Spy vs. Spy: The Island Caper (found build of cancelled US localization of NES game based on comic strip; 1989)
Spy vs. Spy: The Island Caper (南国指令!!スパイvsスパイ, lit. "Tropical Directive!! Spy vs. Spy") is a multiplayer platform game based on Mad Magazine's Spy vs. Spy comic. Released by Kemco for the Famicom console in 1987, it was a port of the Commodore 64 version. The Famicom port was also planned to be localized and released on the NES in the United States in 1989 but was cancelled for some reason.
Gameplay
On Mad Island, a mysterious island in the South Pacific, you must find all the missile fragments hidden on the island before your enemies do. Beware that the island is booby-trapped with various booby traps to stop you.
Prototype
On December 1, 2015, a prototype ROM was listed on eBay with an opening bid of $999[1]. The prototype was subsequently purchased, but it is not currently possible to confirm how much it sold for. No purchased prototypes have surfaced online as of 2023, and this is the only prototype that has been identified so far.
Availability
On March 20, 2024, Internet Archive user TheNicktoonsFan2010 uploaded a prototype ROM of the US localization. This user claimed that they found the prototype on the popular ROM-sharing site Vimm's Lair.
Gallery
Prototype ROM
Magazine scan of the title screen.
Flyer distributed at Winter CES 1989
Review article from Nintendo Power Issue 3 Nov/Dec 1988.
Review article from Game Players Issue 6 Dec 1989.
Review article from Game Players Buyers Guide to Nintendo Games Oct/Nov 1989.
