Streets Of Rage 4

I bought it a couple of days ago,it's really good. I never played any of the Streets of Rage (this got me interested in the series tho, so I bought the steam ports of 1 and 2) so didn't went with any kind of fan expectactions and I have to say it's a really solid beat em up. It's a bit too long, almost 2 hour to finish a run, but mechanics and general design are good. It does a lot of little things to try and modernize the genre, but does it smartly. It has a campaign mode where the game save after each level so the more casual audience can play strees free and then it has arcade mode that forces you to 1CC. Moreover the campaign mode is also relevant for the more hardcores as it pretty much works a score chaser mode with a pretty solid scoring system. So yeah,  an "old school" game  that actually does accessibility right instead of just dumbing down the experience. Other that that it fixes one my main gripes with the genre by making enemies wall bounce instead of disappearing outside of the screen and wasting your time.

Mechanics wise, for what I can see, it's similar to SoR 2 with basic strings, blitz attacks and directional specials, plus a super. One cool thing is that specials don't run on meter but instead spend some of your hp, you can then hit stuff to regain it so you can be pretty liberal with them if you know what you are doing.

One flaws is that movement speed is generally slow and only some character can run or dash, but considering how the levels are paced is not a big deal and you can also use some of the specials as movement options.

If any of you has it on Steam hit me up for some co-op.

I wish I knew you played this on Steam when it first came out and I would have purchased it for that platform.

I am a huge beat-em up fan ever since I was 4 or 5 in the arcades with Final Fight. Streets of Rage 2 in particular is a game I hold pretty dear so Streets of Rage 4 was a day one purchase for me on both Switch and Ps4.

Not sure if anyone is still playing Streets of Rage 4 but I a totally down for some co-op on either Switch or Ps4. Heck I am even up for comparing ranks and scores if anyone is down for some high score chasing for solo play.

After I'm done with Uni and have some free time again I may do some score run. Having some competition and comparing score would be really cool, especially 'cause I usually never play this game for score only for 1CCs and general survival.

I would think doing a 1CC or one life would be a pretty different style of play to getting high scores. I usually do Arcade mode runs so you only have one credit in that mode as is. But high score runs would require a deeper mastery of the level design, enemy placement. Plus you get extra scores for not using your Star Power which kind of sucks because that can be a core mechanic of the game

Getting this for Switch retail, order put down. Don't have certain expectations, ready to freewill.

Know the originals from youth. Played original Rage on SEGA Game Gear and later the Mega Drive primes with some fat kid, urg, I mean obese classmate. Pardon my 90s upbringing.

I don't adhere too strongly to any game, all have there strenghts. I get why most are hype about Rage 2. More than solid. But I dig maybe 3 the most. The music went very experimental and wouldn't please anymore. (check out M00N or Shinobi Reverse) JP or NA variant? Both: SEGA Vintage Collection. JP has cooler costume colours and bare lady legs, NA has more bite in default difficulty.

Bopped through Hard on my first go->go->go->, which is the modern kids Normal. Much fun!
Looks like a cartoon show that never happened, and the music is very funky. I love when the music switches up when the brawl intensifies with more goons. Wise to keep the sound fx from the series for the all-more satisfying smacking. Just neat dicovering how to prolong the hit counter when on the way to the next brawl and keeping these sweet points for emphasis (thrash that can, destroy the obsolete phone booth! The punks are fighting the law, let them!). There's something to be said when Western devs can emulate an near 30 years SEGA title! For pro and con. I'm real glad it's made so well and gets an audience. Something that can't be said for Shinobi 3DS. Out of the shadows on big screens, not going budget on handheld.

And there's DLC coming up. If the price is right I might indulge in some digital only.

Playing back with the 16-bit games ( Vintage Collection, not the sprite characters in 4 ) I notice how I use weapons in the old ways and how I try to ignore them where I can in 4. The knife for the quickness, and the pipe for the range. While in 4 I'm discouraged by what I feel is messy next to the hand-to-hand. It seems so slow that it's close to be sure I get japped and snapped. The floors are often littered with stuff I'm not keen to use. Navigating around this and not having the counter broken, I wonder if it was part of the design process.

I like how it is now possible to pick the icon for the food in the menu. The default is same as they were back then. Apple an' chicken. But this being down the road and how alternate ways of food consumption developed, it's just neat. I changed to onigiri and what seems to be a veggie gyro. Eat fresh. Uh, I mean, become invincible, and pick up the food only for the extra points it will grant. Yeah, that's better.

