The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King

I picked up a copy of The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King while in Mexico City in large part because I had never seen it before. After doing some research it seemed to be a solid licensed title in the metroidvania genre. Given where I purchased it the cartridge was set to Spanish, and I decided to honor that by keeping it that way. After, all the story turned out to be simple enough - with Jack Skellington searching for Sally throughout Halloween Town, all the while dodging "bichos" (bugs) that have been set out by Oogie Boogie. Each different location - such as Jack's House or the Cemetery - has it's own metroidvania map, complete with areas that unlock as you power up and find new abilities. The game handles quirkily, with Jack having his characteristic lanky proportions. The spritework throughout is genuinely excellent, and does great justice to the character and world. The climbing animation in particular is fantastic and brings the character to life, while nearly justifying the sometimes sluggish platforming. Each area culminates in a boss battle with an oversized bug of some sort. The quality of these fights varies heavily, with some incredibly tough ones followed by some cakewalks. The final fight with Oogie Boogie was particularly egregious, as one of his three main attacks is a slow moving, easily avoided attack that is fully invincible, ultimately making the fight a slog. I enjoyed the lack of mandatory backtracking and boss walkbacks that are baked into a lot of modern metroidvanias - there is some optional backtracking to find collectables, if you are inclined to do it. The music is forgettable, although it features the main motif from The Nightmare Before Christmas. Overall it's an oddity of a game, and an obscure old metroidvania if that's something that sounds interesting to you. It's a quick and easy play as well, so check it out if you're a fan of the franchise!

Play it for the:

• Excellent (and goofy) spritework
• Nightmare Before Christmas prequel story
• Niche metroidvania experience

Reviewed on 2026-10-09

He says before wasting your time with his invulnerable move.