Streets of Rage - Sega Genesis Review

[@claybaxter3202]

Soundtrack living rent free since the 90’s. What a cool game.

[@AndrewJWildey]

The degree of competency Yuzo Koshiro demonstrated in capturing the Chicago house sound was astounding, specially running on a Megadrive

[@SEGA128DC]

I totally agree with you! Since, I was born and raised in Chicago...

[@aceassn716]

Its till thinking… 🌀

[@kyzapgs7584]

I've played the soundtrack to a load of football casual mates (big Acid fans here in the UK) and they were shocked. I mean this stuff is on par with Marshall Jefferson FFS!

[@Adamtendo_player_1]

You sound surprised that the Mega Drive was capable of such music, for me Streets of Rage showed what the Yamaha YM2612 was capable of and didn’t sound like your typical arcade FM sound, I think many people underestimate the Mega Drive sound chip which is not a bad sound chip in the slightest, it’s that many lazy US composers couldn’t get their heads around FM synthesis and stuck with the crappy default GEMS FM patches.

[@AndrewJWildey]

@@Adamtendo_player_1 it’s funny how a lot of the MegaDrive’s best sound was in the launch games and as you said, the lazy US Gems driver stuff at the end of its life was some of the worst. There was a real crappiness to the later years of the system that really took the shine off where sonic still holds up today

[@Maxxarcade]

I recently got my Sega out of storage after almost 30 years and fixed everything on it, including the Access LED on the Sega CD which hadn't worked since it was new. The first thing I did was hook it up to my sound system and start up Streets Of Rage. The intro song gave me goosebumps. I've since collected a bunch of games I never could afford back then, and even some new ones like Tanglewood. Then came new wireless controllers and an RGB cable. It plays like a dream on my home theater setup. It's really cool to see such an old system still getting attention in 2023.

[@khajiit8221]

Absolutely one of the best games ever - fun, simple, stylish, addictive, and a kick a$$ soundtrack, what more could a cool kid want in the early 1990s? God I miss those times!

[@mathewkolakwsk]

Best. Soundtrack. Ever. And you gotta love being able to punch at practically the speed of light (by pressing left-and-right on the d-pad rapidly, while punching). I revisit this game often, having played it when it released all those many years ago. What a genuine classic!

[@dad7275]

My favorite track on all three is Moon Beach and in my opinion its a contender for best track ever produced on the Genesis period.

[@leeg12000]

Yeah man, the soundtrack is probably my favourite of all time. God tier quality.

[@roberto1519]

Yep, there's that early 90's SEGA touch that makes it really special, a classic.

[@MaxAbramson3]

Beat. Me. To it. We knew that the Genesis was capable, but this was really something altogether better than anything else in its time. Needed a Sega CD specific version.

[@duckhive]

Streets of Rage, Secret of Mana = best 16-bit OSTs

[@FPL_Frost]

Absolute top 5 game mid 90's.

[@Gildog77]

Top 5 games of 1991 maybe.

[@FPL_Frost]

@@Gildog77 I was playing the streets of rage games all the way up to the millennium. Played them more than Sonic, Mario, Resident Evil...

[@FireStorm2845]

It was good but 2 was absolutely perfect! It’s never been matched by another beat ‘‘em up either. streets of rage is just a gem of a series!

[@LITTLE1994]

*Early '90s

[@Gildog77]

@evilfuk if you want to talk about the franchise as a whole, I agree, but SoR2 was soo much better.

[@clearspira]

This is one of the only games I've ever played where in two player co-op you can betray your buddy at the end and fight for the bad guys.

[@adamkane7513]

Of course the original *Double Dragon* had you figjting your co-op partner to see who gets the biatch at the end. Billy & Jimmy Lo are _Brothers_ - so much for _"Bros before 'hoes"..._

[@pixelpoppyproductions]

That is one of the things I remember most about this game as a kid. Especially the first time we beat it with friends, and naturally we chose the evil path.

[@ohmytoshi]

I always betrayed my brother 😊

[@paulmillercanada]

@@adamkane7513 - It will always be Bimmy and Jimmy to me.