Been playing this a lot, I really love it. Played every difficulty and beat Mania last night, will probably go through and use other characters(I basically just used Axel exclusively).

I’ve seen a lot of complaints about(lack of) mobility in this and I just don’t agree. Even on Mania it’s fair, you just have to use your offense smartly, and even Axel has his air special which is amazing. It may sound weird, but I feel like at some point, action games became obsessed with iframe-full last second dodges and I just don’t find it interesting or cool anymore, here I actually have to think a bit differently rather than just waiting to play DDR with enemy attacks.

Probably my favorite thing about the game is the emphasis on collisions. Throwing enemies at each other, throwing them into the ground, kicking them to the wall, knocking them against environmental stuff, and of course, using ringouts, it’s just so much fun and prevents the game from becoming mashy or monotonous. I love throwing weapons at enemies and taking care of threats that otherwise would be risky to get to.

Maybe I’m crazy, but I’ve seen some people shit on this game because it’s not SoR2, and I think I actually like this more.

>It may sound weird, but I feel like at some point, action games became obsessed with iframe-full last second dodges and I just don’t find it interesting or cool anymore, here I actually have to think a bit differently rather than just waiting to play DDR with enemy attacks.

Statement of the century, couldn't agree more. No small wonder I'm at 2000+ hours in Monster Hunter...

I’ve been meaning to check out the MH thread on here. The series has always interested me.

>iframe-full last second dodges
And they'll be impossible to remove now.
The backlash is bad enough when they just LOWER the i-frames.

Been playing the absolute shit out of this, and the DLC is dropping soon with a bunch of new stuff, including a new difficulty mode. I seriously love everything about this game, from the smart way grabs are implemented, to the high risk/reward aspect of specials, the incorporation of collisions, the steady stream of pickups and hazards in every level, the consistent bosses, the awesome music, the lack of any bad parts or levels, etc. Might be my favorite game of the generation after TEW and Curse of the Moon.

Still not played this (it's sat in my Steam library) but the new DLC looks cool. If you pick it up Infinity, let us know how you find it!

Survival is a blast, haven't touched mania+ yet. Will probably get around to it eventually but not for now, the gameplay style and plan differ enough to the point it feels like you're playing different games so I wanna avoid picking up bad habits from one mode to another.

Yeah the DLC is a complete blast, all the new characters are great(Max makes every boss lol worthy) and survival mode really surprised me with how many new assets they designed. I haven’t unlocked a lot of the new moves but so far I like Axel’s new blitz but the defensive special is kind of whatever. Blaze’s blitz is crazy though. Also the new difficulty is NUTS, I actually laughed when I saw how fast some of the enemies are. I’ve slowly tried to get better at keeping a combo going to get lives and it really helped me tackle the first couple stages, then the next two weren’t bad.

But yeah, amazing game. Can’t recommend it enough to anyone who likes fun things.

>Might be my favorite game of the generation after TEW and Curse of the Moon

Definitely check out Streets of Fury, the devs previous game, if you haven't. It is a ton of fun.
Fantastic combo potential.

Did my first playthrough of the game last night - I can see why people are so high on it. Went with Axel (he was my main in SoR2 back on the XBLA port) and it's cool how much the devs have managed to give you even with the fairly limited movesets. There's a good mix of commitment and cancellability, allowing for extended combos but making it so you do have to think about what you're doing and if it's safe. Gave me a decent challenge on Normal, got a couple of game overs but figured out the enemy behaviours as I went.

I've unlocked the SoR1 characters and played a stage with each of them. I like how they retain their movesets/mechanics/framedata from the original game, which really does make them feel quite different from the new cast. The inclusion of the classic characters is a stroke of genius IMO, really adds to the replay value and is a sign of passionate devs. Can't wait to unlock the others and try them out. Am I right in thinking every playable character in the series is unlockable?

Definitely gonna pick up the DLC, probably after work tonight. The 3 new characters (and the secret extra one) look like a lot of fun and I keep hearing good things about the new mode. Seems more than a fair price for what you're getting. The complete version of the game is roughly £16 on Steam right now so I'm trying to convince some of my friends to jump in as well. Looking forward to playing more of it!

