Pixel Art #52: Ninja Turtles (NES)

Posted byerichagmannPosted inArtTags:, , , , , ,

The original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1989) video game for the Nintendo Entertainment System was known for its brutal difficulty and a deceptive jump where you can just walk over it. I owned this game as a kid and had nightmares just trying to get through the infamous water stage.

While I’ve never beaten it (without cheating), I can’t dismiss it completely. After all, it’s part of my most treasured franchises. Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, and Michelangelo were my best friends. They’re the reason I love pizza. They’re the reason I say “dude” casually in conversation. They’re the reason I’m okay with Vanilla Ice.

I still have all my old action figures, I have a small collection of the comics, and I even have some TMNT-theme PJs that my mom had given me (as an adult!). When the new Turtles movie came out last summer, I donned my most bodacious retro shirt and Cowabunga’d all the way to the theater. It’s no surprise that one of my favorite Halloween costumes was the following:

Yes, that’s me.

I had wanted to put together a set of pixel art from the game for a long time now, and I knew that the character portraits from the pause menu would be perfect. Below are my results!

Leonardo leads.
Donatello does machines.
Raphael is cool but rude.
Michelangelo is a party dude.

And here’s a taste of some TMNT art from my childhood:

Thanks for stopping by to check out my art! Do you remember playing the Ninja Turtles game for the NES? Leave a comment, and tell me about your experience! If you’re enjoying my content, consider following my page or subscribe via email to have articles delivered directly to your inbox!

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Published by erichagmann

Arranger / Pianist / Vocalist / Educator / Gamer

15 thoughts on “Pixel Art #52: Ninja Turtles (NES)”

  1. I love this pixel tile style, but mostly I love the way the Ninja Turtle in your childhood drawing is leaping up. Maybe he’s fighting?

    I just missed Ninja Turtles, but have always liked seeing them around. 🙂

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    1. Haha he is sort of leaping, isn’t he? I expect that I probably drew the ninja turtle first and then added some background elements without considering the spacing. I wish I could say I intentionally drew a bad ass action shot!

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      3. The only thing I have from childhood is a little stuffed blue dog, no artwork, but your drawing made me think of the few I remember. The most vibrant I remember is hard to describe because it made no sense. Animals were emerging from holes underground, but the scene was also under water. I don’t even want to think about the psychology of it, hahhaha

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      4. Ooo there must be a story behind the blue dog to be the last remaining object! New blog post???

        Childhood art is wild because we have such vivid imaginations but no capacity yet to really demonstrate it on any medium. My parents kept a lot of mine and it’s weird stuff!

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  2. Hahahaha. Maybe, but I don’t think so. Also it would be fine and wonderful if you did. 🙂 I like these conversations for the sake of them!

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  3. THE WATER STAGE!!!! My brother and I had this game, too, and we played it all the time but we could NEVER get past that water stage! One of my most vivid, angst-filled childhood memories was going over to a friend’s house who COULD beat the water stage, watching him beat it, and then watching him cruise around in the Turtle Van the next level. When I asked him to beat the water stage for me so *I* could try the Turtle van, he beat the stage…and then just played on anyway! He said I’d enjoy it more once I did it myself! Of all the nine-year-old gall! To this day, I’ve never beaten that water stage nor driven the Turtle Van.

    On a less angst-filled note, I loved this piece so much! I have a similar relationship with the Turtles and it filled me with warm, fuzzy memories to take this trip down Memory Lane with you. And your Halloween costume was LEGIT! I love it!

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    1. Thank you so much for following me and checking out a few more of my posts – and I’m so happy this one resonated with you! I’d definitely recommend checking out my “Fooduary” post from way way way way back where I describe my experience beating the ninja turtles arcade game.

      I challenge you to go back to ninja turtles to finally conquer that water stage. It’s actually not as bad as I remember. But as a kid, that electrifying seaweed was incredibly daunting. Go get that turtle van!!!

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      1. YOU BEAT THE ARCADE GAME?!!? Yes, I am absolutely going to have to go back and read that post! Thank you for the head’s up! And maybe I will try it again. I think my brother has a game for the Switch that has all the Turtles video games on it. Maybe it IS time to finally get that Turtle van…

        OH MY GOSH YES, that electrocuting seaweed was THE WORST.

        And you’re welcome! I’ve had fun perusing your pieces and am looking forward to reading more (like the Turtles arcade game one!) in the future :).

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      2. I do appreciate it. You’ll have a lot of scrolling to do before you find story about the TMNT arcade game – it was in my second post ever.

        Keep us all posted on your progress toward the Turtle Van. 2024 is your year!

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  4. Loving both the pixel art and the drawing you did as a kid. It’s awesome that you still have that.

    TMNT NES is a game that, had I not owned it as a kid, I think I would probably hate today. But, nostalgia is a strong force and I have quite the soft spot for the original. I actually did manage to beat it one time, and I’m still unsure how that happened. I don’t think I could beat it today as an adult.

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