Who is Axel Stone? ​



First Appearance: Streets of Rage (1991)

Latest Appearance: Streets of Rage 4 (2020)

​ Streets of Rage (1991)Streets of Rage 4 (2020)



Maybe Chrom and Lucina can pull some strings at Nintendo to get Axel into Smash?​ Maybe Chrom and Lucina can pull some strings at Nintendo to get Axel into Smash?​

“I’m Interested in Streets of Rage! How Can I Play It?” ​

Axel’s Chances For Smash ​

Pros:

Beat ‘em ups are a popular genre that Smash surprisingly doesn’t have a character from yet (not counting possible spin-offs). If someone at Nintendo were interested in representing that genre, Axel would be a prime candidate.

With Streets of Rage 2 being an extremely beloved game as well as Streets of Rage 4 being announced back in 2018, Axel is definitely relevant enough for Smash.

Cons:

If Nintendo for some reason decides to pick a character to represent the beat ‘em up genre, Axel would have to compete with characters like Final Fight’s Mike Haggar.

Mike Haggar. Axel has some major Sega competition with Arle Nadja who has been increasing in popularity by the day. There is also some competition in the form of another Sonic character as well as several other Sega characters.

Why Should Axel be in Smash? ​

Moveset ​

Costumes ​

Axel’s default appearance in the first two Streets of Rage games as well as in Bare Knuckle 3 (Japanese version of Streets of Rage 3). Based on Blaze Fielding, one of the main characters who is playable in every game. Based on Adam Hunter, one of the original three characters playable in the first Streets of Rage game. This costume also bears similarity to Axel’s Streets of Rage 2 alt as well as Axel’s default appearance in the Western versions of Streets of Rage 3. Based on Max “Thunder” Hatchett, a friend of Axel who is playable in Streets of Rage 2. Based on Eddie “Skate” Hunter, Adam’s little brother who is playable in Streets of Rage 2 and 3. Based on Dr. Gilbert Zan, a former member of the Syndicate who is one of the four playable characters in Streets of Rage 3. Based on Shiva, a recurring boss character in the series. Based on Axel’s redesign in Streets of Rage 4.

