Before there wasprite-based苏州市 to trap flies with a net, there was Gotcha!—a 1987 arcade game from Namco that somehow made it to the NES. It's bizarre, it's weird, and it's honestly kind of charming in its strangeness.
The premise: You're a man with a butterfly net (or bug net) trying to capture flies that buzz around a garden. That's it. No aliens to shoot, no princess to rescue—just you versus a swarm of insects. The gameplay is simple: move the net with the D-pad, press a button to swing, and try to catch the flies before they escape or time runs out. Each successful catch nets you points. Miss too many and you lose a life.
Now, you might be thinking: "A game about catching flies? That sounds terrible." And you'd be half right. It is unusual. But there's something hypnotic about it. The flies move in erratic patterns, the garden is colorful and detailed (for NES standards), and the tension of timing your net swing creates a strange kind of flow. It's not exactly high-stakes, but it's not mind-numbing either—it requires quick reflexes and pattern recognition, albeit on a smaller scale than most arcade games.
The NES port is faithful to the arcade original. The graphics are simple but effective: a green lawn, some flowers, a fence in the background, and those little pixelated flies. Your character animates nicely when he swings the net. The sound is typical Namco bleeps and bloops—nothing memorable, but it gets the job done.
What makes Gotcha! interesting today isn't the depth (there isn't much) but the sheer audacity of the concept. An arcade game about catching flies! Who greenlit that? It's the kind of oddity that makes video game history fascinating. It's not a lost masterpiece; it's a curiosity. A conversation piece. The kind of game you'd put on to make someone say, "What am I looking at?"
The difficulty ramps up quickly. Flies get faster, their patterns more unpredictable. You'll need good hand-eye coordination and quick reaction times. There are bonus rounds and different garden layouts to keep things varied. But ultimately, this is a game you play in short bursts. It's not something you'll grind for hours unless you're a completionist or just enjoy the absurdity.
If you can find a copy (it's not rare, but it's not common either), it's worth a try just to experience something different. In an era library filled with platformers and shooters, Gotcha! stands out because it's about nothing except catching flies with a net. And sometimes that's exactly what you need—a little palate cleanser from the usual fare.
It's no Contra. It's no Mega Man. But it's Gotcha!, and that's enough.
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