So, Streets of Rage 4 is finally out.

[ThePixelatedGenocide]

DF Retro and Retro Core both offered rave reviews. IGN said it was too much like the old trilogy, praised the new features, and rated it 7 out of 10. (Aka, their D- for AAA games and their A- for retro brawlers.)

Any thoughts? Will any of you be purchasing it?

[VideoGameCritic]

I preordered so I'll be checking my mailbox every day.

[velcrozombie]

I'm just going to get the digital version - I can't see myself potentially waiting until the end of summer to play it, especially with my cousin coming over for couch co-op on a weekly basis.

[Cafeman]

I bought it for PS4 today. It's a superb effort. Fun, 2D brawling is back with beautiful visuals and enough variety and new enemy patterns to keep it fresh. I've only begun to explore it but already I love it. First Sonic Mania and now SOR4 have proven how to make a great sequel to the 2D games of the 90s.

[Retro STrife]

I was flipping through reviews today and it sounds like a great effort. Good thing Sega sold the license to these indie studios to handle. Almost all the reviews were positive. And the knocks against it are all normal things you’d expect for a beat em up revival. Overall, probably the best case scenario we could have hoped for.

I preordered so I'll be checking my mailbox every day.

I pre-ordered mine too, but I wouldn’t get our hopes up. Between manufacturing the game and the coronavirus shutdowns, my expectation is June shipments at the earliest. That’s the downside of a Limited Run physical release. For me, it’ll be tempting to buy the digital version soon and keep the physical version sealed when I get it.

[Retro STrife]

P.S. It’s worse than I predicted above. I just checked the Limited Run website. The pre-order window closes on May 10. Then they start producing the games, and then shipping after. The website says shipments will go out 2-4 months after production. That would mean July at the earliest..

[thunderjohn]

I bought it yesterday for PS4, and enjoying every bit of it. I 'm a huge fan of side-scrolling beat´em ups and this one hits all the right buttons. Graphics are great, sound is perfect, 4 player mayhem.

[velcrozombie]

Played a round as Axel last night. Had a big smile on my face the whole time. As someone who's mostly played SoR2 (I have played the original a handful of times) there are some differences. Juggling is important in this game, especially repeatedly bouncing your opponent off the walls or other stationary objects to maximize the amount of damage you inflict. There are environmental hazards - pits (I guess the original also had pits - they cost you some health but aren't instant death here), flames and toxic waste can hurt or kill both you and your enemies. Using a continue puts you back at the start of whatever level you were on and saves your progress - I made it to the 6th level before burning through my lives and had to quit because it was 1am. Adam Hunter unlocks when you beat the 4th level and the retro skins require more work. Defense is a higher priority with bosses - sometimes you just have to stay out of their way or get wrecked (whenever they're flashing). I ended up liking the art style in motion much more than I thought I would - they put a lot of personality into the individual designs, of which there are a surprising number of new ones. Even playing on Normal difficulty is no joke - this is not "Press X To Win" by any stretch. That's all I have time to say right now.

EDIT: If I have anything negative to say at the moment, it's that the music isn't really grabbing me. Since it's a new game and I'm just trying to learn the systems my attention may have been elsewhere, but the only thought I had regarding the music was when a new track started up and I said to myself "That sounds like dubstep". For a series with some of the greatest tracks in gaming history, it's hard not to be disappointed if that's all I took away from it.

[tREVdesigns]

Nice addition to Xbox Game Pass. Being a fan of all the originals wasn’t sure how this would translate to a modern console, but so far so good. I really appreciated how they kept the minor “quirks” like the blatant Pac Man eating fruit sound ripoff, an apple or chicken for health, and the oddball naming for enemy characters. Keeping these quirks makes it feel like a Streets of Rage game and not the usual modern console upgrade where the personality is sucked out.

Some people might not find the art design style appealing, it took getting use to for sure. More cartoonish than expected. Overall each character is well drawn, has a bright color palette and well animated. The scenery design keeps faithful to the originals and has a bunch of eye candy to look at.

I was a fan of the soundtrack; upbeat, moving and nice subtle touches, like sirens mixed in the police headquarters level. Definitely heavy on the dubstep side, do yourself a favor and compliment it with a subwoofer.

Only gripes are an odd default control scheme and character movement can seem sluggish at times.

For a genre that is all but dead, Streets of Rage 4 is a warm welcome and will satisfy that quarter-munching arcade beat-em up itch. Maybe it’s time to give Double Dragon and Final Fight a reboot.

[Retro STrife]

Heads up.. Just got an email from Limited Run saying that the physical copies are now anticipated to ship at the end of June. Now comes with a bonus CD soundtrack too. Looking forward to trying it out.