8 Bit Arcade Beat 'Em Up Homebrew New Releases Nintendo NES Retro Gaming

Cease and Desist Brings a Classic Arcade Beat ‘Em Up Feel to the NES

ByRGN Admin

Jul 12, 2026 #Beat-Em'-Up, #Homebrew, #Homebrew Games, #Indie Games, #NES, #Nintendo Entertainment System, #Retro Gaming, #Retrotainment Games

Remember the golden age of arcade beat ’em ups when popular franchises became fun multiplayer brawlers like “The Simpsons” and “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”? Well, Retrotainment Games is reviving the sub-genre on the NES with “Cease & Desist”, which looks to be a sure hit in more ways than one. Just looking at a screenshot of the game makes how it got its name immediately obvious.

A Beat 'Em Up Inspired by Bootleg Worlds

The game promises bootleg worlds based off popular cartoons, comics and video games. It will be available by Northern Hemisphere Summer 2026 and pre-orders are being accepted for gamers to own the game on a physical NES cartridge.

Due to its risqué content, it wouldn’t be entirely out of the realms of possibility that the game could attract legal attention from certain franchise owners, making the tongue-in-cheek “Cease & Desist” title even more fitting. Because of this, securing a copy through pre-order could prove to be a very valuable decision for collectors.

If the game was ever pulled from sale and you ended up being one of the few collectors with a physical copy, it could become a highly sought-after item within the retro gaming community and potentially become worth a collector’s premium.

A short demo of the game can be experienced directly from your browser at the official website. The first pressing of the NES cartridge will be an eye-catching semi-transparent cocaine pink colour. The art style for the cover art is an attractive and distinctive rebellious graffiti style that is almost taunting the media giants behind the game’s inspiration to shut it down.

For $88 AUD you get the full game on a NES cartridge, game box packaging, instruction manual and immediate download of a 23-page e-book showcasing the story and lore of the fictional world of “Cease and Desist”. Pre-sale purchases directly fund development of the game.

Relevant Links

Cease and Desist game cartridge pre-order webpage [https://ceaseanddesistgame.com/products/] Available for pre-order
Cease and Desist itch.io webpage [https://retrotainmentgames.itch.io/cease-desist] Demo available to play and download

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Video Game Spotlight: Prophet’s Guile [Chrono Trigger Hack] (Super Nintendo)

Prophet's Guile faithfully continues the story from Chrono Trigger. However it does this not as a sequel or prequel but interquel! There is a point in the original game when Lavos throws Chrono’s party into the prehistoric age while Magus is sent to the time of Zeal in 12,000BC. Prophet’s Guile follow’s Magus rather than the heroes and shows the events that occur while Chrono and co are dealing with Ayla and her people.

This makes for a very interesting, but short, game. You play as Magus at level 37 who, after realizing where he is, devises a plan to attempt to take down Lavos at the source by manipulating the Queen using the knowledge of Zeal and it’s events that he acquired while living there as a child with his older sister Schala. There are a few events that happen during this short adventure which shed some light on some mysteries from the main game. As an example you find out how Dalton loses his eye, I won’t give away how you will have to play the game to find out.

The entire game is played within the realm of Zeal, the floating islands – it’s two cities, Kajar and Enhasa, the Queen’s Palace, the Mountain of Woe, Cerulean Lake, the Blackbird port and land bridges leading to the snow covered sea-bound land’s beneath. Magus also has quest’s he must complete in the land beneath Zeal however does not get to access the dwelling place of the earthbound. Unfortunately you still can’t access the North Palace in Zeal in this game either.

The whole game will only take you a couple hours to complete, maybe three if you really take your time to drink in as much of the experience as you can. There are three secret coins hidden throughout the game that grant access to the programmer’s room if you manage to collect them all. While the battles are quite few they are all very challenging and require tactics and careful thought.

The game is excellent, it’s very story-line heavy, not skimping out on the cut-scenes and there is no shortage of battles and bosses either. In summary a surprising amount of content has been packed into this short game. This top quality hack is a must play for anyone who’s finished the original game and is still craving more Chrono Trigger.

External Review

Hardware Spotlight: My-Cube Controller for GameCube

If you have a GameCube or Nintendo Wii, you know how expensive and difficult it can be to get controllers. The original Nintendo controllers are very good; however, they are often expensive to buy second-hand, and many units are no longer in great condition. There are also many cheaply made alternatives on the market which may not cost much, but the quality is often so poor that they don’t last very long at all.

After many months of searching — and spending quite a bit of money testing various brands of joysticks — I finally found one that’s actually worth buying. The My-Cube controller looks just like a standard GameCube controller, with the added bonus of a turbo function button. It can be purchased brand new at a very affordable price and is currently 30% off the standard retail price using the supplied link below.

In terms of feel, this controller is surprisingly close to a genuine Nintendo pad. It doesn’t suffer from that cheap, hollow button feel you often get with low-cost third-party options. The D-pad, A and B buttons, along with the L and R triggers, are all responsive and provide a satisfying tactile feedback during gameplay.

When I first bought this controller, I was expecting another budget substitute. However, after testing it with Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader, I was pleasantly surprised. I was able to get through the first few levels comfortably — something I’ve struggled to do with other cheaper GameCube controllers. The performance felt consistent and reliable throughout.

Aside from the added turbo button and the manufacturer’s logo printed on the controller, it performs very similarly to an original GameCube pad. If you’re in need of a replacement controller and don’t want to overpay for worn second-hand hardware, this is one worth considering — especially while the 30% discount is available.

Check current price (29% off)

Cease and Desist Brings a Classic Arcade Beat ‘Em Up Feel to the NES

ByRGN Admin

A Beat 'Em Up Inspired by Bootleg Worlds

Relevant Links

By RGN Admin

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Cease and Desist Brings a Classic Arcade Beat ‘Em Up Feel to the NES

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