emitted by the cannons of the flying ships in Super Mario Bros 3, for example) helps the game maintain a functional aesthetic, even if the console’s legendary flickering occasionally makes an appearance.

The gameplay embraces the typical dynamics of pure platform games, training the player to strengthen hand-eye coordination and timing, essential skills to avoid a bad death after ten seconds, but the adventure component also presents some variation on the theme. The search for key-opening doors and the rescue of companions will be vital operations for the continuation of the game.

The sound department does its dirty work, adopting as background music a selection of catchy tunes that are perfectly in line with the mood of the period, as well as with the means available: yes, it’s exactly as you’re thinking, the repetitiveness of the themes will come out of your ears, but after all, that’s also the beauty of the experience, isn’t it? 

In conclusion, I Goonies is one of those titles that, whether because of its rarity or because of the importance it carries as tied to one of the most successful films in cinema history, remains firmly anchored in the memories of those who played it with wonder in their eyes back then: today it may perhaps feel the effects of the dust it has gathered, newer and fresher champions are invading gamers’ screens with photorealistic graphical power, but let us ask ourselves: is an eight-bit arcade title really destined for oblivion, to de… No, I’m sure even the film’s lovable Sloth would disagree: because the Goonies never say the word death.

And I sign below, with quill and ink.