[@ridensroom6957]

I find it is too easy to accidentally do that

[@Tsargate]

Man this game is a complete masterpiece for me too. I still play it often nowadays. The soundtrack is one of the best ever made on a home console. Sega at it's best ❤❤❤❤❤.

[@PanmetLongplays]

This series of games inspired me to practice chiptune music. And my debut album reflects the sound of this trilogy of games, if anyone is interested.)

[@chrisgardiner2215]

The reason why the music resonates with so many people is because the tracks sound contemporary to what could be heard in any dance club or on the radio in 1991 IMHO

[@TheyCallMeSledge]

That's true, the game was a product of it's time and represented the early 90's so well.

[@Adamtendo_player_1]

It’s also because streets of rage sounds unlike anything you’ve heard from the Mega Drive/Genesis, especially in 1991.

[@Oysterblade84]

That's true, none of the Streets of Rage soundtracks use any of those generic default FM bass guitar patches despite the game using an SMPS sound engine. Maxi Priest's ''I Just Wanna Get Close To You'' must have been a big inspiration for Koshiro.

[@Chas_Korolya]

That's because Koshiro was pretty much plagiarizing club hits of the time. Watch the video "Streets of Rage 1 & 2 - Soundtrack Influences" and tell me it's not the case. He's a japanese Bobby Prince and no one seems to talk about it.

[@chrisgardiner2215]

@@Chas_Korolya was he really?😮

[@AppliedCryogenics]

This game is my go-to answer for anyone who says Genesis can't do good sound and music.

[@SegaLordX]

A good choice.

[@JoeyJ0J0]

This game is a classic with a great soundtrack. Played this a lot on the 6 Pak collection

[@TheyCallMeSledge]

What made this game uniquely special other than the banging soundtrack, co-op gameplay and steady difficulty curve creating a satisfying challenge is that this game was designed for the Genesis without any arcade counterpart to compare it to. Many beat em up games at the time were ported from the Arcades so there would always be the better Arcade counterpart when compared to the home ports of various consoles, most likely being either the SNES and TG-16 at the time. You can only get the definitive Streets of Rage experience on the Genesis and that's what made it a must own for the Genesis and a fun time with company while in the comfort of your home.

[@JohnnyThousand605]

We just threw SOR on last week and man is it fun in two player =) Stage 7 (the elevator) is still one of my favorite scenes in gaming history. Seeing the garbage blow along ground or rain sleeting across the screen was a presentational touch we just didn't see in those days. This game does so much with so little, it's a marvel of the 16bit era and a sweet reply to Super Nintendo Final Fight

[@Adamtendo_player_1]

In my Streets of Rage blows away Final Fight, especially the SNES version.

[@lo1bo2]

Man, I LOVED owning this game. Later I rented SoR 2 and was blown away again.

[@Joshua-uw7wm]

I still remember the first time I rented it. Streets of Rage 2 is my favorite Genesis game

[@Rain006]

This game made me fall in love with video games! First played it on a display at a department store. I always loved how you were able to kick off attackers while being grabbed from behind. Felt so realistic as kid. Weird that they took that feature out of SOR 2

[@TheyCallMeSledge]

In SOR2 and 3 I believe the defensive special move attack was meant to create separation between you and enemies, especially when being grabbed from behind. The method of kicking away enemies while grabbed from behind in the 1st game was put there because the characters didn't have unique special moves considering that button was used to call in Police Support and you can only call that in at least once or twice in a stage.

[@saintprime77613]

I fondly remember playing SOR1 for hours on the weekend, outside of the Sonic games. The music still plays in my head to this day, especially the Attack The Barbarian boss track. Plus, the choice between the good and bad ending was a very nice touch. Sadly, Sega never continued this past SOR1. Outside of that, I love SOR1 so much even now. Definite top tier 90s game.

[@elgiacomo]

Oh wow, good timing. I just recently got into Streets of Rage 4 (which is amazing, BTW) and have been playing the crap out of it and gobbling up content on KZbin about it and then this pops up! Sweet! I grew up on the original SoR here and it was my MUST HAVE game for the Genesis. An absolute classic on so many levels! The gameplay, the style, the MUSIC, yes yes YES! And if any of y'all are fans of this series and genre and haven't tried Streets of Rage 4 yet, you owe it to yourself to do so. I think it very well may be my favorite of the series, if not the beat-em-up genre as a whole. It's a masterpiece.