Finished my Hard run and had a few goes of the new Survival mode. This game feels like the gift that keeps on giving. The new characters are fun, pretty strong too. Shiva has some crazy specials and air combos, he almost feels like a Marvel vs Capcom character. Only got SoR3 Shiva left to unlock now.

The new Survival mode is pretty good. It's basically an endless roguelite mode, acquiring a new perk after you beat a wave. There are tons of new backgrounds, enemies and weapons that didn't appear in the main game. Honestly, this mode could have been its own full game spin-off. You really do get the feeling that the game is made by SoR fans striving to make the best title in the series.

Also included in the DLC are unlockable customisable movesets. Every character in the game now has an alternative move for each of their non-normals, meaning everyone now has 4/5 new moves (with the exception of the SoR1 characters who only have an alternate Star move). I've only unlocked a couple of the new moves, but it seems that they've re-purposed the existing art assets to create them instead of drawing anything new. Maybe they aren't all like that. Either way, the extra customisation is another tick in the replay value box.

I'd echo Infinity's comment earlier about how consistent the game is. It's short (for a "normal" game, long for a beat 'em up) but it's all good. No levels that I don't look forward to revisiting. Super solid game. While not being released this year, it is the best game I've played in 2021 so far.

>so much with fairly limited moveset
It’s crazy the things that can be done with the moveset when you consider all the crazy hitboxes, collisions, OTGs, using walls, the different throws, etc. I find that each character is just different enough to warrant using at some point, even if just to mess around with.

> good mix of commitment and cancellability, allowing for extended combos but making it so you do have to think about what you're doing and if it's safe.
This may have been messed up slightly with some of the new blitzes(which are all crazy good), but otherwise I completely agree. The defensive special being the sort of go-to cancel which could make you take massive damage if you don’t get the green health back is just really clever.

>every playable character in the series unlockable?
Was Shiva playable in 2? If not then yes, I think so.

>the gift that keeps on giving
Very much so. It’s all I’ve played the last two months or so and I can’t stop.

>survival mode
Yeah it’s crazy just how many new things they added just for that mode, instead of rehashing everything from the main game. It gets absolutely nuts very quickly, it really has its own personality separate from the campaign.

>new moves
Speaking of which, I said earlier I wasn’t a fan of Axel’s new defensive special, but it’s grown on me, along with his other specials. I can see myself going back and forth with them and using everything from now on.

>consistency
Indeed. Not a bad level, boss, or section in sight. A lot of players don’t like the Big Ben gauntlet in the last level but it’s the kind of insanity the game should end on.

>best game played in 2021
Completely agree. Nothing has come close.

Got the update, but can't buy the DLC yet. Some Switch only trouble.

Doing the training aka lessons, just to get the full scope. And...in the chapter with the pipe I...I...can't drop my weapon? The required button is punch (Y), square for Sony I suppose. I can't do it. What's wrong? It's not the same as tossing it, I know that much. Really? Mhm. I am going to rant that the weapons are a mistake. See my post above. Any of you know?

Loved the first three Streets of Rage games, but I still need to play this one especially after the recent DLC was released.

For the people who enjoyed Streets of Rage 2, or even TMNT, I've been working on this SoR2 mod:


Preview Trailer (old version):


Leonardo Playthrough:


Download the patch here:
http://www.romhacking.net/hacks/6068/

Hey Ranger! Long time no see, hope you're good! Mod looks great btw, damned fine job!

@Zenyn
Are you playing on the standard or legacy controls? On the standard controls you should drop your weapon with A (it's B on Xbox so I'm assuming it's the button in the same place).

For the legacy controls, Jump + Attack (so B + Y for you?) either drops or throws the weapon. I think doing it neutral might be drop, and doing it with a direction might be throw... if you pause the game I think you can bring up the controls tutorial that runs through all the commands and what buttons they are.

@NoMoneyRanger
Nice work, the mod looks great! What Turtles game did the sprites come from originally?

Gregorinho wrote:@Zenyn
Are you playing on the standard or legacy controls? On the standard controls you should drop your weapon with A (it's B on Xbox so I'm assuming it's the button in the same place).

For the legacy controls, Jump + Attack (so B + Y for you?) either drops or throws the weapon. I think doing it neutral might be drop, and doing it with a direction might be throw... if you pause the game I think you can bring up the controls tutorial that runs through all the commands and what buttons they are.

