Konami was king of the arcades back in the day, with hits like the Simpsons, X-Men and Ninja Turtles, while also being top of the Run n Gun genre with Contra and more. Konami would soon merge their 4 player beat em ups and their run n gun games, with Sunset Riders. a unique 4 player run n gun title set in in the old west.. The game later received ports to systems like the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive and the SNES, but these ports had changes made to them in the process. The Sega version had less characters to choose from, less bosses and slightly reworked gameplay. The SNES version on the other hand, had less changes but the changes it did have were focused on censoring parts of the game Nintendo objected to. Now HAMSTER and Konami have released a new version for the Arcade Archives lineup for PS4 and Switch and it is a true return to the arcades.
You will select one of four characters to choose from, or play with up to four people in local multiplayer and take down your enemies. You will need to run, jump, and dodge at the right time in order to survive, but you will still die numerous times. Don’t worry though, as you can keep continuing as much as you want. The game is a beautiful looking title and very colourful, much like the TMNT games made by Konami around this time. The music is excellent as well, and you will really enjoy the tunes you hear., particularly as you get to the more fast paced ones. Sunset Riders has a variety of powerups, where picking up a silver badge to get a second gun, and a gold badge you get automatic fire. You can of course combine the two to go all out against your enemies.
There are eight stages in the game and you will have a boss at the end of each. These bosses require some strategy and once you figure out the patterns, you will understand the flow much better. The stages include ridding on a horse while enemies from a train attack you, a saloon brawl and a fight through a Native American tribe’s territory, not to mention a fight through an animal stampede. The Arcade Archives port has been praised for not having the censorship and being true to the original and this is for both good and bad. Yes the original game is here in terms of gameplay, and we have the references to alcohol again and the burlesque women and references to certain activities. On the other hand, we also have the unflattering portrayals of some groups still in the game, so it is a mixed bag.
This all being said however, there are two cases of censorship still in the port, albeit that should not bother anyone. The stage 5 boss, El Greco, says, “Adios, amigo!” as you approach him instead of “Die, gringo!”, and the boss Chief Scalpum is renamed Chief Wigwam. Both of these originated in the SNES version, and in the case of the latter, is appreciated. The only other change was due to licensing issues, as a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles poster that appears in stage 2 has been removed due to Konami not having the license anymore.
Sunset Riders is a fun game with a lot of twists and turns. The bonus game takes a little bit of time to get used to, while the various ways you can attack the enemies are nice to figure out. You can throw dynamite back at them, shoot platforms to crush them with rocks and more. There are even little touches such as certain characters having unique interactions with certain bosses. By changing the gameplay up just right in the various stages, Sunset Riders shows why it has aged like a fine wine. I recommend checking this out on PlayStation 4 or on the Nintendo Switch.
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