[@jasonsantiago6308]

It is the gold standard for beat em ups now, I don't see any other title unseating it any time soon

[@SRC267]

Pretty cool looking game. I might try it out.

[@Lord_Deimos]

This game man, I used to play it with my dad. The soundtrack is pure gold and it never leaves my music folder.

[@ren7a8ero]

Perfect analysis. SoR1 is amazing, the darker tone and soundtrack makes us feel like playing a good cop movie from 80's, serious and grit. The later games are great but there were different creative choices. For it to be perfect, to me, it was more about having bigger sprites, but in the other hand we would have lost the feeling of a bigger area to move around, and this would change the already stellar gameplay.

[@Nice_Places]

If you love the soundtrack then just search for Streets of Rage Live here on KZbin. He performed live in Paris in 2018 in front of hundreds of people. There was a screen showing gameplay of the game while he was performing. There are also some tracks from Revenge of Shinobi in his 'set list'. It's amazing to listen to these tunes played live (at the time) and the transitions between each track. The guy is a legend!

[@foreverhungry84]

one of the best games on the mega drive and definitely the best soundtrack in my opinion. i regularly listen to the soundtrack while im out on my bike.

[@TheBeird]

One of the first games I ever played as a kid back in 91. Stuck with me ever since. I still play it and its sequels every now and then, and have the soundtrack on my phone to listen to. Love this game. Love this series!

[@madson-web]

It is not only the best on consoles but it is better than most stuff on the arcade at time. The pacing, level design, characters and music. Everything was really on point

[@BlindTrustProject]

Legendary game. Nothing less.

[@nathandaniels4823]

I had an old 70’s stereo that I’d hook up to my Genesis. My friend came over when I first got the game, and when we fired it up we just about pissed ourselves. “Video games can have bass?!”, we exclaimed. And yes, we totally fought each other at the end.

[@hitchman84]

I can still remember my rentals that year from the local Blockbuster. Toki, Chuck Rock, Cyborg Justice, Mystical Warriors... A rap sheet ranging from fun-but-mediocre to total garbage. Then I came home with this puppy one Friday night and it blew my friggin balls off. One of the best videogame experiences I've ever had.

[@peterchaseify]

Other than the music (obviously), my favorite part about this game was the silliness of where the police cars were willing to drive (into a factory, onto a boat) and that they were willing to blast rounds at a moving elevator.

[@BB-te8tc]

This was the funniest thing ever to me as a kid. It still makes me laugh. It reminds me of the opening to the Naked Gun movies.

[@LITTLE1994]

One of the best Beat Em Up series around.

[@dnmstarsi]

To this day, SOR1 remains one of my all time favorite games. Even with its better sequels and fan made remake, the first game (which I played often on my 6-Pak Collection), holds a spot in my heart as a fun co-op game with neat visuals, sound effects, music especially since Yuzo Koshiro did the music for this game and others.

[@Bitis11nasicornis]

Streets of Rage is among the greatest side scrolling beat em ups in history. The first one is an all time classic, and despite the sequels, it is still a perfect game, especially with its limitations at the time. It surpassed everyone's expectations, it's audio is simply perfectly atmospheric, it's graphics are amazing and atmospheric, and the way the game progressed is not only logical, but impressive. I love how stage 8 goes from day to night, I love how every level feels right, how every hit feels right, how you rarely feel cheated pit or frustrated no matter how hard you set the difficulty. This game is also up there with best retro co op games of all time. Streets Of Rage to me and one of my best friends is equally as good as the second game, but with its on tone, and dare I say retro vibe. Where Streets Of Rage 2 was like playing Neo Geo on a Genesis. Like the sequel, it really pushes that Genesis to max potential of its time, and looks somewhat modern even by today's standard. The sequel was literally taking everything from the first game and improving it. Which is more of a say to how well they managed the sequel. The first game is still a perfect game, to be honest, I CAN NOT PLAY THE FIRST GAME AND SKIP THE SECOND, nor can I play the games out of sequence. You always play the first two games.... Their are no bad Streets Of Rage games to be honest, and skipping on one because it's older and different then the others is really doing yourself is disservice. I recommend you play them all, I guarantee you will not dislike any of the games in the franchise. Except maybe the third game for some, due to the North American difficulty setting eing WAAAAYYYY TOO HARD for most. Two hits and your dead, playing on the hardest difficulty to see it through, and their is no such thing as easy or normal for that game. But it's worth playing to test yourself regardless, and push yourself to seeing that ending. Again, amazing video. You are easily the best SEGA fan to follow, hands down. Another kick ass video.

