Back in the ‘80s and ‘90s, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were the biggest thing in pop culture, and that meant video game adaptations would soon follow. Konami would bring an NES title that would be infamous, but it would be the arcade game that would attract the most attention. Konami had a good reputation for its arcade brawlers and the TMNT would star in an extremely memorable title, one that would be later ported to the NES in a downgraded form but with more levels. The success of the games led to more titles following, such as a brawler made for consoles and a second arcade game that would receive a SNES port and a Genesis/Mega Drive reworking.
Now in the present day, Dotemu and Tribute Games have teamed up to bring back the tradition of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles beat ‘em ups with Shredder’s Revenge. This love letter to the 1987 animated series looks to be a bigger and better version of the classic brawlers, but does it succeed, or is it overshadowed by what came before?
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge shines from the start as a tribute to what made the Turtles so great in the late 80s and early 90s, with every aspect of the original show getting a moment in the spotlight. There are even elements from other Turtles media that show up as the game goes on, and in surprising ways as well. But the gameplay is where Shredder’s Revenge stands out the most and shows itself to be a superior game.
Shredder’s Revenge takes the best ideas from classic Turtles brawlers and adds in ideas from modern beat em ups, which should be no surprise as this game is made by the same team who made Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Game, considered one of the better beat ‘em ups of the modern era. The team also worked on the 2007 TMNT GBA game made to tie into the movie of the time, which received rave reviews and was considered the best Turtles game in years. This expertise is evident before the game even starts, with the game showing you the various moves the characters are able to perform and how to pull them off, which instantly adds more to the game than the previous brawlers.
In Shredder’s Revenge, each character is different and not just because of their weapons. Each character has different stats and abilities, and performs their moves in unique ways, so finding a character that suits you best is important. The sheer variety of options that you have for each character, such as backflip attacks, uppercuts and so on, is astounding, and the devs even brought in concepts from games like Turtles In Time such as flinging foot soldiers into the screen.
Of course, it would not be a good beat ‘em up without proper multiplayer and Shredder’s Revenge does a great job there. The game supports up to six players online or local and has an excellent drop-in co-op. Some games tend to freeze up briefly when drop-in multiplayer is used, but Shredder’s Revenge does not have that issue, and overall is one of the more enjoyable brawlers to play with friends. Of course, it helps that there are plenty of moves that require at least two players, and that the gameplay does feel legitimately different in multiplayer than in single-player.
The game has an Arcade Mode that allows you to play the entire experience like a classic arcade beat ‘em up, but the real treat is the story mode. This mode contains a world map like in Scott Pilgrim, and challenges for each stage. While the challenges are a great touch that add a lot in terms of replayability for each stage, some can be a bit frustrating such as the “don’t get hit challenges” on autoscrolling sections, which serves as one of the few issues the game has.
The addition of Splinter and April as playable characters ( as well as an unlockable Casey Jones), were great touches as well, with the characters’ movesets clearly being inspired by great fighting games. These characters are just as fun to play as the Turtles and may actually be a bit more fun in some respects. The characters also take influence in their gameplay from other incarnations such as the 2003 version of the cartoon, in terms of how they move and interact, which is a really neat touch.
Graphically, Shredder’s Revenge is a masterpiece, with art that perfectly captures the feel of the classic arcade games while also feeling modern at the same time. The level of effort put into every detail, such as the pounding of doors, water from hydrants and more shows the love the developers have for the IP and how much it meant to them to work on this. The game is the perfect case of what a modern TMNT beat ‘em up should look like, and that is not lightly said.
Off course, the music is amazing as well, with tunes by Tee Lopes who worked on Sonic Mania as well. The game also has tracks by Mike Patton with a cover of the classic theme song, and even a track by Ghostface Killah and Raekwon from the Wu-Tang Clan, all of whom are fans of the franchise. This isn’t even getting into the fact that the original voice actors have returned to reprise their roles once more, to truly give this game an authentic feel.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge surpasses every other TMNT game so far, being longer and better than any before it. This is a must-play game for any fan of the Turtles or fans of brawlers in general, and there is so much fun to be had here. Yes, some of the challenges can be a bit frustrating to do, but most of the missions are actually fun to do and the result is deeply satisfying. All in all, a game that is very easy to recommend.
Disclaimer: A review key was provided