River City Girls

The indie industry has tried several times to revive the "me versus the hood" or beat 'em up genre that was so popular in the late 80s and early 90s. These arcade games featured one or more characters facing off against hordes of criminals and monsters. Final Fight, Streets of Rage and Double Dragon are some of the most iconic titles, but many others joined the development, adapting comic book and movie licenses, from X-Men to The Simpsons and Ninja Turtles. If there were fights, a game could be made.

Over time, fighting versus games began to gain ground in arcades, and with the advent of 3D, the beat 'em up either didn't adapt well or the public was simply looking for something more technical. For this reason, they disappeared from the market for many years.

Indie teams, often tapping into these forgotten genres, have explored the theme with different styles and small gameplay innovations, but few have reached the level of the classics. Thankfully, WayForward's River City Girls is one of the most fun beat 'em ups we've played in recent years, probably since Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game.

This instalment of the veteran River City series brings the typical story of the genre, although it changes the usual roles. The main characters here are Misako and Kyoko, young students who discover the disappearance of their boyfriends (Kunio and Riki, acquaintances from other River Cities). Being a beat 'em up, there is no doubt that the case will be solved with fists and kicks.

The gameplay can be easily summarised, as it follows the genre's outline. We have a strong hit, a weaker and quicker hit, a defence and the jump. In addition, along the way we will find objects that can be used as improvised weapons, such as rubbish bins, benches, yoyos, or more blunt weapons snatched from enemies. Many fights are mandatory, and an on-screen padlock indicates that the fight must be finished, while others are not obligatory.

Added to this is a layer of depth in all aspects that puts it above other less ambitious beat 'em ups. Also, we have the non-linear development, with a map of each zone. Instead of the classic Streets of Rage in which you move to the right without further complications, here you play with doors in the stage that give access to new routes or rooms, with secrets and shops where you can buy items.

Not all of these routes are unlocked from the start, and the game has small objectives to be able to advance; once outside the institute, a certain character will ask us for a type of hamburger, and it will be our duty to find the right place to return to and continue the story. In the end, we won't be spared from dealing blows left, right and centre, but this makes for a more varied journey.

Another aspect we liked is that you learn new attacks as you go, level up, get money and equipment with upgrades. At first it may seem like just another button masher, but you'll soon get wall jumps, stomps, ground and head kicks, throws and many techniques for all kinds of situations and enemies. As you would expect, there are opponents of different kinds: agile, projectile, big and tough, and so on.

These role-playing touches, along with the mini-open world that is the six-zone themed map, make River City Girls a fun and constantly evolving game. For example, a curious mechanic allows you to recruit some opponents who beg for mercy; once on your team, they can be summoned during the battle to perform an attack to help you in difficult moments or to finish a combo. And as we unlock more of the city, we'll be able to use a handy bus to travel between different points.

In both graphics and sound, River City Girls is a delight. It features beautiful and colourful Pixel-art, with fantastic animations and detailed enemies and bosses (with their transformations and different strategies). This shows that WayForward has mastered 2D to perfection. For example, despite the amount of interiors and exteriors, the game recycles little decoration, so you don't get the feeling of cloned neighbourhoods.

The soundtrack is no slouch, with NateWantsToBattle, Chipzel, Christina Vee, Dale North and Megan McDuffee adding a fitting electronic touch, and even some singing.

All in all, River City Girls balances well what you would expect from a beat 'em up with some apparent freedom. It can be as deep as you wish, experimenting with different partners, protagonists and movements.