[@roberto1519]

Shadow Dancer, Revenge of Shinobi, Golden Axe, Streets of Rage and others have that very early 90's SEGA vibe that changed quickly. I'm one of those who enjoy the first Streets of Rage more, it has the best soundtrack in my opinion and the locations are more moody, also you have much more crowd control here and the sounds of punches are more satisfying, I have no idea what they were thinking with that slap sound they changed to in the second game. Still, fighting in the backstreets, at the beach while summer rain falls, the docks, aboard a ship and so on with this killer soundtrack is still really enjoyable.

[@inkywright]

My undying love for the gameplay and Yuzo Koshiro's tear-jerkingly perfect house tunes will forever make this one of the important games I've ever played. If I was forced to pick a single fighting game to play on repeat for the rest of my life, this is it. I would say 2 and 3 have won me over as much, but really, only this one can stand the test of time in my mind.

[@mymomsaysimcool9650]

My adult daughter loves the series. We’ve played through the series on Switch a couple of times together. 2 is our favorite. Great couch co-op games.

[@nolahahnshouse3389]

So many mornings playing this at Felicia’s house before walking to bus stop for middle school.. I also had a good ear for music because I could tell that the composer of streets of rage also did the music for revenge of shinobi because they sounded so similar

[@parappatherapper4141]

The sequel is overall a better experience, but the music from this first entry is unmatchable. Yuzo Koshiro was an absolute beast.

[@Adamtendo_player_1]

The music in the original game is legendary for sure, but I do slightly prefer the streets of rage 2 soundtrack, plus overall streets of rage2 is a major improvement over the original game.

[@maxducoudray]

I’m on part one for music. It is one of the best video game soundtracks of all time.

[@neojeets]

Agreed. It’s still my favorite beat ‘em up game soundtrack of all time.

[@megadrive11]

The sequel is the greatest game in the entire 16 bit era.

[@CraigSteelyard]

@@megadrive11 Golden Axe 2 was also great imo also soundtrack too was 🔥

[@golfboy83]

One of my favorite games of all time. An instant classic

[@philipcohen7192]

This and revenge of shinobi were the first video games I used to sit and listen to the music. It’s also a bit unfortunate that the sequel overshadows this game so much because it was such a huge improvement on the original. One of my friends recently asked me if streets of rage 2 was an arcade game. In his memory he thought the sequel looked so good he believed that.

[@legendsflashback]

No I like first one better, no aliens

[@roberto1519]

The first is very special and holds its own against any 16-bit game, besides, the 90's was a time games changed so much over each iteration. It's like comparing Revenge of Shinobi to Shinobi III, or Shadow Dancer. Each of them is special and unique in their own way. Still, I would have chosen a much better hitting sound than the "slapping" they settled with in the sequel, I always found that strange.

[@Adamtendo_player_1]

The original streets of rage is very special to me because it was literally one of the first two Mega Drive games I played ever, and the soundtrack blew me away with its amazing quality which has stood the test of time.

[@legendsflashback]

@@Adamtendo_player_1 indeed

[@ACLMSC]

The first Streets of Rage was AMAZING however, the second version was even better. Hats off to SEGA for making an outstanding game even better. The special moves, expanded character selection, and gameplay of SOR2 was superior. Personally, Streets of Rage 3 comes in third place for me, it didn't have the magic of 1 and 2 in my opinion.

