River City Ransom is undoubtedly one of the most under appreciated video games of all time. Premiering on the NES, this classic Techno's beat-em-up was revolutionary for its time, adding RPG-like elements to what could have been yet another clone of Double Dragon. Now an entirely new generation of gamers has a chance to experience the game in a new form and on a new console. It's not without faults, but this is a great way to experience this cult favorite.
Seems that some guy named Slick has decided he wanted River City High for his own evil doing. As any decent video game villain would, he has also captured Cindy (along with the rest of school's students), girlfriend of Ryan and one of the playable characters. Joining in the fight to return order is Alex, a close personal friend to Ryan also looking to take back the high school. You'll traverse through the city, battling various gangs of teenage thugs in some of the most humorous ways possible.
The same beat-em-up aspects that made the original game famous are back. Unlike the original, you'll start with one of the maneuvers that needed to be earned in the first edition. It will either be a rapid-fire kick or punch depending on your character choice. This does make things a bit easier and it's almost a shame since the amount of normal moves has been increased. Roundhouse kicks, foot sweeps, backhands, and a kick to the shins have all been added.
New, much more powerful moves can be added to your arsenal by purchasing books at one of the various shops around the city. There is a much larger inventory in this game and getting all the moves will take some time. Controlling them is a bit of a problem since the game never uses the L and R trigger buttons. Trying to cram 20+ moves onto two buttons can be a problem later in the game.
Moves, of course, are not the only thing that can be purchased at the various strip malls. There's food to keep up your energy, will power, and to increase the countless other aspects of your character. You can buy magazines that don't just serve as entertainment value (though buying the video game magazine early on is recommended for maximum humor), head into a sauna, and grab some take out food for later during those extended battles. There is seemingly no end to how powered up you can make your character. It really depends on how much time your willing to put into the game.
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