Son Son

SonSon is a colourful horizontal scrolling arcade action title ported to the Famicom by Capcom, drawing direct thematic inspiration from the Chinese literary classic Journey to the West. Players control the monkey warrior SonSon travelling rightward across continuous Asian fantasy landscapes, fighting mythical demons and collecting fruit pickups. Supporting simultaneous two-player cooperative play, SonSon established Capcom’s reputation for accessible family-friendly arcade conversions on the Famicom alongside harder combat releases such as 1942.

The protagonist can walk horizontally, jump and fire ranged energy projectiles to defeat roaming demonic enemies. A signature traversal mechanic allows SonSon to leap onto floating cloud platforms that drift slowly across the screen, enabling access to elevated routes and shortcuts. Collectible fruit items award score points; gathering fruit in quick succession triggers score multipliers, encouraging continuous target elimination and item collection.

A varied roster of mythical foes populates every stage: ghost creatures, hopping imps, flying bat swarms and large guardian boss monsters appear at stage endings. Direct contact with any enemy depletes vitality, and once all reserve lives are exhausted the expedition terminates. Simultaneous two-player cooperative mode lets a second participant control a companion character, coordinating jump and attack timing to clear dense enemy formations together.

Capcom’s Famicom port faithfully reproduced cloud drift physics, enemy patrol behaviour and fruit multiplier rules. Oriental fantasy landscape backdrops and stylised mythical enemy sprites recreate the arcade’s vibrant Asian theme. Optimised horizontal scrolling maintained smooth movement even during multi-enemy combat encounters within Famicom hardware limits.

Audio design features melodic traditional-inspired looping background music and discrete projectile impact sound cues, sustaining a light adventurous fantasy atmosphere throughout stage traversal.

Strategically, successful play balances ground traversal and cloud usage. Floating clouds offer safe elevated routes but drift continuously, requiring careful jump timing to avoid falling into enemy groups below. Players must plan fruit collection chains while maintaining constant awareness of incoming enemy threats to avoid breaking score multipliers.

Within Capcom’s expansive early Famicom catalogue, SonSon stands out due to its Journey to the West fantasy setting and accessible co-op gameplay. The title demonstrated Capcom’s ability to produce non-military arcade action suitable for mixed-age household audiences. For modern retro gaming enthusiasts, SonSon delivers charming scrolling mythical combat and serves as a solid representative of Capcom’s formative arcade conversions published for the Famicom platform.