mode. Play continues until the last Thomas is dead, which ends the game. Development The game was designed for Irem by Takashi Nishiyama. Kung-Fu Master is based on Hong Kong martial arts films. It is a loose adaptation of the Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung film Wheels on Meals (1984), called Spartan X in Japan, specifically the final part of the film which involves Thomas (Jackie Chan) climbing a Spanish castle to rescue Sylvia (Lola Forner), with the help of Moby (Sammo Hung) and his cousin David (Yuen Biao). The game also borrows heavily from Bruce Lee's 1972 film Game of Death, with the five-level Devil's Temple reflecting the movie's setting of a five-level pagoda with a martial arts master in each level; in contrast, Wheels on Meals takes place in Spain as opposed to the game's East Asian setting. The final part of Wheels on Meals had itself borrowed its concept of climbing an enemy base by fighting enemies along the way from Game of Death. The game was also influenced by the Bruce Lee film Enter the Dragon (1973). Nishiyama had earlier created Irem's 1982 arcade side-scrolling shooter game Moon Patrol. Nishiyama designed Kung-Fu Master by combining a shoot 'em up gameplay rhythm with fighting elements. The music and sound for the arcade game were composed by Masato Ishizaki. Nishiyama initially believed the game did not need any music, as it was a martial arts game and he thought it would sound more impressive to just have the sound effects. Ishizaki had a melody in mind for the game, and suggested that two versions be made, with and without the music, and see which sounds better. After hearing both versions, Nishiyama agreed that the music version sounds better and included Ishizaki's melody in the game. Prior to the game's development, Nishiyama was invited to join Capcom by its founder Kenzo Tsujimoto in 1983, after he had left Irem. Nishiyama decided to remain in Irem up until the development of Spartan X. He eventually decided to leave Irem and join Capcom before the game was complete. Ishizaki later went on to compose the music and sound for R-Type (1987). Release The arcade game was originally released as Spartan X in Japan, on November 24, 1984. It was then released internationally as Kung-Fu Master, in North America during late 1984 and in Europe by early 1985. Ports In June 1985,