Only in Japan: Naming Your Video Game After Jesus

Jesus Kyoufu Biomonster is probably one of the better known Famicom-only releases whose fame is solely attributable to its name.

It is a text heavy RPG, which means that I don`t like it as a game, though it does have cool theme music. The Box art is cool too:
I like this game for a couple of reasons, neither of which relate to its gameplay. First it demonstrates the fact that naming your game after a famous celebrity like Jesus won`t necessarily make it a great game. This follows a trend established in Major League Baseball by the pioneering outfielder Jesus Alou:
Despite the killer first name and fantastic mutton chops, his .280 career batting average and lack of power prevented him from ever being a serious Hall of Fame candidate. If there was a hall of fame for Famicom games, I think the Jesus Biomonster game would likewise fall short.

Actually Alou`s first name uses the Spanish pronounciation and has a little accent above the `u`, which Topps was apparently unable to put on the above baseball card, but the Famicom game is pronounced in the English way as made clear by the kana below it (Gee-zaz).

The other thing I like about it is the clash of cultures it represents. A lot of stuff gets made in Japan that just wouldn`t go down at all well in North America or Europe. If you were to include the name Jesus in an American video game it would only be in something like`Bible Adventures` for the NES:
This game has so many strikes against it I just don`t know where to begin. No wait, I do know where to begin:

Strike 1: Its an educational game.

Strike 2: Its a Christian educational game.

Strike 3: Its a Christian educational game that is a `poorly coded piece of crap`.

I think Rod and Todd Flanders would have been the only kids in the world who would have been pleased to unwrap a Christmas present containing this game. For everyone else giving this as a present would really have constituted a mild form of child abuse.

Jesus on the Famicom though? No, he is totally badass:
Educational games are for sissies. This Jesus means business. Even though its still a crap RPG, I give them credit for that.

2011 Famicom Awards

Welcome to the 2011 Famicomblog Famicom Awards, where we recognize a bunch of stupid, offensive, confusing and ridiculous Famicom stuff and the lady on the cover of "Great Deal" gives them awards.

Enough with the lengthy introductions, on to the awards themselves, in no particular order:

Category: Breaking the "Don't Make a Video Game About Bio Monsters that is named after Jesus" taboo.

Winner: Jesus Kyofu no Bio Monster

Comment: Jesus.
Category: Centering your game on 80s Heavy Metal Band

Winner: Seikimatsu II: Akuma no Gyakushuu.

Comment: This is awesome on more levels than I can count.
Category: "Bro, full frontal nudity!! Seriously dudes, check this out! Awesoooooooome."

Winner: Kujaku Ou II

Comment: Seriously, bro, high five! Whoo yeah! Toss me a brewski!
Category: Gratuitous and massively inappropriate use of Nazi imagery on game cover.

Winner: (tie) Hitler no Fukkatsu and Sabaku no Kitsume

Comment: These are probably the biggest fails in Famicom history. Just having these games makes me feel uncomfortable. Which is a shame, because they are good games. Normally I don't feel comfortable with criticizing Japanese culture, but the casual and insensitive use of Nazi imagery that one regularly encounters here is a true embarrassment to this country. Just a few days ago one of the biggest pop bands in Japan appeared on MTV dressed as Nazis with no apparent appreciation for how offensive it was. The fact that I only found out about the incident through the foreign media and never saw a word about the incident in the mainstream Japanese press also speaks volumes. But I'm getting off topic here....
Category: Successfully resisting the urge to put David Hasselhoff on the cover of your Knight Rider game

Winner: Knight Rider

Comment: Just Kit, no David.
Category: Introducing redneck, in-your-face white trash Americana to a Japanese audience

Winner: WWF Wrestle Mania Challenge.

Comment: None needed.

Category: Making racist-sounding video games by putting "super" in front of name of ethnic group and making that the title of your game.

Winner: (tie) Super Chinese and Super Arabian.

Comment: (rolls eyes and shakes head in exasperation).
Category: Ruining game by putting stupid kid on cover.

Winner: Kakefu Kun no Jump Tengoku

Comment: I do not like this kid.

Category: Best display of 80s fashion crimes on game cover.

Winner: (tie) TM network Live in PowerBowl, Mottomo Abunai Keiji

Comment: Hey, the pirate shirt from Seinfeld.
Category: Creepy cover

Winner: Kyonshizu 2

Comment: Live photography was not a good choice for this cover.
Category: Making a game that kind of looks like a girl game, but then it, like, has the name written in these Heavy Metal type letters so it looks kind of, like, hardcore or something, but then, like its got like these fairies on it so, like, I don't know, its kind of like, confusing or whatever.

Winner: Hydlide Special

Comment: Like, what is it, like, a girl game, or like a boy game or what?