Yes, I use legacy controls. Just for the sake of completing the lesson I switched to the standard. A designated button, eh? *scoff* I still can't say if I'm missing something or it's iffy. No big thing though, as I evermore find weapons not worth the effort. Thank you for your suggestion!

Got the DLC. Now there's just no way way getting around this game. Infinite brawling! Tried Estel and Shiva. Very well done. Music gets SoR3 crazy!    
Estel doesn't vault! Shiva got air game! Fair priced for what is never ending fun, right? 3 (+1) new characters fit the bill.

Do you know?:

Update just dropped, mostly just balance stuff(a lot of buffs for Axel) and a custom survival mode. I didn't need another reason to play this again but here are.

Still the best action game of the last eight years or so.

I still haven't played it or any of the older ones, but I have it on Steam. I'll be interested in hearing your thoughts about the update and all the stuff they added.

>still haven't played it
Now's the perfect time. I believe they said this will be the last update so I recommend jumping in asap.

I played a bit of survival and just a couple stages, some enemies definitely have less health like the(non taser) cops and the jump kick women that start appearing in stage 4.

Axel's headbutt seems to collide with other enemies easier and it could just be me, but Dragon Bite seems MUCH better, better hitbox and less recovery. Dragon Upper also seems to have a better hitbox and I think it hits off the ground.

I'll mess around with Max next.

>haven't played any of the games in the series
Neither have I. SoR4 is on my list mostly owed to Infinity's notes. The system requirements don't seem to be that high, so I may end up playing this sooner than what I had expected.

Not sure if the previous titles are worth playing, though.

>previous titles worth playing
They are, if not just for the fact that you can get through them so quickly. 2 is the fan favorite, 3 is the polarizing odd one out but has some unique twists. I like the original trilogy but 4 just completely blows them away.

I noticed there's some changes to the bosses. Boss of stage 1 on mania+ definitely has more health and has more goons with her(there's even like an alt version of her too).

>older titles
They're all solid but honestly they aren't particularly unique for beat em ups in general. SoR4 is the game that cranks the volume up to the maximum and shows what is it that you're supposed to do an old genre now that you have better tech and 3 decades worth of new games and mechanics to draw inspiration of. The game on mania/mania+ is reminiscent of NG2 vanilla where everything is going ball to the walls and you have to use everything you can to survive including enviroments.

Also it's a 2020 action game that doesn't relies on parries, I still can't believe SoR4 is real.

>reminiscent of NG2

I gotta play this sooner than I planned. How is the fan made Streets of Rage Remake?

> SoR4 is the game that cranks the volume up to the maximum and shows what is it that you're supposed to do an old genre now that you have better tech and 3 decades worth of new games and mechanics to draw inspiration of
Beautifully said.

>2020 action game that doesn’t rely on parries
Crazy, isn’t it. The fact that this is something we have to praise so highly is sad.

>reminiscent of NG2
>need to play soon
Indeed. Most important action game of the gen. It’s a game that just never stops giving you things to play with and discover. The opportunities for experimentation are insane.
.

>not unique for beat 'em ups in general
On that note, which other beat 'em ups do you recommend, other than SoR4? I heard good things about Guardian Heroes from SBK (and you).

>can't believe SoR4 is real
I'm with GN1, this wording makes me want to play it even more.

Just wanted to say I love, LOVE, LOVE this game and it's been almost the only thing I've played in the past few years. Ridiculously tight mechanics and superb audiovisual presentation. I'm co-signing everything @Infinity_Divide has been saying in this thread. If you aren't playing this, you're missing out.

Yeah, this game is a complete work of art. Might be my favorite action game ever.

Are there any version differences I should know about? It seems my PC can handle this game (fortunately), and it's currently the only means I have of playing it. May play it after Okami. Hope there's controller support.

I have the PC version and it's excellent - I'm sure all the console versions are fine too, with it being a lightweight title, but if PC is what you're leaning towards then go for it. It does have controller support, just to confirm.

That's great news. I'll get the game whenever I'm able to. Thanks for the info.

>which other beat 'em ups do you recommend
Really late reply but for "recent" stuff there's Dragon's Crown, Ninja WarriorAgain, fight n rage. The new Tmnt is also fun.

For older beat em ups there's always Sengoku 3, Armored Warriors, Battle Circuit, Shadows Over Mystara and many others.

>recent stuff
Hope they can be played on a PC with an integrated graphics card. But still, noted.

