Streets of Rage Returns!
It’s been over 25 years since Streets of Rage 3 launched and while it wasn’t anywhere near as good as 1 or 2, it was still a good game and little did we know, we wouldn’t see a new entry for over a quarter of a century. I assumed we’d never get a 4th game but it just goes to show that any game can have a revival. Do you hear that Microsoft? Banjo…cough…cough…
The fourth entry is set 10 years after the events of the 3rd game and while the story is paper thin, this game has comic-book style cutscenes laying it out which is new. Characters both old and new return, as well as classic pixilated versions of original characters like Axel and Blaze that can be unlocked through certain methods.
The combat is old-school and reminiscent of the previous games but this entry can be played with upto 4 players either offline or online, which really helps as this is no walk in the park, even on the easiest difficulty, I struggled on some of the later levels and the less said about the hardest difficulty, the better.
The game has a new hand-drawn art style that looks incredible, it looks like playing an old Saturday morning cartoon or something similar. It has a good variety of stages to get through and each looks great with the art style…I would love for them to do a remake of the original trilogy using this look, that would be something really special. SOR4 also has a superb soundtrack, which even the game’s descriptions mentions it as “God-tier” and while that might seem like a brag, it’s well deserved.
The Verdict
Streets of Rage 4 fills me with so much nostalgia from the original games, while also feeling better than ever with it’s great art style, soundtrack and the ability to play upto 4 player co-op. I really hope we don’t have to wait another 25+ years for the 5th game…