Morita Shougi (FC)
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- For other games in the series, see Morita Shougi.
Morita Shougi (titled Morita Kazuro no Shougi in-game) is a shogi simulation game developed by Kazuro Morita and published by Seta. It was the first shogi game created for the Famicom. Morita had previously programmed other board games for computers which were also critically acclaimed such as Othello and Go.
The game has four different modes to choose from:
Game (対局): This mode is a standard exhibition game. The player can choose from three different difficulty levels. The most difficult is L1 which is the equivalent of 2-kyu, while, not the most skilled shogi rank, will give most players a good challenge.
Replay (現在): This mode acts as a replay of the game you previously played. You can go to any move to any time and even restart the game from the move of your choice. This mode also helps one study and improve their shogi skills.
Board (盤面): This mode acts as a board editor and as such, the Dropped Piece (駒落ち) mode can be played; you can remove any pieces (besides the king) from both you or the computer's board. This can make the game more interesting, and even make it a good learning experience so it's easier to learn how to deal with a certain piece.
Tsume (詰め): This game's Tsume Shogi mode is different from most other games; rather than give the player a series of challenging shogi puzzles to solve, in this game, the player makes their own shogi puzzles for the computer to solve for them. The manual explains this also helps in the educational benefits of this game, as it can help the player deal with specific situations on the board.
The game's packaging and manual explain that, as stated above, that this game is more than just a shogi game, but it is also a learning tool to improve one's shogi skills. The game was even certified by the Japan Shogi Association. In addition, the game also has a battery back-up feature, though with the simplicity of this title, it's not really needed. However, if the player wishes to pause their progress, they can do so with this backup function so they can come back to the game later while being able to power off the Famicom. The series would continue on multiple platforms up until Morita's unfortunate passing in 2012.
Screenshots
Music
Morita Shougi has a very simplistic soundtrack; not surprising for a game made by one person in 1987. Each song is about 10 seconds long and doesn't loop, and they only play during major events in the game. The genre is mostly in the style of traditional Japanese folk music, but the Victory music has a bit of a surf-rock feel to it due to its bassline. Even though there's no in-game music, many future shogi games for the Famicom would have quite repetitive in-game songs, so one could argue that the lack of in-game music works in the game's favor. In addition, it allows the player to focus on the game without the distraction of music. There is also a bit of silence at the start of the title music. However, this is a part of the song.
Morita more than likely did the music and sound for the game, as he was its sole developer, hence the game's title. This is also supported by the overall quality of the music. The music was most likely written in assembly using a custom player by Morita himself.
Recording
| # | Title | Composer | Length | Listen | Download |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Title Screen | Kazuro Morita | 0:10 | Download | |
| 02 | Defeat | Kazuro Morita | 0:10 | Download | |
| 03 | Victory | Kazuro Morita | 0:10 | Download |
Credits
- Ripper: MrNorbert1994
- Recorder: Doommaster1994
- Game Credits:
- Not Credited Composer/Arranger: Kazuro Morita
(No source; Game lacks credits.)
Game Rip
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Ripping NES music is a very arduous process that is beyond the scope of this site.
Releases
Links
- gamefaqs.gamespot.com/nes/578400-morita-shogi - GameFAQs.
