Didn’t like this as much as the first. Enemies felt more restrictive in how you could approach them and a lot cheaper in how they attacked. Take the jet pack goons, for example. You have to wait until they’re at a specific altitude to air-kick them and even then the attack could miss for no discernible reason. Other enemies, including but not limited to knife-wielding punks, motorcycle riders, agile ninjas, the skull miniboss in level 3, and the boxer in level 5, encourage a passive playstyle where you wait for them to approach and then strike back. It gets especially tedious in the second half where they throw multiple enemies with giant healthbars at you.

The bosses were the biggest letdown. In the first game, they had distinct fighting styles that, with only a couple exceptions, could be learned and beaten without taking damage. Not so here. Either the fighting style is ripped straight from the original, or they constantly jump around in unpredictable patterns to land charge or grab attacks. There’s nothing as creative as the ninja twins, the chubby pyromaniac, or even the boomerang-wielding giant in the first level.

On a more positive note, the audiovisuals are excellent. The graphics and sound effects are a huge upgrade over the original and the music, while not super memorable to me, has great audio samples for a 16-bit game. The characters feel even more distinct. Max and Skate in particular feel powerful and agile, respectively. Each enemy having a unique name and visible healthbar are also nice touches.

Maybe I just haven’t found the right beat ‘em up for me. This was still more enjoyable than the entire Golden Axe trilogy. Maybe the third or fourth entries will be up my alley.

If I were ever a child in the 90s, and I had some friends over to play some games on the Genesis, and we wanted to play a beat-’em-up game, there would be many suggestions that could be thrown around. We could mention Double Dragon, to where we would say we had already spent enough time on that game, some could mention Alien Storm, which we would be open to, but at some other point in time, and then there would be that one kid who suggests any of the Golden Axe games, who we would then tell to fuck off and die, as he has shit taste and should feel bad for it. After that, we would then settle with Streets of Rage 2, as it just seems like the go-to beat-’em-up for the Genesis as a whole, and why wouldn’t it be? The combat is fast and satisfying, the graphics are great, the stages are really fun to go through, and while it can certainly kick your ass up and down the block, it never leaves you feeling discouraged, and it makes you wanna try again so you can take down your foes and have a grand ol’ time. However, with how good that game turned out to be even after my second playthrough of it, nothing could’ve possibly prepared me for what was ultimately going to be the game that would end up winning me over more than all the others, Streets of Rage 3.

Before playing this game, this was the title I had the least experience with out of any of the Streets of Rage games, with me having played every other game in the series at least a little bit before going back to it for the sake of giving it a proper shot. I was curious as to how I would end up liking this one, considering that Streets of Rage 2 is considered to be not just one of the best games on the Genesis, but also one of the best beat-’em-ups of all time, so needless to say, it was gonna take a lot to make me consider this one the superior title of the two games, let alone the best in the initial trilogy. However, after having played the game for myself……. there’s no way I can ever go back to Streets of Rage 2 now, as this game manages to be phenomenal in just about every way, and I loved almost all of what I got out of it.

The story is a bit more complex than that of previous titles (keywords being “a bit”), where Mr. X, after facing defeat twice in the previous two games, continues to participate in criminal activities under the guise of his new company, RoboCy Corporation, with an ultimate plan to control the city at large through violent means, so when he hears this, Dr. Zan, a roboticist who was working with Mr. X, reaches out to Blaze Fielding for help, and so they, along with Axel Stone and Skate, set out to take down Mr. X once again and save the city, and possibly the world, from utter annihilation. It does sound pretty typical of this kind of game, but I do appreciate the added detail given to the game’s plot as a whole, as well as the cutscenes in the game that give more details on what’s going on, even if it is as basic as can be.

The graphics are pretty great, not looking too much different from what we got in the previous game, but it does feel improved enough to where it is still great to look at, the music is INCREDIBLE, with so many of the tracks having an infectious quality to them that I can’t help but love, to the point where even the character select screen has a banger of a theme, and the gameplay/control is pretty similar to that of the other two games, but not only does it feel pretty great to play, but it tops everything that the previous game gave us, making for one of the best beat-’em-up games that I have played in recent memory, and my favorite beat-’em-up on the Genesis.

The game still retains a lot of the beat-’em-up gameplay you have seen from the previous titles, where you take control of one of four different characters, or if you are me, you always choose Axel Stone every time, go through a set of five to seven levels through plenty of different locations you would typically see in a beat-’em-up, take down whatever sorry punk gets in your way by throwing plenty of punches, kicks, and special moves to your advantage, gather plenty of different weapons, money, and health items to assist you along the way, and take on plenty of bosses, some of which being familiar faces, who will test your skill in how fast you can dodge attacks, throw out punches, and not rage quit at some of the bullshit they can pull off. Most of this is identical to that of previous Streets of Rage games, and there aren’t too many new additions to spice up the gameplay more than what you are used to, but the little changes that are there make this all the better to play in my opinion, as I had a blast with it.

