There’s nothing half-shell about this upbeat, nostalgia-fueled brawler.
Since they crawled out of the sewers within the mid-to-late Eighties, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have appeared in a number of cartoon collection, motion pictures, video video games, and toy traces. Definitely, the Turtles are a “toyetic” model, and I keep in mind proudly owning dozens of their motion figures, autos, and playsets rising up. The final console sport to star Raph, Mikey, Don, and Leo was 2017’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan, which launched to poor opinions total. Fortuitously, Tribute Video games’ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge may be very a lot a redemption arc, and it’s certain to offer hours of multiplayer brawler leisure as you bop alongside to an infectious soundtrack.
Whereas there isn’t a lot in the best way of story throughout its 16 whole levels, Shredder’s Revenge will really feel intimately acquainted to anybody who’s performed Turtles in Time, from the boss theme to grabbing Foot Clan and throwing them into the display screen. A compact world map lets you drive the Turtle’s Celebration Wagon from stage to stage and even to go to NPCs that you just unlock. In a lot of the ranges, you will discover hidden collectibles by smashing open bins, and returning all the collectibles in a set to their rightful homeowners yields expertise factors to energy up your squad.
In Story mode, every of the seven characters has their very own development meter that permits them to achieve stage 10, opening up new perks at every stage. These embody further well being factors and particular meters, and even new strikes. And let me let you know, for a side-scrolling brawler, there certain are a variety of methods to beat issues up. Along with commonplace punch combos, there are mid-air kicks and dives, uppercuts, sliding assaults, particular strikes, and not less than three totally different throws. Higher nonetheless is that every character feels distinctive since their weapons have totally different ranges and speeds. Mikey’s nunchucks can’t attain all that far, however his particular transfer sees him flailing them out in a large arc that significantly exceeds their regular vary. Raph’s particular transfer turns him right into a whirling dervish of sai-flavored mayhem, and you may even transfer him just a little bit whereas he’s mid-spin. April, Splinter, and Casey Jones all really feel totally different, and it’s satisfying simply to check out each character and see all their distinctive animations.
Every stage takes about 5-10 minutes to clear and culminates with a boss combat. On regular (Okay) problem, a lot of the bosses received’t make you sweat an excessive amount of; it may be the lesser enemies and stage hazards that find yourself presenting extra of a menace. By a shopping center and zoo, and throughout rooftops and Coney Island, there’s a ton of visible selection to every mission. Whereas totally different coloured Foot Clan make up a good portion of the essential enemies you encounter, robotic Mousers, charging Rock Troopers, gun-toting dinosaurs, and burrowing aliens are additionally thrown into the combination. After all, you’ll finally duke it out with traditional villains like Metalhead, The Rat King, and Baxter Stockman, too.
Even when the sport doesn’t appear to scale up in problem to match, taking part in co-op with as much as six gamers is undoubtedly a blast. Dropping out and in is pretty easy, and the body price largely holds up even throughout essentially the most chaotic of battles. There’s nothing like getting six pals collectively in a room to Bebop and Rocksteady their approach by way of what’s certain to change into a traditional brawler, however you may also workforce up through on-line co-op. On-line play is seamless, and including gamers or leaving a sport principally occurs with none disruption. Nevertheless you get collectively, very like with an additional giant pepperoni pizza, this sport is supposed to be loved with others.
From an audio perspective, Shredder’s Revenge is on a complete different stage. The voice actors from the unique 1987 cartoon return to reprise their roles, which provides immensely to the attraction and nostalgia. What’s much more spectacular is the Tee Lopes composed soundtrack, that includes a music referred to as “We Ain’t Got here To Lose,” with hip-hop artists Raekwon and Ghostface Killah. I’m completely obsessive about the boss combat theme, personally. From prime to backside, the sport’s music and sound results push the motion and actually take middle stage as you smash the Foot Clan and the remainder of Shredder’s lackeys.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge is so very removed from being only a low-cost nostalgia play; it’s a lovingly crafted, action-packed expertise with enjoyable and playful callbacks to traditional Turtles video games, a pantheon it is going to absolutely be becoming a member of. With three problem modes, 28 in-game achievements, and particular person challenges for every stage, there’s no scarcity of causes to select up a bo workers, hockey stick, or microphone and dive again in time and again. Solely having a single save file for story mode is a little bit of a drag, however the Arcade mode with on-line leaderboards provides one other tantalizing avenue for additional playtime. In brief, for those who’re a TMNT fan or love beat-’em-ups, you’ll absolutely dig the colourful and upbeat Shredder’s Revenge, particularly if you will discover just a few different ninjas to sit back with.
