Bio Force Ape

This game was never completed and/or given a public release. As a result of this, keep in mind that the developers might have used or deleted some of the content featured here, had the game actually been released.

Bio Force Ape is a beat-'em-up action-platformer that was first unveiled at the 1991 Summer CES and previewed by Nintendo Power in its August 1991 issue, only to end up being cancelled very shortly before its intended release in April 1992.

The game later became infamous on the internet, leading to a rather well-known pair of fake screenshots. A real prototype ROM was eventually found and released on April 14, 2010.

To do: A US prototype has surfaced. Document the differences.

Download Bio Force Ape (Japanese prototype) File: Bio Force Ape (Japan) (En) (Proto).nes (256 KB) (info)

Crack Buster#

An early working title for the game was "Crack Buster". Some of the tiles for the early logo are still present in the ROM, albeit partly overwritten. There are tiles for the word "BUSTER" both with and without the T, and what appears to be a sprite overlay for the B, perhaps to make it flicker like a neon sign. It's unclear whether the lines in the background are temporary guidelines or parts of a larger background image.

Sound Test#

Hold A + B at the copyright screen until it fades out. Up/Down change the music, while Left/Right change the sound effect being played.

Stage Select#

At the title screen, hold A + B on Controller 2 and either A or B on Controller 1, then press Start on Controller 1 to start from Level 2 or Level 3 accordingly.