Once upon a time there were arcades, mythological places where bonds were formed, friendships explored, rivalries created; places where passive smoking was an obligation, places where the level of hygiene was not particularly high but it didn't matter, the atmosphere was so pleasant and sensible.
Here, in the arcades Streets Of Rage he got there late. The title was the console response made in SEGA at a certain Final Fight, video game of capital importance made by Capcom, and saw the birthplace on the Sega Megadrive, imposing itself as an obligatory purchase like the good old man Sonic The Hedgehog.
Streets Of Rage had on its side an effective gameplay, a stylistic trait of the highest order and a soundtrack that has significantly changed the rest of the music of video games thanks to the skilful hand of Yuzo Koshiro.
After three chapters the saga of Streets Of Rage he seemed to want to rest forever, unable to follow the flow of videogame evolution and anchored to game styles that are difficult to reproduce with the same technique and with the same joy on a three-dimensional system.
The warrior's rest lasted about twenty years.
Dive into the past.
Streets Of Rage 4 is a video game developed by a clash between Lizardcube (the same as the remake of Wonder's Boy: The Dragon's Trap) and Guard Crush Games.
A title that looks with enormous respect to the past, offering the same characters, a graphic style that owes this pixel art, an atmosphere that blabs.
We understood each other: Streets Of Rage 4 in all respects is a love letter to the brand that SEGA has put together with effort and commitment, an interesting tribute from practically all points of view which however also has the potential to create fans among the young mass of potential players.
Let's start first with analyzing the purely technical aspect of the product in question: Lizardcube she has never spared herself in making sprites of the highest quality and this Streets Of Rage 4 it is perhaps the sum of an artistic work not sufficiently celebrated within the videogame criticism.
Along the ten mandatory stages in which the story is divided, you will find yourself crossing sections of urban settings of disconcerting beauty, with neon in the right places, with the lights pointing in the right way, with the flavor that remains in the right places. The calls are calibrated to perfection, with settings that recall several times the streets already traveled (and already smeared with blood and bruises) during the previous chapters of the saga, with great pearls of background design thanks to the presence of a level set in an art gallery.
If the backgrounds basically leave you breathless for beauty and cleanliness, the characters are no less. Although the choice of reusing assets for the opponent's park is a bit strange in 2020, it is a clear one quote how beat em ups and this genre of video games worked during the nineties. Removed the first stages in which identical enemies will only crowd our screen, continuing within the adventure we will find ourselves fighting against a park of absolutely respectful opponents, with a lot of new entries and a good number of variations on the theme. Each enemy will obviously have his own fighting style and will need a very specific strategy, forcing the player to adapt his style of play to the proposed threats.
Streets Of Rage 4 also in this case it recalls the past with strength and voracity, proposing many of the historical enemies that we learned about in the previous chapters of the saga, updating them to the new engine and the new style. This choice basically satisfies everyone and, despite some playful problems with some badly balanced bossfights, it is able to wrest sincere joy from the player's heart.
Violent punches.
We have seen that in Streets Of Rage 4 the eye has definitely got its part and ok, now let's move on to the meat: Is it fun to hit people?
Answer: yes, incredibly funny.
The title of Lizardcube and associates is a classic beat em up in the structure but modern in the management of the details. The shots that the various Axel, Adam & socthe sferrano are equipped with a incredible physicality (thanks also to the splendid animations of the case) and have the right variety to embrace both the most geeky players and those less interested in an in-depth study.
To progress through the levels you need to beat people with everything: our knuckles, iron rods, sidearms and even electric tasers (which we will find to be particularly important). In this superclassic base, daughter of the previous chapters of the saga, Lizardcube has added different types of special moves that can spice things up.
Axel Stone and associates can injure opponents in a plethora of different ways: in addition to a basic combo the player will be able to attack while in flight, attack while sprinting, attack from behind, perform grappling to reposition or throw enemies and use four types of special attacks.
These special attacks are divided into due macrocategorie: those that consume energy and those that consume stars; the former are available in three different variants (aerial shot, standing shot, moving shot) while the last special attack is linked to the finding of a star-shaped consumables.
With a choice of bloodborn memory in Streets Of Rage 4 special attacks that consume energy can be iterated as long as we want, just hit the opponents and inflict damage on them to see our bar gradually fill up; a choice that allows players to approach the title even with a certain tactic and that gives everything a considerable depth.
To all this must be added a certain taste in combining attacks so that the opponents remain in the air. By bouncing opponents against walls or objects, they can become victims of our blows, giving us the opportunity to inflict more damage, recover more HP and improve their score. The latter, as if that were not enough, will allow us to obtain extra life otherwise related to the chosen difficulty.
From a purely content point of view Streets Of Rage is a video game that bases a lot of its charm on the presence of replayability as an important strength.
The twelve stages that make up the basic experience hide some secrets and are replayable in five different difficulties; less skilled players will be able to count on the presence of a extensive aid system able to come to the rescue of anyone and thanks to the presence of one Cooperative mode (also available online), the title is virtually perfect for spending evenings with a few family members on the sofa.
By completing the various stages with different scores it will be possible to unlock new characters with which to train and improve. The title, if played in two, really gives its best, also softening some of the sad peaks of difficulty due to the structure of the bosses. Between imprecations and insults Streets Of Rage 4 it will give its best in practically every respect.
Sinfoniette of slaps.
For once we dedicate a whole paragraphor to compliment the team put together for the occasion regarding the music sector of the title. Streets Of Rage 4 is one of the most musically interesting video games of recent years, with a series of names that leave the tachycardia to anyone who knows about videogame music.
Although the majority of the soundtrack was made by the good olivier deriviere, it is impossible to deny the importance of names like those of Yuzo Koshiro, Yoko Shinomura o Motohiro Kawashima within production. The soundtrack of Streets Of Rage 4 is a musical album full of bangers perfect for wild nightclubs, with reminiscent sounds of the nineties and some winks at the latest electronic music currents.
Specifically, the songs composed by Koshiro for some of the bossfight are fully included among the hottest songs that recent videogame history remembers, perfect for becoming part of the modern memetic imagination together with Megalovania and company.
We challenge anyone in their right mind not to feel at home again after hearing the super housed attack of They’re Back.
Streets Of Rage 4 is a very pleasant dive into the past, a video game with roots deep in tradition that manages to rejuvenate itself thanks to a fun fighting system like those present in modern times. The title is also the umpteenth demonstration of the quality that Lizardcube puts into its products from a technical point of view, with wonderful sprites, background of absolute value and a generic feeling as respectful of the original as it is ready to make new followers. All this is best enjoyed by the player if he has the opportunity to play it in company, a mode where the title shines very strongly. One of the funniest experiences in recent gaming history for anyone with a sofa, beers and someone to play with.
