M.C. Kids
Encyclopedia
M.C. Kids is a platform game
developed and published by Virgin Interactive
. It was initially released for the Nintendo Entertainment System
in February 1992 in North America
and by Ocean Software
in May 1993 in Europe. The game is loosely based on the McDonald's
fast food
franchise and features two teenagers that venture into the McDonald's fantasy world "McDonaldland
" in order to return Ronald McDonald
's magical bag, which has been stolen by the Hamburglar.
The game was also released for the Game Boy
(known in North America and Japan as Spot: The Cool Adventure
, based on the Cool Spot
franchise), Commodore 64
, Amiga
, Atari ST
, (though all only in Europe) and for PC
s running MS-DOS
. Virgin Interactive would release another game based on the McDonald's franchise for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis called Mick & Mack: Global Gladiators that has more of a traditional side-scrolling action-adventure game. Both games were criticized for advertising the McDonald's fast food restaurant chain. but regarded as cult classics ever since.
You can choose to play as one of the two "M.C. Kids." There is no difference between the two characters aside from their skin color and hair styles. Up to two players can play the game at once, and both characters can walk, jump, duck, and pick up blocks to throw at enemies as they travel through the seven large worlds of magical McDonald Land.
In a similar format as Super Mario Bros. 3
or StarTropics
, the game has seven different worlds. Each one starts out with a visit to a McDonald Land character. However, unlike games such as Super Mario Bros. 3, simply defeating the various levels is not enough for success. You must also find the hidden McDonald's cards that are scattered throughout the worlds in order to advance to the next level.
Golden Arches can be collected for extra points, and can unlock bonus rounds. The game has numerous secrets such as the zipper (used to enter secret areas), a spin device that turns the player upside down, and reverses gravity, a boat that can be both ridden and carried, and arrow blocks which return you to the beginning of a level.
The bonus rounds feature blocks which randomly light up as either up or down arrows. Your task is to jump on the up arrows and to avoid the down arrows in order to reach the top, enter the zipper, and collect extra lives.
Upon arriving at Birdie's treehouse, the players search her house for five of her puzzle cards. After finding her puzzle cards, Mick and Mack are told that Hamburglar is sighted near the cliffs.
Following the directions given by Birdie, Mick and Mack arrive at Grimace's loft in the Highlands and search his house for three of his puzzle cards. After finding two more cards, Grimace lets them head down a path to the Professor's workshop.
When Mick and Mack reach the Professor's workshop, he has invented something to help them in their quest. He has Mick and Mack find five of his puzzle cards.
Using the rocket that the Professor gave to them, Mick and Mack head to the moon to visit CosMc. They meet up with CosMc on the moon at his getaway where he tells him to find five of his puzzle cards. After collecting his cards, CosMc tells Mick and Mack to find an entrance to a volcano as Hamburglar might be hiding out there.
Mick and Mack brave the scary volcano in their efforts to find Hamburglar and the Magic Bag. When they find Hamburglar, he tells them that the Magic Bag escaped from him. Mick and Mack confronts the Magic Bag where it launches a tied flags, a magic wand, and a rabbit in a hat to attack. When the Magic Bag is defeated, Mick and Mack return the bag to Ronald.
Platform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
developed and published by Virgin Interactive
Virgin Interactive
Virgin Interactive was a British video game publisher. It was formed as Virgin Games Ltd. in 1981. The company became much larger after purchasing the budget label, Mastertronic in 1987. It was part of the Virgin Group...
. It was initially released for the Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
in February 1992 in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and by Ocean Software
Ocean Software
The British company Ocean Software was one of the biggest European video game developers/publishers of the 1980s and 90s...
in May 1993 in Europe. The game is loosely based on the McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
fast food
Fast food
Fast food is the term given to food that can be prepared and served very quickly. While any meal with low preparation time can be considered to be fast food, typically the term refers to food sold in a restaurant or store with preheated or precooked ingredients, and served to the customer in a...
franchise and features two teenagers that venture into the McDonald's fantasy world "McDonaldland
McDonaldland
McDonaldland was a fantasy world used in the marketing for McDonald's restaurants. It was based on the "total concept and feel" of Sid and Marty Krofft's H.R. Pufnstuf television program. McDonaldland was inhabited by Ronald McDonald and other characters...
" in order to return Ronald McDonald
Ronald McDonald
Ronald McDonald is a clown character used as the primary mascot of the McDonald's fast-food restaurant chain. In television commercials, the clown inhabits a fantasy world called McDonaldland, and has adventures with his friends Mayor McCheese, the Hamburglar, Grimace, Birdie the Early Bird, and...
's magical bag, which has been stolen by the Hamburglar.
The game was also released for the Game Boy
Game Boy
The , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on...
