J. J. Squawkers

About

J J Squawkers is a 1993 arcade platformer from Athena where you control two bird brothers named Ani and Ototo. You run jump and fling projectiles to clear stages crawling with enemies. Start with tomatoes as your default weapon but enemies drop better tools like pumpkins watermelon seeds and spring-loaded sneakers. Each item behaves differently requiring you to adapt tactics midlevel. Screws zip straight until they hit a wall while seeds spray in arcs to hit clusters of foes. The brothers move in tandem but you control them separately making coordination tricky. The game stands out for its playful weapon system and chaotic action. Enemies drop pickups that change how you approach rooms turning platforming into a mix of timing and resource management. The opening scene of a house blowing up sets a tone of goofy destruction that carries through the levels. Though largely forgotten today its mix of fast movement and varied projectiles has earned it a niche reputation among retro arcade fans. The two player mode adds to the charm with split-screen chaos.