Classic brawler fans, rejoice! Independent game studio WayForward, in conjunction with Arc System Works, is excited to announce that River City Girls Zero, the 16-bit beat-’em-up that inspired River City Girls, is now available digitally on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S in North America and Europe, with the PC version arriving via Steam on Sept. 22. Joining the previously released Switch version, this formerly Japanese-exclusive entry in the River City/Kunio-kun series is now ready to download from digital storefronts, priced at $14.99 and rated E10+ by the ESRB.
Initially published in 1994 on the Super Famicom system under the name Shin Nekketsu Koha: Kunio-tachi no Banka, River City Girls Zero lets one or two players take control of four characters — hot-blooded high-schoolers Kunio and Riki plus their girlfriends, River City Girls stars Misako and Kyoko — as they take to the streets to dish out justice against the thugs and criminals who framed Kunio and Riki for a heinous crime. Armed with punches, kicks, throws, stomps, and character-specific special moves, the heroes battle through a variety of action-packed locales — including a crumbling school, a disco, and an amusement park — and even fight from the back of a motorcycle as they attempt to prove their innocence and save the city from chaos.
River City Girls Zero is powered by Limited Run Games’ Carbon Engine, which allows the game to retain the classic graphics, soundtrack, and gameplay of its original release while adding modern features such as opening and closing motion-comic cutscenes, an animated intro, a gallery mode, save states, and new music by River City Girls composer Megan McDuffee and rapper DEMONDICE. It also offers both classic and RCG-style English translations, as well as other language options, including Spanish, French, German, Italian, and the original Japanese.
With the PS4, PS5, Xbox, and upcoming PC versions of River City Girls Zero bringing this once-lost classic to new audiences, the stage is set for the planned Q4 2022 release of the all-new contemporary brawler River City Girls 2, which builds upon the events of River City Girls Zero. For further news on the River City Girls series, as well as information on other WayForward titles, please visit www.wayforward.com and follow @wayforward on Twitter and Facebook.
Key Features
The classic 16-bit beat-’em-up, Shin Nekketsu Koha: Kunio-tachi no Banka, officially translated and released in the West after 28 years!
Switch between four playable characters, each with unique special moves!
Intriguing story and characters that inspired River City Girls 1 & 2!
Bone-busting combat: Unleash an arsenal of punches, kicks, jump attacks, grabs, and more!
1p or 2p local co-op gameplay!
A variety of environments: high school, the docks, an amusement park, a pachinko parlor, and more!
Battle from a motorcycle in “Mode 7” style vehicle stages!
New motion-comic cutscenes featuring dual-language (English/Japanese) audio, with Kayli Mills and Kira Buckland reprising their roles as Misako and Kyoko!
New animated intro and new music by River City Girls composer Megan McDuffee and DEMONDICE!
