This week in the latest installment of "List 'em", we'll tackle beat 'em ups. The ass kicking, bat/whip/barrel/fist swinging goodness that's all in the fingers, not the brain. If you care to indulge me for a moment, try to imagine a day when shooters weren't the dominant genre in multiplayer or gaming in general. No I'm serious! Beat 'em ups were popular in both the arcades as well as the home consoles as one of the most prominent genres during the late 80's to mid 90's.
It's also one of those genres that's hard to define. Everything from 2D side scrolling, to fighting action RPGs to super hero and TV licensed titles fall under the banner of beat 'em ups. The one thing they all have in common is that they are fast, require a lot of skill to master, and have plenty of on-screen baddies for you to pummel.
So this week, I present to you my top 5 beat 'em ups of all time as chosen by me. All of these titles bring fond memories both old and new, most of them I still play regularly today. So without further ado:
Streets of Rage 2 (Sega Genesis) - Ok I lied. I wasn't going to rank any of these over one another but this to me is the best beat-em up of all time and is number one on my list. I'm sure many of you would agree that it is both among the best of it's type and is part of one of the best series of beat 'em ups of all time as well. Awesome music, fantastic controls and some of the best 16 bit console gameplay ever made, this game has it all and stands out in the Sega Genesis library. If you haven't enjoyed this game yet or were too young when it was originally released, do yourself a favor and track down a copy or download it from Xbox Live or Nintendo's Virtual Console, you won't regret it.
River City Ransom (Nintendo Entertainment System) - Now I freely admit, I'm not a huge NES fan. Sure I grew up playing the classics on that system and like everyone else I have my favorites. They just happen to be fewer and farther between for that system than most others. Even so, once in a while I'll find a game that I've never played before that may be "old hat" to most of you but is new to me. A few years ago purely on impulse I bought a CIB copy of River City Ransom having never played it before. Sometimes you just have to follow your gut instinct on an unfamiliar game, this time it paid off well.
What I like about this game is that it feels like Double Dragon, has a good sense of humor and has depth in that it's more than just a punch/kick side scroller, but a "Lite" action RPG as well that gives it more replay value. Awesome game and one of the best for the system.
X-Men (6 player Arcade cabinet) - Now what would a reputable top list of beat 'em ups be without mention of this gargantuan machine? Well it would probably be something like ScrewAttacks top 10 list as seen below. In any case this is both a memorable game and a memorable machine. Six player controls side by side on an arc with 2 large screens also side by side. Let's forget that most of the X-men characters have abilities in the game they don't in the comics, because this game kicks so much ass we'll forgive them for it. Sure you could play the game by yourself, or settle for those lowly 2 or 4 player versions instead, but where's the fun in that? Six players side by side can lay waste to anything on screen and it's a game as fun to watch as it is to play. Just ignore the bad "engrish" and you'll be fine.
My Hero (Sega Master System / Arcade) - Of all the games on my list, this is by far the most simplistic. Being a Sega Master System game and one of the "Sega Cards", I don't expect a whole lot of people will share my appreciation of it. One might call this a Double Dragon ripoff, but in fact it preceded it by a good two years or so and was a port of the arcade version from 1985. Simple controls and only one level that just gets progressively harder, the game never stops pummeling you until the game over screen. It makes for a fast, fun and furious session that can test the mettle of anyone who plays it. The Sega Control Stick is recommended for this game over the digital game pad. Believe me you'll need it for those high scores.
Spider-Man & Venom: Maximum Carnage (SNES / Sega Genesis) - This game fancies itself so special it had to have a red cartridge! Well to it's credit it is an awesome game and one of the best super hero titles ever made in my opinion. How many of you can still hum along to the "Green Jelly" soundtrack used in this game? The story actually follows a major plot being written in the comics at that time and Carnage was one of Spider-Man's nastiest foes that he had ever faced. So nasty in fact, that he has to team up with his former nastiest foe to deal with him. Great controls and variety in gameplay that makes each level feel new. It also has many peripheral characters on both sides of the conflict that serve both as boss and ally. A great game from a day when the name Acclaim actually meant something.
So that's my list folks, now it's your turn. Feel free as always to list as many or as few as you wish. For your viewing pleasure, here's the ScrewAttack top 10 list of beat 'em ups according to them:
This week in the latest installment of "