[@joshualewno1440]

Got a Genesis and Streets of Rage for my 13th birthday. Still remember all my friends and I playing all night!

[@ericl7519]

I think all that music sounds better now in my wireless headphones than plugging in headphones into the Genesis model 1.Thank you for such a great presentation!

[@khululyp]

Never played this on a genesis back in the day but I bought the 3DS port of both SoR games and I never regretted a second of it. Such masterful games that make you forget Double Dragon and Final Fight even existed.

[@ncapone87]

I prefer 2 over this one, but SoR is a little bit faster paced so it's different. Excellent soundtrack regardless. Great review as usual

[@singletona082]

Agree. Maybe it's nostalgia, but 2 has just enough fidelity bump to suit me better, has more going on, and c'mon. Max pulling off an assbreaker RIGHT as a clsuter of enemies get inside the hit box thus it serves as a sort of mini-nuke? Perfection.

[@ncapone87]

@@singletona082 they're both very good but 2 is better in nearly every way. One of the best of its genre

[@Adamtendo_player_1]

I prefer 2 over this but the original is of the first games I played on the system so for that reason It will always have a special place in my heart other than nostalgia SOR 2 is such a massive improvement in every way over the original.

[@bmwolgas]

SOR1 is to SOR2 as Mario 1 is to Mario 3 - even though the sequel improved upon the original in almost every way, there's still a certain charm/nostalgia that the original has that is mot matched by the sequel.

[@lazarushernandez5827]

The unsung hero of this game is the napalm-bazooka wielding police officer, that manages to drive to wherever you are and can rain flames down with pinpoint accuracy, even several stories above ground. Streets of Rage is one of the times Sega's reactive nature paid of big time.

[@aiwaloki]

This was my favorite Sega series. I played over and over by myself and with friends. It was awesome.

[@FireyPaperMario]

Fun fact: The 3DS port of Streets of Rage 1 is the reason why I fell in love with Genesis games again. ^^;

[@eddybadblood]

This is my favorite in the series and maybe favorite beat ‘em up of all time. Plays great. 3 characters are different. Awesome music, graphics, locations, and bosses. It’s like the Cannon Films version of a beat ‘em up. Perfection.

[@e.e.-tv1683]

There is something special about a 32 year old game that is still very playable today.

[@truindividual]

i have this game thanks to Xbox putting out the Sega Vintage Collection

[@bonesjackson81]

A series with the total package. Graphics, gameplay, sound effects and of course music. Love all 4. Heck when my collection was heavy i didn't mind 1 & 2 on the SMS. Hope to see a 5th that doesn't take nearly 30 years! 2 is my favorite but 1 has the best special. Or at least coolest.

[@AliFOJ5]

This is an icon and a legendary game. Honestly even though I played it much later in the later 90’s it still defined my childhood on my Sega Mega Drive 2. It was also the first game that I beat if I remember correct. Didn’t play the sequels sadly but did play the new Streets of Rage 4 and it was amazing as well.

[@PS1Fan1991]

Brilliant review! I played it as a kid and it was one of the best experiences in a video game that I ever had. The soundtrack and visual style is inspiring and the gameplay is fantastic!

[@jamesburchill7522]

I legitimately would change nothing about this game. I know that the cart size limited enemy variety, but that was part of it's charm. This was an early title and expectations were low. Thus, as a kid this never bothered me...as all games I had played previously on my NES had the same issue. I remember being blown away by the music of this game. Seriously. The music was so much more original than anything I'd seen in the arcade or a home console. The gameplay was repetitive, but fast and fluid. It was something my friends and I could play for hours. Thanks for the video.

[@LordNEG]

I go back to 1 more than 2 for at least the last decade and I'm so glad you've pointed out it's appealing differences. So many reviews out there that simply shut down 1 and 3 completely. I'll always consider the level 5 boat level one of the most eye catching visuals in the series, a combination of the movement and the city background. Then there's that music... As ever, keep up the great work!

[@Adamtendo_player_1]

Because SOR1 is the best in the series, it’s a fact, the original SOR will always have a special place as it was one of the first games I ever played on Sega’s 16 bit console but other than nostalgia, the game simply hasn’t aged as well as SOR 2 has which is the better game by far, even better than part 3 which was a huge letdown.

