Super Glove Ball - Power Glove Playthrough (Actual NES Capture)

This is a capture of me playing through Super Glove Ball for the NES. This is not an emulator. This footage was recorded directly from my front-loading NES using a real Super Glove Ball cartridge and a Power Glove controller.Show more

Since I grew up with the NES in the late '80s and early '90s, I was quite aware of the Power Glove as a kid, and I specifically remember seeing the commercials airing on TV. Although I thought the concept looked cool, I sadly never had the opportunity to try the Power Glove for myself. However, even back then I had heard that the controller didn't work very well.

In 2013 I finally decided to purchase a Power Glove and see what all the fuss was about. I picked up a brand new Glove from a seller on Amazon for only $85. While the box had been opened, the contents were unused and still in their original plastic wrap. The Glove was also a size large, so it fit perfectly. It was quite a deal.

I also picked up a brand new copy of Super Glove Ball at the same time for about $40. Despite all the Lucas Barton and Angry Video Game Nerd jokes, I was surprised to find that the controller worked quite well with Super Glove Ball.

As you can see in this video, the Power Glove works just like a Wii Remote when you're playing Super Glove Ball (since the game was designed for the Glove). The Glove tracks 3D movement and it also detects when certain fingers are being bent. So Super Glove Ball actually feels like a Wii game. That's quite remarkable considering that this game was released in 1990.

Super Glove Ball itself plays like a 3D Arkanoid, Breakout or Alleyway. You control a glove on screen to shoot a ball around in 3D space and break bricks on five different walls. You can grab the ball and then release it in a specific spot or simply bounce it off your glove. You can also point your index finger at the screen to shoot enemies and bricks (I think that part is really cool).

To beat this game, you have to break through specific walls and navigate an extremely confusing 3D maze to reach the final boss. To do this, I used Adam Lamontagne's guide on GameFaqs (http://www.gamefaqs.com/nes/587663-su...). A huge thanks goes out to Adam because I could not have beaten this game without his guide.

If you're going to try beating this game, I recommend that you hit as many question marks as possible (unless they're hiding warp points you don't want to go through) because they'll give you tons of useful bonuses including extra balls, lives, power, and ammo. One of the best bonuses is the "ROW" one which allows you to knock out an entire row of bricks with a single hit. That one is invaluable.

In general, I've found it's best to hold onto the ball and take your time getting into position to knock out specific blocks. If you throw the ball around wildly, you'll just waste time and lives. Also, don't forget that you can knock out bricks by shooting them with your index finger. That can be really helpful. You also have to remember which enemies can kill you in one hit. You'll definitely want to avoid them.

This game is quite difficult, so I used a cheat code on the title screen to start with 13 lives instead of 7 (press 042158 on the Power Glove to enter the cheat). I don't know if there's a cheat available when you use a standard controller, but even with the additional lives, it's still incredibly difficult to beat this game because certain enemies can kill you in one hit, and you can accidentally warp to other rooms, which can really mess you up (good luck finding your way through the maze at that point).

Recorded with the Hauppauge HD PVR and a composite connection at 60 frames per second. I used a Toshiba model D-R550 DVD Recorder to upconvert the NES's native 240p signal to 480i so that the Hauppauge could capture the console's audio/video signal.

I'm using a Power Glove controller.