Pirate Ship Higemaru

Lore & Background

Characters include Momotaru, the sailor; Higemaru, a bearded pirate with a bandana and striped shirt, lacking arms and legs, who moves cautiously and later chases the player; and Bows, presumably the captain, with a beard, skull-and-crossbones hat, hook, and wooden leg, wandering aimlessly. The game uses Z80-based technology, as did many early Capcom arcade games.

Reader's Guide

Pirate Ship Higemaru holds significance as Capcom's third game, following Vulgus and Sonson, and as an early example of the company's arcade output. Its inclusion in multiple compilations—Capcom Generations: The First Generation (1998) and Capcom Classics Collection (2005)—helped preserve it for later audiences. The game introduced the Yashichi power-up item in its second appearance, a symbol that would recur in many Capcom titles. Its legacy extends to references in other games: Sylphie from Forgotten Worlds throws a barrel in the style of Momotaru in Namco × Capcom; a sequel, Higemaru Makaijima, was released for the Family Computer in Japan; and a pirate boss named Captain Higemaru Jr appears in Capcom's Strider. Momotaru was originally planned for Street Fighter V but was scrapped. The pirates also appear as shooting dummies in the 2023 remake of Resident Evil 4. The game's looping structure and lack of ending were characteristic of many early arcade titles.

Did You Know?

• Pirate Ship Higemaru was the fourth game produced by Capcom, following Vulgus, Sonson, and 1942.
• The Yashichi power-up item makes its second cameo appearance in this game, after Sonson.
• A sequel titled Higemaru Makaijima was released for the Family Computer in Japan, with an English localization planned but canceled.