[@sharksmate]

I have so many fond memories of playing this game with my dad that it will forever hold a place in my heart. Definitely one of the best beat'em up experiences of that era. Was definitely glad to be a part of it.

[@StueyBoo]

This game made my childhood. Number 2 is easily better but the first one will always be special to me.

[@mlee4467]

After me and my brother ate our cereal on Saturday it was genesis all day. Nothing can compare

[@StueyBoo]

@@mlee4467 truly the best of times for sure. You play SoR4? Great game and better late than never lol

[@mlee4467]

@@StueyBoo played the hell out of it lol. Got the Mr. X’s nightmare on release day too

[@carlosnascimento9269]

One of the most legendary OSTs in videogame history. Me and my friends played this for countless hours. The first time we beat it we almost destroyed my room. It's hard to describe how much this game means to me.

[@dad7275]

Really like how you tell the story while showing game footage. Moon Beach is my favorite track out of all three games AND is a major contender for best track the Genesis ever produced.

[@arisdulgerian2053]

Memories. This and Streets of Rage 2 are two of my favorite Genesis games.

[@ACLMSC]

This was the first game I played that had awesome percussion. The simulated hi hats and kick drums were amazing. I used to play it hooked up to a stereo. This was a landmark game.

[@bazdaniels7420]

This was one of the Genesis games I spent the most time with! It was so excellent I kept wanting to play it through over and over. Eventually I'd only play on the hardest setting. the graphics & music & variety of moves... never got tired of it! The only beatemup that compared with Double Dragon for me. The only two I played that much I think were SFII, Columns and the vertical Joe Montana game.

[@chrono1220]

To this day, I play this one more than the sequels. Growing up, I used to drop this cart in, turn on the Genesis, go to music menu and play the songs through my stereo as I did homework.

[@RolyWestYT]

Although I love SOR2 better I will still play the first one! It’s still so so good!!

[@Orlando-o4k]

The lack of co-op killed Final Fight. In the 90s without online you had to go over friends houses to play. Co-op was essential.

[@LeoMidori]

This is my favorite beat 'em up of all time, and one of my favorite games on the system. While it's arguably sparse compared to its predecessors in the series it manages to be satisfying, nuanced and beautiful despite its simplicity; there's nothing better than learning the game well enough to play it on Hardest difficulty and beating the Blaze clones with no weapons or calling the police car. Play it for the soundtrack and sound design alone! It's a great way to kill a couple hours.

[@Captofthisship]

Every time I hear that Beatnik track in my car, it really completes my ride home. I do however prefer the SOR 1 mechanics over the Sor 2 as well (sort of) The first game just feels more arcadey and much more responsive when punching, specially being able to pop between enemies.

[@tyneishalewis9917]

Awesome video, Sega Lord X! I actually discovered Street of Rage for the first time from a KZbin channel recommended to me. It just had that charm and retro magic that drew me in. When I discovered that the Street of Rage series was on the Sega Genesis Classics collection, I just had to buy it. What made it a win-win was that the collection was on sale on my game console's eshop. My brother and I enjoyed hours playing this game & SOR2. The Streets of Rage's soundtrack was so awesome, that I downloaded it for my phone. Moon Beach is one of my favorites from the soundtrack!

[@The80Kat]

Had some awesome summer sleepovers at my cousins with this game.

[@miqueinhamgtow2961]

depending of the dificult set and 1 or 2 players you can even have up to 11 enemies on the screen. If we include the players themselves this was over 4 times the number of chars compared to SNES Final Fight 1 😅. Of course things get really slow and lot of sprites are not drawn when at the same line...but whatever, it was fun as hell. Maybe because we were not polygon counters back in the days, we were just kids trying to have some fun with the videogames we had.

[@oddojaggins]

Such good memories, did not own back in the day but played it at friend's houses. Had great memories playing this with my brother in the mid '00s getting him into the genesis library

[@TheRetroScene]

Classic game. Still love running through it , even after all these years, and the soundtrack is great and gets you in the mood straight from the start.

