Kung-Fu Master is a side-scrolling beat 'em up game produced by Irem as an arcade game in 1984 and distributed by Data East in North America. The game was initially released in Japan under the title of Spartan X. The players control Thomas, the titular Kung-Fu Master, as he fights his way through the five levels of the Devil's Temple in order to rescue his girlfriend Sylvia from the crime boss Mr. X. Kung-Fu Master is regarded as the first beat 'em up video game.