The Battle of Olympus Returns to Steam With Yukio and Reiko Horimoto
The Battle of Olympus is making an unexpected return. The NES action-adventure that originally launched in 1988 is set to come back on Steam, with Yukio and Reiko Horimoto—the couple behind the Greek-mythology follow-up to their earlier work—again steering the remake’s direction.
From a first romance to an 8-bit classic
Released on the NES in 1988, The Battle of Olympus was created by a tiny team and stayed largely under the radar at launch. Its cover art was handled by prolific illustrator Dave McMacken, but the game’s original appearance didn’t translate into widespread attention.
The Horimoto story starts in the mid-1980s, when Yukio and Reiko met and fell in love while developing their first project, Kieta Princess. After their relationship formed, the two decided to build a new game rooted in Greek myths and legends. They founded the studio Infinity and looked heavily to Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, a title that had released the year prior in 1987—an influence Yukio Horimoto has repeatedly pointed to, including for the jump and movement system as well as the character animations.
In The Battle of Olympus, players control Orpheus, tasked with rescuing his partner Hélène—Eurydice, in a Greek-myth context—from the clutches of Hades. Instead of mirroring Zelda II’s world map with random encounters, the game uses an overhead map of Greece, complete with cities and dungeons the player must visit to progress.
- Original release: NES, in 1988
- Team size: three people
- Yukio Horimoto: design and programming
- Reiko Oshida: scenario and graphics
- Kazuo Sawa: composer
Composer Kazuo Sawa, who wrote the melodies for The Battle of Olympus, passed away earlier this year. He was also known for work on the Kunio-kun series, including the 8-bit era football title that arrived in some regions as Nintendo World Cup.
What’s coming to Steam
While Sawa won’t be returning for the remake, the Horimotos plan to bring their “first love” full circle with a Steam remake that’s currently under construction. The release is planned for January 2027, but the developers will open with Steam Early Access.
- Steam Early Access begins before the full release in January 2027.
- At Early Access launch, the original game will be playable end-to-end, keeping its authentic 8-bit balance.
- During Early Access, the team will rebuild the visuals and add new features and difficulty modes based on player feedback.
- For the complete version, the developers say they plan to redraw all graphics, improve visuals and animations, and add new visual effects.
- Alongside the original balancing, the full release will include new gameplay options, including Easy and Normal modes, plus features intended for speedrunning.
The team describes Early Access as a chance to share the remake while it’s still in development—collecting player reactions to continue improving controls, balance, pixel art, interface, sound, and the overall PC experience.
Why this remake matters to the Horimotos
The announcement also frames The Battle of Olympus as a return to the couple’s roots after years of working together across multiple franchises. After Infinity’s early days, they later collaborated on projects including Populous and Ultima in the 1990s, followed by Girls’ Fashion Shoot and Model Debut #nicola in the 2000s.