[@therealnyvex9045]

This is one of the games that depicted my persona as a person growing up, and to this day❤💯 I thank you for making this truly.

[@vallaurianv6024]

Still my favourite in the series. I have the most nostalgia for it. The soundtrack is one of the best in any video game ever. Multiplayer on this is all kinds of great. 😍

[@j3m3r3]

Played this a ton in college. We were pros. My friend ran the sound through his big speakers and i almost fell over, having hearing only through a little tv speaker before. Good times. Me and my daughter play it now

[@projectmayhem6898]

Thanks!

[@SegaLordX]

Thanks for supporting the channel!

[@Bushidounohana]

If, back in 1991, you asked me who had the better beat ‘em up-Capcom or Sega-I wouldn’t have flinched in saying Capcom, and I probably would have been in the majority. In its day, Final Fight made the original Streets of Rage look like the bargain bin offering of the beat ‘em up genre, a plucky little upstart that was cute but still no where near the flash and sizzle of what the SNES had to offer. But which franchise remains relevant today?-Sega’s work stands alone here. Streets of Rage 4 is arguably the best modern beat ‘em up out there, and the original games are getting more and more love for the way in which they pushed the genre forward. Fan made iterations like Streets of Rage Remake on PC are the ultimate interpretation of the original and are not to be missed. Final Fight-while still a great game in its time-has all but disappeared from the radar. And once sequels rolled out on respective consoles, it was clear that Sega was in it to win it. SoR 2 is objectively superior to FF2 in every measurable manner. With their maiden voyage in the original SOR, Sega showed us that graphics weren’t everything and that gameplay, music, and sound could elevate the genre. Remember that beat ‘em ups were always traditionally not known for much more than the flash and sizzle, button mashing, and quarter crunching. Sega added sophistication and nuance that was went unappreciated by many in the moment (including me), and I’m happy that I’ve revisited the series and revised my opinion on it. Thanks for the great coverage, as always!

[@emanuelferreira6875]

My mega drive 2 came with a cartridge in portugal , with streets of rage, golden axe and shinobi. Golden choice

[@michaelh.8945]

Such profounds memories playing it and so much anticipation leading up to its release.

[@soulrobinson5731]

Bare knuckle/streets of rage 2 is my all-time favorite, I like the sound effects when you hit the enemy with the pipe lol (pause)

[@violentkim]

Personally i like more Streets of Rage 1 than SOR2, but SOR3/BK3 is my favorite beat em up ever

[@Astro_Zombie92]

2 may be the superior game, but the original holds a special place in my heart. I could not have described the soundtrack better. The memories of playing this in a dingy basement on a shitty TV are some I'd never trade! I'm glad I can share these games with my son now!

[@robmason5799]

I’ll never forget getting this in 94. I got my system in 93 and couldn’t find this game for the life of me. I found it in a pawn shop for 15.00 complete and bought it. What a game spent many night’s playing and just listening to level 3

[@vivialdo3087]

Loved playing all 3 SOR, I still go back from time to play a classic

[@DocBrewskie]

Probably my favorite game series on the Genesis. I still play them wt my daughter and nephew.

[@NEONTRASHPRODUCTIONS]

I know a lot of 90’s babies think the sequel is where it’s at but honestly I prefer the original. Part two may have upped the ante but that first game will always be one of my absolute favorites! The music, the action, the graphics! All classic!

[@SolCresta3405]

The one that started it all.

[@MrVictorRong]

What a game…and what an amazing soundtrack. On any day this is my favourite SOR ost…but then SOR2 comes in

[@Mitsuraga]

Until Streets of Rage 4 came out, this was my favourite game in the series. The option to betray your comrade at the end completely blew my mind, as a kid. And I still say the soundtrack to this game is better than even Streets of Rage 2. One thing I always found fun was how easily you can hit-stun enemies by punching just slowly enough to not perform a combo (just the first punch over and over), but just quickly enough to keep them from moving at all.

[@youuuuuuuuuuutube]

SOR4 doesn't have nice "impacts", it feels like you're hitting butter or something, lacking that punch. Too bad.

