Games Released in December 1988

803 new games debuted in December 1988, with Family Computer being the most active platform. December 31 was the busiest day, with 22 releases. Ghouls 'n Ghosts was the most popular release of the month.

Which days had the most releases?

December 31 saw the most activity with 22 releases.

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22 releases

December 31

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19 releases

December 1

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12 releases

December 9

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7 releases

December 16

SunMonTueWedThuFriSat

Thu, Dec 1

19 releases

Fri, Dec 2

3 releases

Sat, Dec 3

1 release

Sun, Dec 4

3 releases

Mon, Dec 5

1 release

Tue, Dec 6

No releases

Wed, Dec 7

No releases

Thu, Dec 8

1 release

Fri, Dec 9

12 releases

Sat, Dec 10

2 releases

Sun, Dec 11

No releases

Mon, Dec 12

No releases

Tue, Dec 13

1 release

Wed, Dec 14

No releases

Thu, Dec 15

3 releases

Fri, Dec 16

7 releases

Sat, Dec 17

3 releases

Sun, Dec 18

3 releases

Mon, Dec 19

2 releases

Tue, Dec 20

4 releases

Wed, Dec 21

2 releases

Thu, Dec 22

4 releases

Fri, Dec 23

3 releases

Sat, Dec 24

6 releases

Sun, Dec 25

2 releases

Mon, Dec 26

2 releases

Tue, Dec 27

No releases

Wed, Dec 28

No releases

Thu, Dec 29

1 release

Fri, Dec 30

No releases

Sat, Dec 31

22 releases

How did each week compare?

The first week of December was the busiest with 27 releases.

Week 1 (December 1–7)

27 releases
Ghouls 'n Ghosts

Most popular release in Week 1

Ghouls 'n Ghosts

The gameplay for Ghouls 'n Ghosts is similar to that of Ghosts 'n Goblins. The player controls the knight Arthur, who must advance through a series of eerie levels and defeat a number of undead and demonic creatures in his quest to restore the souls stolen by Lucifer (Loki in the English-language Mega Drive and Sega Master System versions), including the soul of his lover, Princess Prin Prin. Along the way, Arthur can pick up a variety of weapons and armor to help him in his quest. While the core gameplay remains the same as its predecessor, the game now allows Arthur to fire directly upward and directly downward while in mid air. By jumping in certain spots, players can cause a treasure chest to erupt from the ground. By firing his weapon at the chest, players may uncover new weapons, gold armor or an evil magician that changes Arthur into an elderly man or a helpless duck. The gold armor allows players to charge up the weapon to release a powerful magical attack. Each weapon has its own special attack. There are five levels and Lucifer's chamber at the end, considered a sixth level in itself. To defeat the game, Arthur must complete level 1 to 5 twice. Upon completing level's 1 to 5 the first time, Arthur is taken back to level 1 again but this time a special weapon appears during the game. To enter Lucifer's chamber the player must have this special weapon equipped and defeat the penultimate boss.

Which platforms saw the most releases?

Family Computer received 29 new titles in December 1988. The runner up was Nintendo Entertainment System with 12 new titles.

Family Computer29 releases
Nintendo Entertainment System12 releases
Sharp X680009 releases
Amstrad CPC7 releases
Commodore C64/128/MAX7 releases
Family Computer Disk System7 releases
MSX25 releases
PC-8800 Series5 releases
PC-9800 Series4 releases
ZX Spectrum4 releases

What genres were most popular?

Adventure was the dominant genre in December 1988 with 27 titles. Shooter followed closely with 25.

Adventure27
Shooter25
Arcade19
Platform18
Role-playing13
Sport11
Racing9
Visual Novel7
Simulator6
Strategy6
1988 Review
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