StarTropics was designed for the American audience. It is unique among the huge library of Famicom games to be one of the few released specifically for North America and Europe, and not Japan.
This game combines elements from a variety of games popular during the 8-bit era: Dragon Quest styled overworlds and towns, rpg elements, overhead Zelda-esque action and puzzles... StarTropics combines these elements to make a perfect Nintendo game.