In terms of the changes that were there, again, it isn’t much, but what is there does make things better to play as a whole. Characters now have the ability to run, there are cutscenes that can be seen throughout the game, you can perform special moves with some of the weapons that you can get, which is pretty neat, you have a special meter that will allow you to perform special moves without losing health, and depending on some of your actions in the game, you can actually get many different endings. That last one is one of the best inclusions of them all, seeing as the methods of getting these special endings aren’t exactly clear. It isn’t too blatantly obvious, like “going down this way leads to a different ending”, and instead, it more so falls under who you beat up and who you don’t, which can not only lead to that better ending, but it can also give you new characters to play as as well. It isn’t much, but little bonuses like that do help make the game more enjoyable and replayable, which I can really appreciate.

However, the biggest and best change to the game in my opinion, the one that ended up winning me over in the end, is the speed. Like I mentioned before, you now have the ability to run with every single character, but even ignoring that, the game, in general, is much faster. Combat is a lot faster, you can dish out moves more quickly, and there is a quick, yet noticeable impact you can feel with the punches you throw, which definitely was in the previous games, but it is much more preferable to me here. When it comes to beat-’em-ups, I am a fan of moving fast and hitting hard, and Streets of Rage 2 managed to give me that hard-hitting action, but it was somewhat lacking in the speed department, even if that didn’t bring the game down at all. Here, however, it manages to get both of these elements just right, and when mixed with the wonderful visuals and infectious soundtrack, it made for an incredible time that I would love to play through again with someone else at some point.

I can’t say that the entire game is perfect though, because really, it isn’t. At its core, a lot of it is the same shit that we have seen over and over again, not just from the Streets of Rage series, but also other beat-’em-ups in general, so if you are one who isn’t a fan of these games, or you are burnt out on them entirely, this game will not do anything to change your mind. In addition, like with another game I reviewed recently, Thunder Force IV, this game does have a bit of a problem with pacing. A good handful of the levels are longer than that of the previous game, and while this does work out at some points, other times, especially towards the end, these levels can drag on, making it feel exhausting to play after a while. Granted, this factor varies greatly depending on what difficulty you play on and what ending you go for, but this is still a problem nonetheless. Also, that one part where you are being chased by that bulldozer or whatever… just fuck that part. No one needed it there, and yet you put it in there anyway.

Overall, despite some pacing issues, a lack of major change, and that fucking bulldozer, this is still not only the best of the original Streets of Rage trilogy in my eyes, but also an incredible beat-’em-up all on its own, with wonderful visuals and music, plenty to do that other beat-’em-ups don’t offer, more emphasis on story, and the fast and hard-hitting action that I look for in a beat-’em-up that makes me love it so much more. I would absolutely recommend it for those who are big fans of the beat-’em-up genre, as well as those who loved the other Streets of Rage games as well, because if you think that Streets of Rage 2 is the best game in the series, then let me tell you………. you might still think that after playing this, but at least give it a fair shot. Although, now with all that being said, I am somewhat afraid of going back to Streets of Rage 4 now. I mean, with a game as great as this, how are they gonna be able to top that, especially with a 26-year gap in releases? Well, I guess there’s only one way to find out………….. and that is to actually play it, which I won’t be doing for five years.

Game #566

After he was finished with making Altered Beast, Makoto Uchida went on to develop his next title, this time themed around action movies such as Conan the Barbarian. Rather then making yet another 2D-side-scrolling beat-’em-up, he wanted to make a game that could stand alongside Double Dragon and the Kunio-kun games. So, taking inspiration from, again, Conan the Barbarian, as well as wanting to make a game to compete against Dragon Quest (for some reason, I dunno), he and his team went on to make a beat-’em-up with a medieval setting, and a set of attacks that he compared to the original Street Fi- ok, hold on, we may actually be in trouble here. That sounds like way too much influence to combine into one, but nevertheless, after a short development time, they then released the original Golden Axe.

As I have mentioned previously, Altered Beast was an ok game, but it didn’t hold up too well upon revisiting, so, with this next title, did Makoto improve upon his craft and make a better experience? Eh… kinda? Again, Golden Axe isn’t necessarily a bad game, and it is an overall better experience then Altered Beast, with less issues then that title, but with the few issues that it does have, it is enough to hold it back from me considering calling it good. That being said, it does have enough of the standard beat-’em-up elements to make it not feel that bad, and I could see others getting into it if this was their first exposure to the genre.

The story is what you would expect from a setting like this, but it does have a little more to not make it too generic, the graphics and art style is serviceable, and it definitely gives those Conan vibes the main dev wanted, the music is good, although sometimes it can get a little annoying, the control is what you would expect from a beat-’em-up, and speaking of which, the gameplay is also what you would expect from a beat-’em-up.

