8 Video Game Rip-Offs Better Than The Original

7. Golden Axe Warrior (The Legend Of Zelda)

Streets of Rage Final Fight
SEGA/Nintendo

Golden Axe, ordinarily a side-scrolling hack'n'slash, basically a tunic-clad, sword-swinging version of Streets of Rage (with little imps you can boot up the arse), went in something of a dramatic new direction in 1991 with the release of Golden Axe Warrior.

The top-down action-RPG, released only for the Master System, sees a teensy hero with a sword and cross-emblazoned shield conquer nine labyrinths across a tiled map, before ridding the land - let's call it, er, 'Fyrule' - of the evil Death Adder. Along the way, he picks up various items that allow him to slowly unpick the secrets of the world.

No, we didn't just badly describe The Legend of Zelda. Right down to the hearts and currency stabbed out of little slimes and evil pigmen, this is a pixelated parrot of Shigeru Miyamoto's Famicom classic. It's hard to copy Nintendo's homework and not earn top marks though, and even if Golden Axe Warrior is wholly unoriginal, the estimable technical prowess of Sega's hardware means it's arguably less gruelling to play than the Famicom forebear. The Bootlegend of Zelda's music is also, dare we say it, better.

Editorial Team
Editorial Team

Benjamin was born in 1987, and is still not dead. He variously enjoys classical music, old-school adventure games (they're not dead), and walks on the beach (albeit short - asthma, you know). He's currently trying to compile a comprehensive history of video game music, yet denies accusations that he purposefully targets niche audiences. He's often wrong about these things.