Magical Taruruuto-kun (Game Boy, Japanese Import) - Authentic Bandai Cartridge, Tested
A 1991 platformer from Weekly Shonen Jump's golden era, where recruiting the little wizard changes the difficulty dramatically. Japan-only. Japanese needed: very little. This copy has a small label peel, shown in the photos.
$20.00
How I grade condition: every grade is tested and plays; grades differ only in looks.
Want to see the exact copy you'd get, inside and out? Ask me for photos, board included.
A Shōnen Jump hit, on Game Boy
Magical Taruruuto-kun is Tatsuya Egawa’s comedy manga about Honmaru, a put-upon schoolboy, and Taruruuto, the tiny wizard who moves in with him. It ran in Weekly Shōnen Jump from 1988 to 1992, Jump’s golden era, sold over 12 million copies, and got an 87-episode Toei anime. Bandai’s Game Boy platformer came out in June 1991 and never left Japan.
Your partner matters
You play as Honmaru, and whether you get Taruruuto to join you changes the difficulty dramatically. You level the two of them up together, which matters for the bosses, and minigames let you grind. A Japanese guidebook warns the main game itself is short. A sequel followed on Game Boy in 1992, and Game Freak, before Pokémon, made a different Taruruuto-kun game for the Mega Drive.
This copy’s label
The label on this copy is peeling slightly at the top right corner, shown in photo 2. It plays exactly the same, and the condition grade accounts for the label. If you want a nicer one, ask me to find one.
About the Japanese
It is a platformer, so the Japanese is story screens and minigame text; the jumping explains itself.
Another Shōnen Jump cart in the shop: Yu Yu Hakusho Part 3.
Specifications
| Authenticity | Authentic original Bandai cartridge (DMG-MGJ) - not a reproduction |
|---|---|
| Condition | Graded on my condition scale. This copy's label has a small peel at one corner (photo 2), and the grade reflects it. Opened, cleaned, and tested by playing before it ships. |
| Gameplay | Side-scrolling action platformer, 1 player |
| Includes | Loose cartridge only (no box or manual) |
| Language | Japanese, light: it's a platformer, with some Japanese on story and minigame screens |
| Region | Japanese release, never sold outside Japan. Region-free: plays on any Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance or Super Game Boy |
| Title Full | Magical Taruruuto-kun / まじかる☆タルるートくん (Game Boy, Bandai, Japan, 1991) |
Similar items
Crayon Shin-chan: Ora to Shiro wa Otomodachi da yo (Game Boy, Japanese Import) - Authentic Bandai Cartridge, Tested
Shin-chan's very first video game, from 1993, and it's all about his dog Shiro. A short action game. Japanese needed: almost none.
$20.00
Yu Yu Hakusho Part 3: Makai no Tobira (Game Boy, Japanese Import) - Authentic Tomy Cartridge, Tested
A Japan-only 1994 action RPG of the Sensui arc, released while Togashi's manga was still running in Shonen Jump. Four switchable heroes, password save. Japanese needed: some for story, none to fight.
$45.00
Chibi Maruko-chan: Maruko Deluxe Gekijou (Game Boy, Japanese Import) - Authentic Takara Cartridge, Tested
Japan's record-setting family anime on Game Boy, in the final and best-reviewed of Takara's five Game Boy Maruko games, and the only one made for Super Game Boy. Japanese needed: a lot.
$20.00
Game de Hakken!! Tamagotchi 2 (Game Boy, Japanese Import) - Authentic Bandai Yellow Cartridge, Tested
The Japan-only 1997 sequel in a bright yellow cartridge, with bug and fish Tamagotchi that went on to become toys. Japanese needed: some for the map and story.
$25.00