For decades, Neon Phantasm existed only as a rumor whispered on BBS forums and in retro gaming circles — a game that was allegedly too advanced for its time. Developed in secret by a rogue team within a Japanese tech company in 1986, the game mysteriously vanished after a fire destroyed their lab.

Fast forward to 2025, when a sealed cartridge labeled “NP-01” was found in a Tokyo electronics scrapyard. After intense restoration work, Neon Phantasm was finally dumped and released today for the NES Mini emulator.

The Game:
Neon Phantasm is a psychedelic side-scroller where you play as a ghost trapped in a neon-soaked cybercity. You glide through layers of overlapping realities, shifting dimensions to solve puzzles and defeat glitchy, corrupted enemies. Think Castlevania meets Tron, but with a synthwave soundtrack and bizarre horror overtones.

Fun fact: The game uses undocumented NES code tricks that weren’t fully understood until modern developers disassembled the ROM.