The Kunio series, also known as the River City series, is a beloved franchise that crosses many genres. While it is best known for Beat Em Ups, such as the recent River City Girls, there were also sports games and more. Now we have come to another entry in the series and it tackles another beloved genre, the fighting game genre. River City Melee Mach!! is a free for all four player fighting game that draws on the vast history of the series. You can choose from several pre formed teams, each with their own storyline, and then the fun begins.
The fighting in the game may seem basic at first, but relying on punches and kicks will get you nowhere. You need to learn each characters special moves and use them right in order to succeed. This doesnt take long, but you may be tempted at times to button mash, only to find yourself on the losing end. You will also need to take full advantage of the weapons and powerups surrounding the fighting area, as well as the stage itself, in order to get the advantage. Certain powerups will make you larger, some recover your health and some weapons have a different reaction to hitting enemies.
Winning matches is key of course, but between rounds you will need to send out a new member of your team with more health. Plan strategically here, as the choice you make can help or hurt you depending on who your opponents send out. A key to winning the overall fights is not necessarily winning the most matches either, but having the highest score of the teams competing. You can lose a round or two, but as long as your team’s score is overall higher, you will win the overall battle.
If I have any complaints about the game, its the online. It is not that there is lag or poor connections though, but rather that I could not get any matches whatsoever. I tried repeatedly to get online matches and each time I failed to do so. If you were wondering why I was not discussing that part of the game until now, well that is why. I am sorry, but as I could not experience it, I cannot comment on it whatesoever. It is what it is.
I do find it interesting that the developers chose an 8 bit style sprite look for the characters, but placed them in a fully 3D environment. Its a strange touch, especially for the cutscenes, but it does work. Overall, the game does look good and the music is a great collection of sounds and songs from over the course of the franchise. The developers made this as both a sequel to an earlier game, and a love letter to the overall series and made sure to not only include as much as possible, including tons of characters, but gave the option to mix and match everything as needed. You can even create custom teams of different characters, which is a neat touch as well.
Overall, River City Melee Mach!! is an interesting game. It takes a little bit of time to get used to, but the fun factor is there. This is a god game for both fighting game fans and fans of the River City/Kunio franchise. I highly recommend it.
Disclaimer: A review key was provided.