You take control of one of three characters, each being basically the same, with little differences to make each stand out from the others, you move from left to right, defeating what feels like an endless supply of goons, get health and items along the way, and fight bosses. Again, pretty typical stuff for a beat-’em-up, with the special features the gameplay includes also being typical for beat-’em-ups. Animals that you can steal from opponents to ride on and do more damage with? Check. Bonus stages in between each level to gain even more health and items? Check. A special move you can pull off that damages everyone on screen as long as you have ammo for it? Check, check, and check!

All of that stuff is still enjoyable to a degree, but the main focus of the game, the combat, doesn’t carry the same amount of satisfaction or drive as a game like Double Dragon or Final Fight. It just feels more so clunky and like a gamble on if you are gonna be able to take out the enemy without them somehow breaking the combo to take you out. And really, the game is mainly banking on the medieval themes and settings to drive it forward, and while I will guess that was effective for a game like this at the time, it doesn’t really land as well nowadays.

The gameplay does differ, however, in terms of the various modes the game has. Aside from the main Arcade mode, there is Beginner mode, where you can play through the first couple stages to get a feel for the game before jumping into the main game, which seems pretty unnecessary, but I guess it does serve in, appropriately, helping out beginners with getting used to the game. There is also The Duel, a mode where you can either take on a bunch of one-on-one battles with groups of enemies from the game in a single arena, or you can fight another player to see who is truly superior. While it sounds like it could be fun on paper, it really isn’t all that exciting, and it doesn’t really give you any rewards for beating it, so it just seems like, again, a completely unnecessary feature. But, I guess it could be fun to battle it out with a friend… for one round, and then never touch again.

And of course, in good ol’ arcade fashion, this game suffers from arcade syndrome, even on the Genesis version of the game. Most of the game is doable when it comes to the difficulty, but towards the end of the game, it is painful to go through, with you having to fight very tough enemies while on platforms with not that much space to move around on, being able to fall off at seemingly every moment. This, coupled with the fact that enemies can just sometimes attack you and punt you off the edge with no warning or reason, makes the last few stages of the game lacking of any semblance of joy for the most part.

Finally, as one last complaint, the final boss is WAY too hard. It is fitting, having it be the hardest fight in the game, but I remember having way too much trouble actually taking this guy down. It seemed like, no matter what I could do, whenever I approached to attack, he would always manage to land an attack, whether it being a regular attack or one of those electric bolts he sends across the floor. In addition, you have to fight him alongside two skeleton enemies, which doesn’t sound that bad, but these guys get in the way CONSTANTLY throughout the fight, and they have an absurdly high health bar. Yes, you can kill them, but it takes a REALLY long time, and by the time you do, you are just thinking “come on, just let this be over, PLEASE”.

Overall, while the settings, ideas, and themes are endearing for 1989, it really doesn’t do anything to grab my attention or my recommendation, as a pretty generic fighter with no sense of gratification or reward, as well as brutally punishing in the later parts to the point where I almost gave up multiple times. Let’s just hope that the sequels improve on this more for me to actually consider it being somewhat good, and not just making me wish I was playing something else instead.

Game #178

Battletoads Arcade really captures me with its art. I love the crude extremity of a funny animal cast drawn with more violent attitude than a biker gang. The Toads can drill into knocked down foes and kick enemies into the screen by their asses. I’m just all about the style here.
You can pick up weapons and boxes off the ground and just evicerate things. Battletoads kick ass frfr.
The gun is ass tho.

I’d say the gameplay stands competent next to something like Turtles in Time, albeit with caveats. For one, standard enemies swarm the player so regularly that one hardly has the opportunity to reposition. So prepare to Sit back and watch two enemies drain half your health with a few hits if they catch u slipping.

There’s no back attack or any useful defensive moves. From the first stage to the end, you’re mostly mashing attack, then hitting finishing moves But the stage variety keeps it interesting. Like the shoot ‘em up level at the end.

If this game had a console port with the extra content they had to cut I think it could’ve wound up a lot more famous! As it stands it’s a fun game to just throw yourself at with the free play nature of playing arcade stuff on mame.

damn.

not from the ukraine bundle; it's from the palestine bundle a while back. discovered it while sorting through my old itch account.

this isn't good as a shmup and clearly wasn't intended to be. it's all about the plot. very clearly takes a lot from kill the past.

It cuts deep. It was hard to tell how much of the plot is a confessional or a trauma dump. So I check the old kickstarter page, and yeah, it comes from a massive pit of teenage guilt and regret. i'm kind of shocked it exists in the first place, it's maybe too frank and transparent for its own good. i hope the writer's doing okay.

no score.