The NES is the first version of the game.

The Dos version was part of a series of ports to home computers. It is the most infamous because it is unwinnable. It runs on most systems during the time of release, supporting CGA, EGA and Tandy.

The Dos has the following changes:

• Leonardo and Donatello vertical attack ranges have been reduced.
• All turtles can remain in their attack animation indefinitely by quickly moving left or right.
• The rollers on the surface only inflict minor damage rather than being fatal.
• Most minibosses are removed.
• Like the NES version, items replenish when you leave the building or sewer and re-enter. However, the free pizza slices in the Area 1 are more difficult to harvest.
• In Area 2, the approach to the final bomb has fatal coral at the bottom. However, there aren't any damaging weeds in that section.
• There are no continues, but you can save your game. Saved games retain the health of the turtles.
• The game runs at 10 frames per second.
• The game is unwinnable unless you use a cheat code: The sewer leading to the stage boss requires an impossible jump because of a low ceiling and extended gap.