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10 Classic 80s Cartoons Based On Video Games

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At the beginning of the 1980s, Saturday morning cartoons were in a bit of a slump. The energy of the biggest studios in this area, Hanna-Barbera and Filmation, wasn’t as powerful as it had been in the 1960s and early 70s. A good deal of what they created were spin-offs of their hits or retreads of a similar theme.

RELATED: 10 Saturday Morning Cartoons Based On Live-Action TV Shows

Then, a little yellow creature with eyes named Pac-Man emerged on the scene. His unique and colorful video game caused a surge at both the arcade and on television. Within a few short years, the Namco-created hero, along with friends from other game companies, premiered in cartoon form on Saturday mornings.

10 Pac-Man (1982) Ushered In The Trend

Pac-Man by Hanna-Barbera

Hanna-Barbera studio is a bit of a trendsetter. They ushered in the animated superhero genre of the 1960s and the teen detective genre of the 1970s. It’s only natural that they would kick off the video game cartoon trend as well. All this began in 1982 with Pac-Man.

The cartoon, which ran for two seasons on ABC’s Saturday morning schedule, wasn’t a multi-cell retread of the video game. It featured Pepper (Ms. Pac-Man), Pac-Baby, and several other characters who all lived in Pac-Land. Of course, Inky, Pinky, Clyde, and Sue were there to give Pac-Man trouble.

9 Frogger (1983) Made The Video Game Protagonist A Reporter

Frogger from "Saturday Supercade."

Frogger the video game, introduced in 1981 by Sega, was another advancement in technology. The goal was to get your froggy protagonist to safety as it crossed a highway filled with cars and a river loaded with sinking alligators and turtles. Two years later, the character became one of the main features on CBS’ Saturday Supercade series.

Here, Frogger is an ace reporter for the Swamp Gazette who goes in search of crazy stories. He’s joined by Shelly Turtle and Fanny Frog. Like the video game, Frogger gets flattened by the occasional truck or eaten by an alligator. Luckily, he can be revived with a simple air pump.

8 Donkey Kong (1983) Has A Love-Hate Relationship With Mario

Mario, Pauline, Donkey Kong

It’s interesting how time changes relationships. When Mario (then known as Jumpman) was introduced in Nintendo’s Donkey Kong in 1981, he was simply a one-dimensional protagonist trying to rescue his girlfriend, Pauline, from the clutches of a giant ape. With the introduction of the characters on Saturday Supercade, viewers got to see a character bound for stardom.

RELATED: Super Mario: 10 Spinoff Games That Prove Mario Can Boost Sales

In the cartoon version of Donkey Kong, it was up to Mario and Pauline to rescue the big monkey from some scheme or another he was lured into. Like in the video game, the mustached hero needed to rescue his girl from the clutches of Kong, voiced by Soupy Sales. However, in the end, the trio would team up to rout the actual criminals.

7 Donkey Kong Jr. (1983) Tries To Rescue His Father

Donkey Kong Jr. on "Saturday Supercade."

Popular video games begat sequels. Ms. Pac-Man was born from Pac-Man. Subsequently, the acclaim of Donkey Kong resulted in the 1982 release of Donkey Kong Jr. 

However, the premise of Junior’s adventures was different between the video game and his Saturday Supercade segment. The former pitted the young Kong against Mario to rescue his dad. The latter had Junior team up with a Fonzie-like character nicknamed Bones to find his father after he runs away from the circus.

6 Q*Bert (1983) Went Back To The 1950s

Q*Bert from "Saturday Supercade."

What does one do when they want to make a cartoon about a video game that doesn’t really have a backstory? They place them in a period that may or may not make sense to the viewer. Such is the case with Saturday Supercade’s Q*Bert.

The animated version puts the protagonist and his friends in the 1950s. He, along with his girlfriend, Q*Tee, and friends, Q*Ball and Q*Val, do what other teenagers did in that period. That includes being bullied by a trio of greasers. Like the video game, Q*Bert jumps blocks and occasionally produces swear bubbles.

5 Pitfall! (1983) Expanded The Video Game Genre

Pitfall Harry

The inclusion of Activision’s Pitfall! in Saturday Supercade created a historic moment. It was the first home-based game to be featured in animated form. In this case, Pitfall! the game was made for the Atari 2600 console.

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The cartoon featured the main character, Pitfall Harry, joined by his niece, Rhonda, and pet Mountain Lion, Quickclaw. They journeyed through various jungles, surviving giant pits and poisonous animals, to discover missing treasures. Harry’s two companions would eventually join him in the video games Pitfall II and Super Pitfall.

4 Kangaroo (1984) Joins Mother And Son Against Mean Monkeys

Katy "K.O." and Joey Kangaroo.

Released in 1982, Atari’s Kangaroo is one of those forgotten video games. Similar to Donkey Kong, it features a boxing-glove-wearing kangaroo that tries to rescue its son from a bunch of fruit-throwing monkeys. These characters would all be part of Saturday Supercade. 

However, the concept of the cartoon is slightly different. Joey Kangaroo and his mother Katy “K.O.” Kangaroo have to keep a quartet of mean monkeys from creating havoc at a local zoo. For every escape attempt they make, Katy and Joey are there to maintain control.

3 Space Ace (1984) Was Already Animated

Kimberley, Space Ace, Borf

Another phase of video game technology emerged in 1983 with Dragon’s Lair and Space Ace. Based on laserdisc, these movie-quality productions animated by Don Bluth were a form of a Make Your Own Story concept. Various joystick and button actions moved the story forward. For Space Ace, some of these involved transforming the nerdy Dexter into a muscular hero.

The concept of the Saturday Supercade cartoon was similar. Dexter/Space Ace joins space officer Kimberley in a fight against the evil commander Borf and his goals to invade Earth. Unlike the video game, Dexter can transform into the powerful Space Ace seemingly at will.

2 Dragon’s Lair (1984) Featured Adventures In The Middle Ages

The cast of Dragon's Lair

Ruby-Spears Productions wasn’t done with video games when Saturday Supercade ended in 1984. They picked up where they left off with a Saturday morning version of Dragon’s Lair that aired on ABC.

RELATED: 10 Most Iconic Saturday Morning ’80s Cartoons, Ranked

Like the video game, the show focuses on Dirk the Daring as he protects his kingdom and his love, Princess Daphne, from the evil Dragon Singe. Before each commercial break, Dirk is involved in a cliffhanger, and the narrator asks the audience what they would do. When the show returns, each choice is shown. Eventually, Dirk selects the right one.

1 Pole Position (1984) Took Only The Video Game’s Name

The Darrett siblings of "Pole Position."

Where most video-game-based cartoons had themes that directly related to their counterparts, Pole Position took a different angle. Though the name was from an Atari production released in 1982, the show didn’t have any relation to the game. Instead, the family featured on the show was a team of stunt-driving crime fighters.

The Darretts, adult siblings Tess & Dan and younger sister Daisy, disguise their operations under the guise of a stunt show. The vehicles they drive, a 1965 red Mustang and 1980s blue coupe, have AIs similar to those of KITT of Knight Rider fame.

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