Spirits ​

Stage: Wood Oak City Slums







Victory Theme ​

Music ​

Closing Comments ​

Welcome to the second episode of my Smash Underdog series! Throughout this series, I will be taking a look at some of the less talked about names in Smash speculation as well as what type of content they could bring to the table! The purpose of this series is to get readers hooked on the idea of these characters appearing in Smash one day, whether it be for Ultimate or for a future title. With that said, let us dive into today’s gang fighting candidate.It’s the early 1990’s and crime is at an all-time high. With no signs of the violence subsiding, a member of the law decides to take matters into their own hands. No I am not talking about Final Fight’s Mike Haggar (I’ll be covering him another day), I’m actually referring to none other than Axel Stone from Streets of Rage (or Bare Knuckle in Japan)!is a side scrolling beat ‘em up series created by Sega for the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive. This series allows for one or two players to beat up gang members as well as an assortment of other types of enemies as they progress through city streets and other environments. Each game features special moves available to use, items that can be picked off of the ground, and a catchy soundtrack.Axel Stone is one of the main protagonists of the series as well as one of two characters (the other being Blaze Fielding) to be playable in every entry. In the first, Axel quits his job as a cop along with fellow officers Adam Hunter and Blaze Fielding due to the increasing corruption within their city’s police department. The three former law enforcers decide to take the city’s crime issues into their own bare knuckles by taking down the Syndicate and their leader Mr. X. In, Mr. X returns and kidnaps Adam to lure in Axel and Blaze as payback from last time. Axel and Blaze once again defeat him along with help from Adam’s little brother Eddie “Skate” Hunter and professional wrestler Max “Thunder” Hatchett.has Mr. X plotting to take over the city through the use of robotic clones meant to impersonate public officials; the Japanese version of the game features a much darker story in the form of Mr. X detonating a new weapon known as Rakushin which kills thousands of people. Along with help from former Syndicate cyborg Zan, the group of heroes defeat Mr. X once and for all by destroying his genetically enhanced brain.After much fan demand and a whopping 26 years, theseries will finally be getting its 4th entry sometime in 2020. The confirmed playable characters as of now include the original cast from the firstgame as well as a few newcomers such as Adam’s daughter Cherry. Axel is also sporting a new look consisting of a beard and a much bulkier body.It was a tough choice choosing between Axel and Blaze to represent, but in the end I felt that Axel would be the prime candidate. He’s pretty much the posterboy of the series and he was even chosen to appear inalong with many other Sega, Namco, and Capcom characters.are among the 53 titles included with the Sega Genesis Classics Collection on Switch . The bundle also includesas one of the games so you’d have to be crazy not to get it.You can also purchase all three of the original games separately on Steam for $1 each . All three are worth playing though if you only have $1 on you, go forAnd of course there isreleasing this year. It should be a good entry point for the series though you can’t go wrong by getting started through the classic games.I'll briefly list some things Axel has going for and against his inclusion in Smash:is one of the definitive 2D beat ‘em up game series - a genre that was yet to be truly represented inthrough a character.in particular is widely regarded as the best game of its genre. If you were to ask someone “what is your favorite 2D beat ‘em up game?” chances are they will sayAxel himself would be a very unique fighter thanks to his flashy melee moves and the ability to use weapons such as lead pipes in combat. He just screams early 90’s fighting hero so to those who like Terry but don’t like his manual inputs or automatic turn around feature, Axel may be the character for you.In thegames, you can perform powerful special moves which take away a small amount of your health.however allows you to use special moves without losing health as long as your power meter is full. Once you use a special move, the power meter will automatically recharge which takes about 5 seconds. Of course you can still use special moves in between the charging time, however you will take recoil damage like in the previous two games.For Axel’s moveset in Smash, he would take a small amount of damage while performing all of his special moves with the exception of up B. If you wait about 5 seconds in between special moves for your meter to automatically fill up, you’ll be granted one special attack that does not hurt you. Keep in mind that the meter will automatically be full at the start of a stock. To compensate for the health drainage when using specials without a full meter, Axel’s specials would be very strong in general. Repeatedly spamming special moves in a short amount of time however will significantly increase the amount of damage you take.Furthermore, Axel would have some incredibly strong throws (almost as strong as Incineroar’s) since grabbing enemies is a big part of Streets of Rage. Expect fast pummels from Axel and throws that can kill at around 100%. His downside would be relatively weak recovery options.Dragon SmashAxel unleashes a barrage of punches similar to Mii Brawler’s Flashing Mach Punch neutral B. If an opponent gets caught in your punches, Axel will keep punching more and end the move with a strong uppercut.Grand UpperPretty much Captain Falcon’s side B except it’s much faster and hits through multiple enemies. Its horizontal range isn’t as great as Falcon’s side B, though it sends the opponent at a far diagonal angle.UppercutThis is Axel’s finishing move to his blitz attack (neutral B) in his original games. It’d pretty much be Ryu’s up B except it has greater horizontal travel distance in exchange slightly less height for recovery distance.Dragon WingAxel swings his arm in a fast circular motion. Mainly used as a defensive option to get enemies away from you, though deals a good amount of damage. Has a bit of endlag though.Police BackupA police car drives up and fires a bazooka at enemies straight out of the special ability in the firstgame. Prior to the shot, you could also have Axel and other characters from the series beating up the opponent(s) if the goal is to have the final smash be more cinematic.Pictured below are how I imagine Axel’s colors would look in Smash:I did consider a Mr. X palette swap, but in the end it just looked like a less colorful version of Shiva’s alt.Pictured below is a general idea of what the spirits that coincide with Axel would look like. In parentheses are the names of the Smash characters who would represent them in battle.A side-scrolling stage based on the first level of. Enemies could show up to interfere with battle similar to the Flying Men on the Magicant stage. It could also incorporate different levels frominto the stage, such as the amusement park in the third level ofWhat else could it be but the recognizable stage clear theme that plays in every game?Some Streets of Rage tunes to expect if Axel ever makes it into Smash:And with that, we have another Underdog episode wrapped up. Hope you all enjoyed this article and are more interested in Axel now!A literal dog who is cute, cuddly, and on some occasions wooly.