(known in North America and Japan as Spot: The Cool Adventure
Spot: The Cool Adventure
is a 2D Platformer video game, developed by Visual Concepts and published by Virgin Interactive for the Game Boy handheld, which was released in 1993.The game structure is based on M.C. Kids....
, based on the Cool Spot
Cool Spot
Cool Spot was a mascot for 7 Up beginning in the late 80s. During this time, the red spot in the 7 Up logo was anthropomorphized: given arms, legs, a mouth, and sunglasses....
franchise), Commodore 64
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
, Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
, Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
, (though all only in Europe) and for PC
IBM PC
The IBM Personal Computer, commonly known as the IBM PC, is the original version and progenitor of the IBM PC compatible hardware platform. It is IBM model number 5150, and was introduced on August 12, 1981...
s running MS-DOS
MS-DOS
MS-DOS is an operating system for x86-based personal computers. It was the most commonly used member of the DOS family of operating systems, and was the main operating system for IBM PC compatible personal computers during the 1980s to the mid 1990s, until it was gradually superseded by operating...
. Virgin Interactive would release another game based on the McDonald's franchise for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis called Mick & Mack: Global Gladiators that has more of a traditional side-scrolling action-adventure game. Both games were criticized for advertising the McDonald's fast food restaurant chain. but regarded as cult classics ever since.
Gameplay
In a similar format as Super Mario Bros. 3
Super Mario Bros. 3
, also referred to as Super Mario 3 and SMB3, is a platform video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System , and is the third game in the Super Mario series. The game was released in Japan in 1988, in the United States in 1990, and in Europe in 1991...
or StarTropics
StarTropics
StarTropics is an action-adventure video game released by Nintendo in 1990 for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Unlike most of Nintendo's games, it was never released or intended to be released in Japan. It was released only in North America and Europe, although designed by Japanese designers...
, the game has seven different worlds. Each one starts out with a visit to a McDonald Land character. However, unlike games such as Super Mario Bros. 3, simply defeating the various levels is not enough for success. You must also find the hidden McDonald's cards that are scattered throughout the worlds in order to advance to the next level.
Golden Arches can be collected for extra points, and can unlock bonus rounds. The game has numerous secrets such as the zipper (used to enter secret areas), a spin device that turns the player upside down, and reverses gravity, a boat that can be both ridden and carried, and arrow blocks which return you to the beginning of a level.
The bonus rounds feature blocks which randomly light up as either up or down arrows. Your task is to jump on the up arrows and to avoid the down arrows in order to reach the top, enter the zipper, and collect extra lives.
Plot
The story begins with two M.C. Kids named Mick and Mack reading a book where Ronald McDonald was showing off his magical bag at a picnic in the meadow when the Hamburglar appears and steals Ronald's Magic Bag. Mick and Mack then search outside Ronald's clubhouse for four of the puzzle cards. After collecting four of the puzzle cards, Mick and Mack are told by Ronald that Hamburglar was sighted near Birdie's treehouse.Upon arriving at Birdie's treehouse, the players search her house for five of her puzzle cards. After finding her puzzle cards, Mick and Mack are told that Hamburglar is sighted near the cliffs.
Following the directions given by Birdie, Mick and Mack arrive at Grimace's loft in the Highlands and search his house for three of his puzzle cards. After finding two more cards, Grimace lets them head down a path to the Professor's workshop.
When Mick and Mack reach the Professor's workshop, he has invented something to help them in their quest. He has Mick and Mack find five of his puzzle cards.
Using the rocket that the Professor gave to them, Mick and Mack head to the moon to visit CosMc. They meet up with CosMc on the moon at his getaway where he tells him to find five of his puzzle cards. After collecting his cards, CosMc tells Mick and Mack to find an entrance to a volcano as Hamburglar might be hiding out there.
Mick and Mack brave the scary volcano in their efforts to find Hamburglar and the Magic Bag. When they find Hamburglar, he tells them that the Magic Bag escaped from him. Mick and Mack confronts the Magic Bag where it launches a tied flags, a magic wand, and a rabbit in a hat to attack. When the Magic Bag is defeated, Mick and Mack return the bag to Ronald.
See also
- Donald LandDonald Landis a Famicom video game developed and published by Data East. It was released only in Japan on January 29, 1988. It is based on McDonald's characters. The reason that it's called "Donald Land" instead of Ronald Land is that Ronald McDonald is known as "Donald McDonald" in Japan. Unlike M.C...
, another platforming game based on the same fast food franchise that was developed and published by Data EastData Eastalso abbreviated as DECO, was a Japanese video game developer and publisher. The company was in operation from 1976 to 2003, when it declared bankruptcy...
only in Japan. - TUMETUMEtUME is a tile based map editor originally created and designed by Greg Marquez and Gregg Tavares for the Commodore Amiga and later ported to MS-DOS by Dan Chang...
, One of the tools used to create M.C.Kids