DuckTales is often a subject of NES-related nostalgia and was generally popular.

The game provides a good example of the work produced by Capcom in the late 1980s and early 1990s, along with such titles as those in the Mega Man franchise; both shared key personnel such as Tokuro Fujiwara, Keiji Inafune and Yoshihiro Sakaguchi. DuckTales has much in common with the Mega Man games: bright and colorful graphics, tight play control with unique gameplay dynamics (such as using Scrooge's cane as a weapon, tool, and pogo stick), and non-linear gameplay.