Streets of Rage 2

[Californication 1,466]

The Genesis is really the gift that keeps on giving. There are games that look okay on Youtube, some might look good, but how many are as good as they look in the videos. (SkyBlazer bleh, Uncharted bleh)

I really gotta say I think the Genesis has more games that play better than my expectations than any other console. 

I got Streets of Rage 2 and Ghouls N' Ghosts from GameStop last week. They are both as good as people say. To get back to Streets of Rage 2, can anyone suggest any other Beat 'Em Ups that are complex like Streets of Rage 2?

I'm not a big fan of Beat 'Em Ups in general. I own maybe five. Most beat 'em ups feel repetitive, but this game doesn't do that for me. You gotta be on your toes. Theres a counter to being thrown, the rear attack for people behind you,  debating whether its worth losing life to do a power move. The game really has a lot of different ways to approach getting through the level. 

I've thought about getting King of Dragons, Final Fight, and maybe Ninja Warriors, do any of these offer conplex mechanics?

Edited November 23, 2019 by Californication

[fox 1,414]

Amazon in Dragon's Crown is pretty much a fighting game character in a beat em up.  She is all about air juggles, combos, blocking/parrying to gain iframes, and stacking berzerk.

[MeganJoanne 365]

↑ Thought that said air jiggles, my mind was in the gutter.

[DarkTone 845]

SoR2 is in my top 10 of all time. Possibly top 5. 

Amazing soundtrack, bosses and moves make it fun. It's why I go back to it once a month. 

[jonebone 1,252]

Streets of Rage 2 is awesome. I bought the Genesis mini just to play thru SOR2 using save states to ensure I beat it. 3 is a letdown though, 2 is definitely the pinnacle of the series.

[Tanooki 4,557]

Streets of Rage 2 though is one of the best games on that system quality wise for sure, top 10 probably.  But reading the rest of what you said about the Genesis, I'd have to disagree and I think you're either feeling a nostalgia bubble, or if it's new to you, it's that whole new car smell mentality where everything just feels awesome and anything less than is just overlooked as you're psyched about that new toy.

I saw your 3 SNES choices there, if you wanted a brawler with SOR2 level of depth, thought and complexity Final FIght 1 (or even 2) are not it, the third one though, yeah, it's pretty blatantly more well designed like SoR2 was along with some basic SF2 style(1 per character) moves to mix it up.  King of Dragons is an excellent grab, and if you have access to it I find the Ninja Warriors PCE game is more fun in ways than the SNES one.

That vote for Dragon's Crown that's a must if you have a PS3 or a Vita, definitely one that has to be done.  When I recently scored a 2nd PS3 I can actually use that was one of the 6 boxed games I actually bothered grabbing.  It definitely with it's leveling and RPG-lite ish elements to the characters development make it last so much longer.

[Californication 1,466]

What I am trying to say is that when I watched Genesis videos, they look underwhelming. And when I play them it seems like I have a better ratio of games that are worth keeping then when I buy for other consoles.

I have only boughten a few games so far, here is my little collection. 

[Bearcat-Doug 4,274]

On 11/23/2019 at 11:47 AM, jonebone said:

Streets of Rage 2 is awesome. I bought the Genesis mini just to play thru SOR2 using save states to ensure I beat it. 3 is a letdown though, 2 is definitely the pinnacle of the series.

I just played it again on mine last night. It's pretty easy compared to Final Fight on the SNES, but it's still a great game.

[RH 4,049]

21 hours ago, Californication said:

I'm sorry to derail this conversation but I just want to point out that I'm having some major nostalgia-feels over that carpet! That takes me back to my grandparents house! There pattern almost looked exactly like that and they kept that carpet for at least 30 years.

[Californication 1,466]

42 minutes ago, RH said:

I'm sorry to derail this conversation but I just want to point out that I'm having some major nostalgia-feels over that carpet! That takes me back to my grandparents house! There pattern almost looked exactly like that and they kept that carpet for at least 30 years.

I got it at Cost Plus last year, we get a lot of compliments on it, it really ties the room together, man. 

I'll take a better photo after work so you can get a better look.

[Californication 1,466]

Excuse the angle, our place is a bit messy woth baby stuff.

