Fun 'n Games

Lore & Background

Fun 'n Games is arranged into four categories: Paint, Games, Music, and Style. The Paint activity allows drawing on a canvas or in a coloring book, with tools such as a pencil, paint bucket, patterns, stamps, and pre-made backgrounds. Figures from the Style activities can be imported. The Games section includes three minigames: Mouse Maze (a Pac-Man-style game where a mouse collects cheese while avoiding cats and traps), Spaze Lazer (a first-person spaceship shooter with a radar and boss fights), and Whack a Clown (a Whac-A-Mole variant where players hit clowns but lose lives for hitting seals; this minigame appears in both the Genesis and Super NES versions). A fourth minigame, Basketball Jones, was planned but removed during development.

Reader's Guide

Fun 'n Games is significant as a multi-activity compilation that attempted to offer creative and arcade-style entertainment on home consoles. Its inclusion of a paint program and music composer, alongside simple games, positioned it as a family-oriented title. The game was reviewed in Nintendo Power and GamePro in 1994, which praised its variety and creativity but criticized its simplicity and lack of depth for older players. Reviewers noted that the Super NES Mouse improved the experience, and Mike Weigand of Electronic Gaming Monthly called the Genesis version 'a good non-action game almost anyone can enjoy.' The rarity of the North American Super NES version has made it a collector's item. Its legacy is modest, often compared unfavorably to Mario Paint, but it remains a curiosity for its attempt to bundle multiple activities in one cartridge.

Did You Know?

• The North American Super NES version of Fun 'n Games is considered one of the rarer games for the console.
• The minigame Whack a Clown, a variant of Whac-A-Mole, appears in both the Genesis and Super NES versions.
• A fourth minigame called Basketball Jones was planned for the Genesis version but removed during development.
• The game is compatible with the Super NES Mouse and the Mega Mouse for mouse-like control.