Sqoon

Sqoon is a side-scrolling shooter for the NES that trades the usual outer-space battlefield for a flooded, hostile world. Released in 1987, it was developed by Home Data and published by Irem, putting you in control of a small submarine moving through underwater passages filled with enemy creatures, hazards, and opposing craft.

The submarine can fire continuously as the screen scrolls, but survival depends on more than simply clearing a path. Exploration and positioning matter as you move through the submerged landscape, deal with enemies approaching from different directions, and manage the space available around your vessel. The game’s aquatic setting gives its action a distinct feel: open stretches of water, structures and terrain to navigate, and threats that can appear from above, below, or ahead. Its objective is tied to rescuing survivors scattered through the flooded world, adding a practical purpose to each run beyond chasing a high score.

Sqoon is an interesting example of an era when developers were still experimenting with how familiar arcade formulas could work on the NES. It is not a leisurely underwater adventure; the pace is demanding, and the compact submarine can be vulnerable when the screen fills with danger. Learning enemy patterns, judging when to advance, and keeping your aim trained in the right direction are central to making progress.

With its unusual setting and straightforward controls, Sqoon has a particular appeal for fans of lesser-known NES shooters. It offers a darker, more unconventional alternative to the platform’s better-known space-based action games, while retaining the direct challenge and replayability associated with classic scrolling shooters. RetroCloud lets you play online on your browser and revisit this curious piece of Irem’s NES-era catalog.