GameSpot editors' review
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CNET editors' rating:
stars
Very good
Detailed editors' rating
- Reviewed on: 05/22/2007
- Released on: 05/21/2007
- Originally published on GameSpot: Streets of Rage 2 (Wii) Review
While the original Streets of Rage always stood in the shadow of Final Fight, Sega's homegrown beat-'em-up series really came into its own with Streets of Rage 2. Released two years after the original, Streets of Rage 2 offered markedly refined gameplay and improved presentation, both technically and stylistically. This is the game that set the series apart from the numerous other Final Fight imitators.
Streets of Rage 2 is one of the best beat-'em-ups money can buy.
As with any beat-'em-up worth its salt, Streets of Rage 2 starts off with a kidnapping. The victim this time is Adam, one of the three playable characters from the original Streets of Rage, and the perpetrator is the satisfyingly named Mr. X, the same crime boss who the three of you thought you had defeated. And so, returning characters Axel and Blaze, along with newcomers Max, a wrestler, and Skate, Adam's Rollerbladed younger brother, hit the mean streets to beat their way through hundreds of increasingly bizarre thugs.
While there were minor differences between the three playable characters in the original Streets of Rage, they're much more pronounced here. Most significant is that each character has a special attack that effectively replaces the ability to call in an artillery strike from the first game, though even basics like run speed, attack strength, and how grapple moves are executed look and feel unique to each of the four characters. Other additions, such as a lunging attack, improve the overall depth of the game. You certainly end up mashing on the primary attack button more often than not in Streets of Rage 2, but there's enough variety to keep the action satisfying.
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