A funny thing happened to Sega when they released their Genesis console. For a very long period in gaming history, they were approaching, or were on, the top of the gaming world.  They were the talk of the town across the globe. Nintendo still had a stranglehold on videogames but the success of the Sega Genesis was something Nintendo did not expect. This was accomplished mainly by the fact that Sega were all over the place and for a little while there. If it was a hit it got a sequel. In 1991 we saw the release of a seminal title, Streets of Rage. This was not only successful but also gave Genesis gamers two sequels. Titles that actually improved on the original game. Take note Capcom with your crap Final Fight 2 and 3 on Super Nintendo.

The start of a quickly forgotten franchise

Streets of Rage, for the few that do not know what it is, was a side scrolling brawler. The fighting is not as deep as one on one fighting games.. You won’t be performing 5+ hit combos here. Nor will you have to remember 6+ button combinations to do any of the cooler moves. Games like Streets of Rage are all about simply unleashing as much punishment on the enemy as you possible can. Smart fighting will allow you to survive much longer than simply barreling through the opponents.

Streets of Rage tells a story

The backstory to Streets of Rage has three young, physically fit, characters leaving the police force. They plan to battle a crime syndicate taking over the city. Each character has a unique set of moves available to them. These moves differentiate the characters quite well.

Sega innovating like they did back then

The unique thing to me about Streets of Rage is the “police backup” you have available. Press the special button and you call for them (a limited number of times so use them wisely). It is like an early version of a striker character in Capcom team based fighting games. Those became popular a decade or so later.

There is a reason Streets of Rage is remembered fondly by nearly everyone that has played it. The game rocks. Don’t take my word for it though, hit eBay or Amazon and grab a copy today.

Carl Williams

It is time gaming journalism takes its rightful place as proper sources and not fanboys giving free advertising. If you wish to support writers like Carl please use the links below. https://www.paypal.me/WCW https://www.patreon.com/CarlWilliams