Play Golgo 13 - The Riddle of Icarus (Japan) Online

Game Overview

Golgo 13: The Riddle of Icarus is one of those NES games that feels like it shouldn’t exist—in a good way. You play as Duke Togo, a stone-cold sniper who moves through missions with this weird mix of methodical stealth and sudden, brutal action. One minute you're lining up a perfect headshot through a scope, the next you're mashing buttons in a fistfight because someone spotted you. The pacing’s all over the place, but in that charming, janky way only '80s games pull off.

What really stuck with me was the tone. It’s got this grimy, low-tech espionage vibe—like someone tried to adapt a hardboiled manga into a game with about five pixels to work with. The dialogue scenes (yes, there are dialogue scenes) are hilariously stiff, but weirdly compelling. And that soundtrack? Pure moody synth that somehow makes sneaking through identical-looking corridors feel intense.

It’s clunky by modern standards, but there’s something about the way it swings between sniper sim and awkward beat-em-up that’s weirdly endearing. Just don’t expect Metal Gear—this is more like a B-movie you’d find at 2 AM on a VHS tape labeled “TOP SECRET.”