More browsing paths
Play Swords and Serpents (US edition · English) Online
Swords and Serpents
Lead four adventurers through sixteen dungeon floors, choose where to strike monsters and recover seven ruby artifacts before confronting the Serpent.
Browser play
Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) / Famicom — EmulatorJS controls
Default Player 1 keyboard mapping. Change keys in Controllers Setting.
| Console button | Keyboard |
|---|---|
| ↑ / ↓ / ← / → | ↑ / ↓ / ← / → |
| A / B | Z / X |
| START / SELECT | Enter / V |
Open Controllers Setting to configure your keyboard or gamepad. Touch controls are available on mobile.
How to Play Swords and Serpents
Quick start
Press any button at the title, then another button past the credits. Select 1 PLAYER with left/right and A, choose BEGIN A NEW GAME, then USE EXISTING PARTY. Explore the first floor near its temple and record turns and exits before descending. To stop, press START during exploration and choose SAVE GAME; copy all five passwords and the four names in order.
Controls
D-Pad up/down moves forward/back; left/right turns 90 degrees. A confirms menus; B cancels. In combat A attacks the body, up+A aims at the head and down+A at the legs; B opens magic and SELECT opens escape choices. Outside combat B opens spells, SELECT shows characters/inventory, and START opens the password menu. Only magicians cast spells.
Swords and Serpents — About this game
A four-person expedition descends a maze of sixteen floors in search of the Serpent and seven pieces of the Ruby Warrior’s equipment. Choose an existing party or create warriors, thieves and magicians; include a magician because the adventure requires magic. Strength, agility and intelligence shape each character’s abilities, while weapons and armor influence combat as well as survival. Aiming at the head trades accuracy for damage, so choosing a target matters alongside spell use.
Temples on floors 1, 5 and 10 restore the group, and Zoom Tubes offer routes back toward safety. The automap records explored passages but omits secrets and retains only two floor maps, making your own notes useful. Progress uses five passwords: four character codes and a party code, restored with the original names and order. Maps and experience points toward the next level are lost, although earned levels and equipment remain. One person can manage everyone, or two or four people can divide control; four-player play on the original console needs an appropriate adapter.
Cheats
No cheats have been added for this edition.