One of the classic platformer action games of the late 80s, Karnov combines a bizarre fantasy setting with relatively deep and difficult gameplay for its genre. There isn't a great deal of story behind Karnov – you play Jinborov Karnovski, a fire-breathing Russian strongman in search of treasure – but the strategy behind the game involves a great deal of memorization and uncovering of secrets to succeed. The positions and actions of the cavalcade of fanciful enemies (sword-wielding monks, djinn, dinosaurs and centipede women to name a few) don't change but pretty much require multiple playthroughs to learn, and there are a number of power-ups and weapons hidden around the levels. Karnov the character became a mascot of sorts for Data East, appearing as a boss in Bad Dudes and making cameo appearances in several other games in addition to being a playable character in Neo Geo fighter Karnov's Revenge.