[CT 17]

Gunstar Heroes is great

[Sumez 2,218]

On 11/23/2019 at 5:49 AM, Californication said:

I got Streets of Rage 2 and Ghouls N' Ghosts from GameStop last week. They are both as good as people say. To get back to Streets of Rage 2, can anyone suggest any other Beat 'Em Ups that are complex like Streets of Rage 2?

SkyBlazer is a good game IMO, but comparing it to SOR2 and GnG is unfair.  SkyBlazer has always been more of a "hidden gem" type game.

I often see the former is commonly namedropped as "the best beat'em up ever", which is high praise, while the latter is a port of what is one of my favourite arcade games of all times (it's really a tight squeeze between GnG, Rainbow Islands, and TGM2).

On 11/23/2019 at 5:49 AM, Californication said:

I'm not a big fan of Beat 'Em Ups in general. I own maybe five. Most beat 'em ups feel repetitive, but this game doesn't do that for me. You gotta be on your toes. Theres a counter to being thrown, the rear attack for people behind you,  debating whether its worth losing life to do a power move. The game really has a lot of different ways to approach getting through the level. 

I've thought about getting King of Dragons, Final Fight, and maybe Ninja Warriors, do any of these offer conplex mechanics?

I'm kind of in the same boat. Very few beat'em ups ever grab me, but when I play one I like, I really like it.
The SNES sequel to The Ninja Warriors (simply Ninja Warriors in the west, The Ninja Warriors Again in Japan, or Ninja Saviors in its recent remake for Switch, PS4, etc) however is probably the one that clicked the most to me. It's very good. Very very very good, and another contender for one of the best (or THE best) in the genre.
It's single plane which is unique, but something I really like, since it forces to to approach every enemy head on, and always gives you perfect feedback on what you're dealing with. Every enemy type is very unique, so you constantly need to react to what you are facing.
There are three playable characters. Ninja and Kunoichi are definitely the way to go if you want complex mechanics (the third character makes it very easy to just cheese through the game). Ninja is huge, heavy, and based on crowd control and throws which IMO is the most fun way to play the game. Kunoichi is the agile character who jumps around and can essentially bounce back and forth on enemies without even touching the ground.

Also the game looks like a million, one of the most beautiful things on the SNES. If possible, get the Japanese version as the western releases completely cut out one enemy type. Or just get the remake, which adds a lot to the game.

Mighty Final Fight is a great "my first beat'em up" too. For an NES game, it's incredibly good at recreating the tight controls of the original arcade game, and though there's sadly no two-player options, you can actually play as all three characters unlike the original SNES port. Of course, this is not a port, but entirely its own game.
Like Ninja Warriors Again, it's focused a lot on grabbing and throwing enemies, and reacting to what constellation enemy types you are facing at any time. There are only ever two enemies on screen at time, but they are randomly picked, and even have a random health bar that you need to consider also. Very entertaining game.

Capcom's two Dungeons & Dragons games are also a great choice if you think beat'em ups suffer a lot from repetition. These constantly throw new enemies at you, and you rarely have to move very far forward before you're facing another boss fight.
Though very playable single player, it's designed very much with co-op in mind, with different characters having very clear advantages and weaknesses. Despite being action games, they are designed with the Dungeons & Dragons rules in mind, in terms of what each character can do, and even the best strategies for several boss fights. The game is very based on resource management and tactics, as well as fighting-game like movesets and blocking.

Edited November 29, 2019 by Sumez

[Sumez 2,218]

On 11/24/2019 at 6:40 AM, Tanooki said:

I find the Ninja Warriors PCE game is more fun in ways than the SNES one.

Well that's a take I've never seen before. I'd love to hear your thoughts on what makes the original Ninja Warriors better, let alone the PCE port.

The two games are barely comparable, but I always found the original crude and repetitive, so I'd love to hear a different approach.

[Tanooki 4,557]

Personal taste, I just like the game more, perhaps since it's a pretty decent arcade conversion and it's just more of a stiffer challenge than the SNES game which gives a bit more grace.  Also unless I'm forgetting I think the PCE models are larger and nicely detailed since Nintendo tended to fall on the smaller and more colorful for detail style with their limits.