Jack Bros.

Jack Bros. is a game released for the Virtual Boy in 1995. Its pre-production name was Devil Busters, which was soon changed.

Plot
The game is set on Halloween, where the narration explains that fairies take advantage of the special night to visit the real world. Unfortunately, the character has lost track of time and must now rush to make it back before midnight or face never being able to return again. The player is helped by a Pixie who explains elements of each level as they arrive and warns about approaching bosses. Each of the three initial playable characters have a unique ending sequence.

Characters

 * Jack Frost
 * Pyro Jack (Jack Lantern in the NA release)
 * Jack Ripper (Jack Skelton in the NA release)
 * Pixie

Gameplay
The game is played in an overhead style similar to the Gauntlet series – three-dimensional Virtual Boy enhancements and monochrome restrictions notwithstanding – and is divided into six stages called areas. Each area has a strict time limit, which is reduced every time the player gets hit. Areas consist of multiple floors ending with a boss floor. In order to progress through each floor, the player must defeat enemies and collect a certain number of keys per floor before the exit to the next will open. Traps are slowly added to each level over time, such as lasers, dark zones, and warp tiles. Enemies are also introduced slowly, most with their own gimmick. Floors can also contain power-ups such as invincibility potions, special attack stars, shields, and additional time bonuses.

Trivia

 * Despite being a spin-off title, Jack Bros. was the first game within the Megami Tensei franchise to be released in North America.
 * While the player is only given the three brothers to choose from at the beginning, after beating the game once on hard mode, players will be given the code to unlock Pixie as a playable character.
 * In the Japanese version of the game, a sound test can be accessed with the following button combination with the left D-Pad, on the title screen: Up, Up, Up, Down, Down, Down, Down. This feature was dummied out in the North American version of the game.