Retronomicon 08.05.09: Streets of Rage 3

Posted by Lee Price on 08.05.2009

The Retronomicon is back once again to provide you with a hit of old school goodness. This week Lee looks at one of the only serious rivals to Final Fight for the title of best 2D scrolling beat-em-up of all time, Streets of Rage 3.

Hello everyone and welcome to the brand spanking new edition of the Retronomicon, in it's new Wednesday slot. I think the columns been moved to Wednesday because that's the day most people like to reminisce on but don't quote me on that. Anyways, this week I've decided to stick with SEGA and gone a little further back into the console time line, back to the 16-Bit era of gaming. The Genesis played host to some of the greatest games of all time, including this little gem developed towards the twilight years of the console. So strap on those rose-tinted specs again because this week the Retronomicon looks at Streets of Rage 3.



The Background

SEGA had already experienced massive success with the first two incarnations of the Streets of Rage series. Within the course of two games the series had managed to rise from a fun and well-executed Final Fight rip-off into a full fledged quality series in it's own right.

Having developed its own set of characters, notably Axel and Blaze, to rival Cody and Guy, SEGA had focused more on improving the game in its second iteration. Gone were the catch all special moves of the first game, to be replaced by character specific moves. On top of this the series experienced a massive overhaul in the graphics department between SoR1 and SoR2. With this in mind SEGA began development on the third and final entry into the Streets of Rage canon, and it would prove to be the most ambitious and best game in the series.



The Game

Streets of Rage 3 was a huge improvement on the previous two games in nearly every department. Storyline wise the game was more fleshed out and better realized then pretty much any previously developed side-scrolling beat-em-up. The game made use of cut scenes, a relative rarity in the 16-Bit era, to display and advance the story of the game. The story itself was actually a departure from the usual "so and so has been kidnapped so instead of going to rescue them you should go and kick seven shades of shit out of everybody you meet before getting the big bad guy". Instead of this the game involved the resurrection of the main anarchist of the series, Mr X, and his alliance with the robot builder Dr Dahm. Together the pair have placed bombs all around the city for the purpose of distracting city officials while they conduct their nefarious scheme to replace all of said officials with robots under their control.

Straight away the game shows a depth that was rare in games of this ilk. It gives the player a reason to be scouring every nook and cranny of the city as they need to find the bombs. While not a revelation in story telling by any means, it serves its purpose and at least makes more sense than the usual fare provided. After all that's all that is needed anyway from the genre which was the gaming equivalent of the 80's action movie.

The player is given the choice of the series big mainstays in Axel, the generic bad-ass cop, or Blaze, the sexy femme fatale. In addition to this you also get the choice of Skate who, as made obvious by his name, is a roller skater and brother to Adam from the first game or Dr Zan a semi-robotic man who can use his electrified arms to great advantage. Once the protagonist is firmly set in place the player will journey through all the areas of city, from the harbor all the way up to City Hall, in an attempt to foil Mr X's newest scheme.

In terms of gameplay, Streets of Rage 3 is a massive step up from the previous incarnations. The speed of the game has been ramped up quite a lot, with the heroes both attacking and moving faster. This is of course countered by the fact that the enemies can also do the same, which makes for some very difficult exchanges on the more difficult settings, especially when the player is being attacked from multiple sides. To aid the player in this the game also introduces brand new dodge moves, which become absolutely invaluable towards the later stages as the player must make every effort to conserve their energy for the boss battles.

The bosses were also a notable improvement, as they seemed to ooze a character that had been absent before, especially in the first game. Alongside the pivotal Mr X the player will also once again do battle with Shiva of SoR2 fame. Outside of these two though you will also encounter a number of other minions, including a boxing kangaroo, a robotic version of Axel and Dr Dahm himself. It is even possible to unlock both Shiva and Roo the Kangaroo as playable characters, providing yet more replay value to the game.

The replay value is ratcheted up even further by the use of multiple paths through levels and also multiple endings. There are 4 endings to the game, ranking from the very bad to the very good, and the only way to see all the game is to achieve the very good ending. This isn't even possible on the easiest setting so the player must improve as well as reaching the game's other conditions if they want to see out the story to its proper conclusion.

