I don’t even know where to begin with this nostalgia train…

Streets of Red: Devil’s Dare Deluxe – Nintendo Switch – Released: 4/12/18 – $8.99

Short Review (Review copy provided by Secret Base)

I am a man of the 90s era of gaming growing up with a Sega Genesis and this hits real hard on that nostalgia bone. There isn’t even a point to begin with since the name alone sets you up for this trip. Booting up the game is a completely different trip as you are reminded of “Zombies ate my Neighbors” then picking a character are references to all types of games from Zelda to Ghost n’ Goblins. Streets of Red is a beat em up and a fairly good one at that but has some minor issues. The story is pretty generic but falls in line with the stories they are trying to reference. Boss battles are a bit too easy in my opinion, I rather lose several lives in single player during a boss fight much like the original SNES Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles games. I would give this game an 8 out of 10!

The icon is pretty awesome since it gets so many references in one shot:

Story

Streets of Red starts off by there is a convention going on called BAX East with the screen scrolling up to the top of the building. A reviewer is recording a video when a zombie comes out to the roof along with them. A small group of people on a stage surrounded when a fairy tells them to listen. The fairy gives them powers to fight in return they must kill enemies and give the fallen souls to the fairy. Each character suits up to prepare for the battles that lie ahead!

Gameplay

You can expect the same gameplay as other beat em up games but with a few variations. Characters each have their own specials which could be throwing a bomb in front of you, creating a damaging shield that heals a small amount, or freezing enemies in place. You begin in a tutorial stage that gives billboards on how to perform different moves. You have a dash, roll, two special attacks and a normal attack. If you take damage and have two bars from your special you can counter right away with a special attack to save yourself. At the end of each stage you will fight a boss once defeated you will be able to upgrade one of your abilities. There are only four levels that themed such as the sewer level or train level. If you die in a level you will have the opportunity to revive but it costs you money that you pick up from defeating enemies. This comes at a risk since it requires money to upgrade at the end of each stage. The game is fairly short but with 4 characters and 2 unlockable character, 3 difficulties with 2 modes (Arcade and Survival), there is plenty to keep you busy, along with the co-op.

Personal Experience

I definitely put too much time into this game. I really enjoy playing it solo and playing as all the different characters at the time of this review, I’ve played as 3 of the 6 characters with my friends playing as the others. For $9 you are getting a fun nostalgia trip which to be honest was a good time. It isn’t a bad time to be had unlike other games that try but miss their mark. Streets of Red hits all the nostalgia buttons with E-Tanks in the background on billboards, Zombies ate my Neighbors title screen, Link wannabe as a playable character and quotes from movies like Hungry Games’s “I volunteer as tribute”. All that is really missing for me was a kid that used a skate board to make the Streets of Rage influence really go full circle. I really can’t wait to see what these developers do next and hope that this game is a big success for them!

Final Thoughts

This game really has it all but it does have one issue… No multiplayer online. I don’t know why it doesn’t but this game would be getting a perfect score if it did. I don’t even enjoy this genre a ton but had a great time playing solo and with friends. While I did find the game pretty easy I think it is more because I grew up with this genre as a child. I still go to the Barcade with friends and play class beat em ups as well. I would give this game an 8 out of 10, while everything about it is top notch, the lack of multiplayer really holds it back, and any veterans of this genre will find it a breeze.

My Gameplay Footage:

Trailer:

End Credits

Man this game was good I can’t wait to finish it with all the characters. Lately I’ve been pretty busy with the last few months of school and work hitting hard. Currently I’ve been working with my artist for several things so look forward to those rather soon. Anyway I hope you like the review and I’ll see you guys in the next one!

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