Play Popeye (Japan) on gb Online

Popeye on the Game Boy is one of those weirdly charming ports that somehow works. You're bouncing around tiny platforms, dodging Bluto's slow-motion punches while Olive Oyl tosses hearts at you—which, okay, sounds stranger than it plays. The spinach power-ups turn you into a wrecking ball for a few seconds, and that never gets old.

It's got that early Game Boy look where everything's chunky and simple, but the animations have this goofy energy that fits Popeye perfectly. The music's the same tune on loop, but it's the kind of earworm you don't mind. Honestly half the fun is watching Bluto's ridiculous wind-up punches—dude telegraphs them like he's underwater.

Not gonna lie, the hit detection can be janky (classic Game Boy), but there's something about the claustrophobic little stages that makes it weirdly addictive. You'll either love it or wonder why you're playing a 30-year-old port of an arcade game about eating spinach. No in-between.