It’s taken 25 years but we finally have Streets of Rage 4. For more history on that, check out my trip down the Streets of Nostalgia here. From the wonderful minds behind Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap Lizardcube, Streets of Rage 4 is back with the same attitude you remember but with a face lift.
With the 25-year absence of Axel and co. and 16-bit retro gaming’s popularity hitting its peak, it looks like DotEmu prioritised precession over new additions to the franchise. Streets of Rage 4 takes place ten years after the final defeat of Mr. X and his crime syndicate. Axel and Blaze return as vigilanties to fight off the evil Y Sisters. The narrative is as grounded as ever here on the Streets of Rage…
Style Over Substance but in a Good Way
Jesting aside, Streets of Rage has never been about the storyline. It’s about the type of pick up ‘n’ play street brawling that only white vests and denim can bring out in people. A couple of newcomers enter the fray, making a total of four characters available out of the box.
Longstanding rager Axel is all fists and fire, a classic all-star character. Our other returning vigilante is Blaze, the quick mid-range one that comes in handy when juggling crowds. Newb Cherry uses a guitar to swing a circle of power chord damage whilst Cyborg… I mean Floyd uses his mech arms to grab enemies from long range and throw them about the screen. The characters are 90s stereotypes and tropes that suit the series.
Similarly, the various areas of the game pay homage to the grimy dystopia the 90s was supposed to become. The streets on which one rages are littered with callbacks without punching a player too hard in the face with nostalgia.
Those Tight Controls
Lanes of Aggravation 4 mostly keeps faithful to the franchises control scheme. A few buttons and some combos is all you need. Special moves take timing to get the most value as they chip away at your health. Health can be restored by dispatching punks so the old disincentive to spam the move has gone.
Using your special moves however drains your health but this is easily regained by smashing some punks face in, which is nice. Pressing X and A at full health executes an ultimate move that will take out the majority of characters on screen, much like previous installments. The L bumper provides players with a quick backwards attack which really helps out when juggling the Y syndicate.
The movement and timing of Streets of Rage 4 feels authentic, this is due to developers painstakingly matching animations from the old sprites to the new. Along with the comic book/anime art style DotEmu have opted for, this marriage of artistic skill ushers in the SoR franchise into the 2020s. Speaking of sprites, players can also unlock sprite skins for characters as well as unlock fighters from previous Streets of Rage titles.
Sounds of Rage
The audio engineering is also very respecitive of the source material. Although a new OST has been made, players can switch into the audio options and opt for a retro OST and sound effects instead.
Whilst this is a great novelty, I felt that retro sounds and sprites take away from the efforts that Streets of Rage 4 has made to be relevant but consistent with their original vision in today’s market. Waiting 25 years for a new SoR to only want old features seems counter-productive, but is an attractive feature nonetheless.
Mode Selecta
Once players beat the story mode they can treat themselves to a scant offering of modes. Namely, Stage Select and Boss Rush. With a generous helping of bosses to bash, the latter will keep you entertained alone for a while.
Street of Rage 4‘s multiplayer is where the game adds a lot of its replay value. Friends can hop in and out of the game at will mirroring the ways of old. Streets of Rage 4 feels like it was made for multiplayer, but we are reviewing a title during lockdown and before servers are live so we cannot offer our opinion on it right now. We can tell you that beating the story mode single player is an uphill struggle.
Rage Satisfied
Streets of Rage 4 is a worthy successor to the original trilogy and delivers on every front. The game reclaims the mantle of being the definitive side-scrolling beat-‘em-up title. SoR 4 is full of developmental polish that shows the incredible skill and experience behind this obvious labour of love.
Streets of Rage 4 doesn’t takes the series in a new direction nor did it need to. What we get is a competent and well-made sequel that will please nostalgia heads and newcomers alike. For the better, Streets of Rage 4 is the same game as its predecessors with a lick of stunning artwork.
Reviewed on Nintendo Switch (PEGI 12+)