[@Adamtendo_player_1]

I love the original streets of rage soundtrack, but let’s not kid ourselves streets of rage 2 is even better, but I will say that the original streets of rage had a bit more variety in its soundtrack as SLX said that every every track fit the stage that it was used in like a glove.

[@Mitsuraga]

Look, I get it. 2 improved upon the first in almost every way. It's just not the one I return to as often. The nostalgia doesn't hit as hard. I don't have quite so many fond memories of it, since I first played it on 3DS, whereas I played the original on Mega Genesis, way back in the day with my brother.

[@Adamtendo_player_1]

@@Mitsuraga fair enough, I own the original hardware and cartridges of all 3 games in the series but it’s SOR 2 that I play the most because it’s the most well balanced game in the series and as good as the original streets of rage soundtrack is it does have some boring tracks like stage 4 and stage 6 where as it’s superior sequel doesn’t have a bad track at all.

[@Mitsuraga]

Are you sure you meant stage 4? That's "Keep the Groovin'," literally my favourite Koshiro track of all time.

[@bdillmore40]

Thank you so much for reviewing this masterpiece of a game, and series!!!!

[@truindividual]

I have this soundtrack on my phone. I played this a ton as a kid and at least have four different ports of this awesome title. The original is outshined by the second but its amazing still indeed. The Game Gear version isn't too bad.

[@Nelbroth]

When I fired this up back in the day, I couldn't believe how great the music was.

[@TheChrisBeans]

Just an absolute beast of a game. Truly fantastic. Still play it regularly, and still listen to the sound track. The ‘twins’ boss still frustrates me to this day. Especially the second time round! Surpassed by SoRII, but in my opinion that’s probably the single greatest brawler of all time. That includes Arcade brawlers. Never got on with SoR3, but 4 was a great ‘reboot’. What a series. Just outstanding.

[@gc3k]

I'm a fan of games like SoR1, Revenge of Shinobi, Art of Fighting, and others that captured the stylish-but-gritty 1980s urban landscape

[@ravagingwolverine]

I can understand if some think this game is made obsolete by the second game. But that is for each individual to decide. There's a good game here that has its own identity so it's worth a play for those interested. I got the game with my Genesis and it remained one of my most played games for years, even after I could beat it. It was still fun to do it again. A neighborhood friend got the SNES earlier than anyone else I knew and I got to try Final Fight. As impressive a first impression as it made, it also left me unimpressed because of the heavy cuts. I imagine it might have had a similar effect on others. By the time Final Fight Guy was a thing, it felt like a running joke. I suspect the four megabits for the game was a sign Sega wasn't sure if it would succeed, and I think five or six megabits was so unusual it probably was not much more cost effective than eight. They got a lot out of that four megabits, though. It is striking seeing the footage of Streets of Rage 2 after watching all the footage of the first game. The Master System of the first game also has a good look to it.

[@capt.animosiac5093]

Great review. You described best how this entry separates the rest of its sequels due to its dark overtones of the music and graphics aesthetically. Evidence of that shows in the subtle parallex scrolling of the water ripples and waves in the background if you've noticed. And ofc, Yuzo Kushiro's amazing soundtrack gives that all depth and character.

[@SNKBossSyndrom]

The soundtrack is fucking amazing. But what I really enjoyed is that you're fighting through one night till the sun goes up.

[@clamdigger8118]

Definitely a fantastic game. It doesn’t get enough love compared to SoR 2.

[@graymars1097]

my god i can’t even remember how many times i finished this game and it’s sequel. for my brother and me, these 2 were THE gaming itself! everything else was measured and compared to these games. colors, controls, sound, 2 player mode (that’s what we called the coop mode)… it had and still has EVERYTHING for us. I remember the only game that came close but didn’t make it was Rocket Knight Adventures simply because it was a single player game 😅 it had color and sound that was “streets of rage quality” for us. ah good times thanks for the video, great job as always ❤

[@majimamike4097]

One of the first games on my Mega Drive. I love this game so much, it really got me into the beat em up genre.

[@mistertitanic]

No matter how many times it's said, that soundtrack can never be overstated. It's legitimately one of the best there is.