>Shadows Over Mystara
SBK also recommends this one, but I keep forgetting to add it to my list. He - and others - also suggest Guardian Heroes.

Ah yes guardian Heroes is amazing, not sure how it slipped my mind, would recommend most of Treasure games as well.

>Treasure games
I was under the impression that one game based on Yu Yu Hakusho (something I've been watching for the first time) was a beat 'em up, but it's apparently a fighting game. I'm not against playing those, but for the time being I'd prefer to leave them for later (mostly because I wasn't particularly good at these, last time I played).

I also remember you suggested Mischief Makers as well. Haven't gotten around to trying it.

this was the last thing i picked up on the Steam sale. i'm with you guys, this game's brilliant. just started Mania+.

No parrytrash.
No traffic lights.
No move assist.
No shitty camera.
No skill trees.
No downtime.
No bullshit of any kind.
All while having a shitload of fun characters, moves, levels, enemies, and bosses that actually don’t suck.

Definitely one of the best games I’ve ever played.

>Infinity

spot-on

a game like SOR4 can bring a man to tears because it forces you to think about where video games have gone. despite having only played arcade games for a measly amount of time in my life (something i need to correct soon), i'm definitely an arcade guy at heart; short, replayable, built for mastery and 100% dense with gameplay with no filler. perfection. virtually every modern game is the exact opposite of the arcade design and they continue to innovate just how far they can push it further away. even 3d action games-- the modern form of beat em ups-- have 1000 cuts of bullshit, exceptions aside. i have such little patience for that and that's just how i've always been.

Mania+ is crazy. Chinatown was turning my ass into a black hole-- i'm at Y Tower now.

the decision to not have a universal mobility option worked out extremely well

i am in love with this game

opting out of trying to beat Mania+ for now

going for my first 1CC on Mania

Skate is the most 90s character of all time

the animations are gorgeous

the hitbox on knife-wielding Galsia's is big and goes behind him

anyone know of any other beat em ups that are at least in the ballpark of the quality of this one?

love the art style

alternate moves and being able to mix-and-match them with the defaults are awesome features

love the inclusion of SOR 1-3 characters

>other beat ‘em ups
It’s a tough question because while there is some really great stuff like Fight ‘N Rage, nothing comes close to SOR4. Sort of like how no 3D beat em up is anywhere near God Hand.

>alternate moves
There are so many great options with these. You can find some really synergies too by mixing them up(Dragon Upper into Dragon Dive for example).

how does everyone feel about the new SOR spinoff coming out (called Streets of Rage: Revolution) being a 3d beat em up? personally, i'm not terribly interested but i'll check it out, i just hope that a proper Streets of Rage 5 isn't dependent on this doing well.

>while there is some really great stuff like Fight ‘N Rage, nothing comes close to SOR4

i'll check out Fight N Rage, had my eye on that already. i mean as long as it's good i'll look into it, "ballpark" was probably too restrictive of a term but i couldn't think of another one at the time.

>SOR Revolution
I think it's way too early to tell. Initial reaction is a little bit of disappointment, but that's only because I find SOR4 basically perfect and I don't want to them to stray from the formula...but on the other hand, because the formula was already done so masterfully, it might be a good idea to try something new. We definitely need to see more(also who the hell is even making it?).

>Fight n rage
I might have undersold it, it's definitely very good. Your character has more mobility and the parry system is actually good unlike most games(ie, not forced on you in every single encounter). It's also quite challenging and has really solid encounters throughout. Final Vendetta is good too, and Shredder's Revenge had some great improvements after launch. The little bit I played of The Takeover was pretty fun as well but I don't have much to say about it.

>New SOR
When I saw it was a 3D title I was immediately worried, but to be fair, when SOR4 came out I had no interest in it and suspected it'd be an average title. I only gave it a chance when I heard the praise it was getting. Hopefully it will turn out to be something good. I also have no idea who's making it, but I suspected it won't be Sega in-house and they'll outsource it to someone else.

> Other Beat Em Ups
As Infinity says it's hard to recommend anything as being similar to SOR4. I haven't played Fight N Rage but I've heard good things about it. You could consider getting the Capcom Beat Em Up bundle which has 7 of their classic arcade titles in - I don't think any of them are as good as SOR4 but it's good value for money. If emulation is an option for you, also try Capcom's Alien vs Predator, which is a pretty cool game that sadly never got a home port to anything (other than that weird arcade stick plug and play console they released a few years ago).