Another noteworthy area of the game is the continued evolution of the special move system. In the first game the special move simply consisted of a button press that caused the police to firebomb the area to get rid of any goons. This was replaced in SoR2 with a character specific system wherein each fighter had their own set of special moves, but using them would result in a loss of some life. Streets of Rage 3 retains these special moves but also adds the power bar, a little column of blue bars which regenerate when emptied. When the power bar is full the player can execute a special move without any loss of life. This adds and extra layer of depth to the combat as now the character has the possibility of being able to retain some precious life force and still execute special moves. This has to be balanced against the need to use them however, so the player is often left in a situation where they must choose to sacrifice a little bit of life to get rid of a foe, or to defend and hope they can get the power bar to replenish while risking taking even more damage then they would have sacrificed if they get caught out.

Not only this but the power bar also plays a part in the character's base strength. The player becomes slightly slower and less powerful when the power bar is empty. On top of this their defenses also drop, leading to the possibility of taking more damage than is strictly necessary. The introduction of the power bar was a stroke of genius on SEGA's part, as it provides a depth to beat-em-ups that simply weren't present previously, especially in the SoR series. It really makes the player more considered in the tactical choices they make when it comes to using special moves specifically.

Additionally the game also introduces incremented power for the semi-special, or "Blitz" attacks that each character has. With the collection of 40,000 points within a single life, the player collects a star which makes their Blitz attack more powerful. This continues until the player has a maximum of three stars, with one being lost with every lost life. This makes retaining a fully powered-up Blitz difficult towards the later stages of the game, and is a real sign of quality in a player if they are able to do so.

The game also introduces weapon specific special attacks, except for in the case of Dr Zan or the secret characters. This is yet another step forward from the old system wherein a weapon only had one use once it was picked up and promptly disappeared once it had been used a certain amount of times. Now the player can use more powerful moves, with the trade-off being that the weapon's condition deteriorates more rapidly if they do so. This adds yet another layer to the onion that is this game's combat system, an impressive feat considering that SEGA only really had three buttons and a D-Pad to work with.

Not only did SEGA devise more ways for you to unleash the pain on the various enemies you come across, they also made sure that the goons had a few tricks up their own sleeves. This was done through vast improvements in AI, as the enemies have much more of a tendency to dodge, block, pick up weapons and even pick up food and restore their own health if the player leaves it hanging around too long. Additionally the game makes use of traps, such as pits or the ability to be thrown off an elevator. This works both ways though, and the elevator trap in particular makes a welcome return, having been one of the best parts of Streets of Rage 1.

Two player mode plays as well as it always did, but the game has added more co-op attacks to be utilized whenever the player needs them. These involve grabbing the other player and throwing them in the direction of the enemies, similarly to the team attack in SoR1. However there is a slightly larger range of throws than in the previous games. This is an area that could have been improved upon however, for example it could have been made possible for a player to hold onto an enemy while their partner wails on them, rather than forcing a release if they land a shot.

Graphically the game is amongst the best the Genesis has to offer. The sprites are well animated and detailed, and the colors are vibrant and suit each area of the city perfectly. The game also makes use of interactive levels like never before, with multiple layers to some levels and the addition of trams or other objects driving by in some stages that can cause the player additional damage if they are hit.

The characters themselves are much larger and more reminiscent of the Final Fight sprites, which shows the massive improvement in SEGA's understanding of their own graphics chip towards the end of the console's lifespan. This is a trend often seen with a console wherein developers only seem to begin to unlock it's full potential as the next batch of consoles are being readied. This is prevalent here as the game is a graphical masterpiece for the Genesis and is amongst the best that the generation, never-mind the console itself, had to offer.

Musically the game performs miracles with the Genesis' sound chip once again. It simply should not be possible to create such a quality soundtrack on such an awful sound chip but once again Yuzo Koshiro works wonders . While not having the impact of the original game's soundtrack, the music is suitably impressive and is joined by small snippets of voice work, such as Axel screaming "Bare Knuckle" during one of his super attacks.

However its not all sunshine and lollipops. Many critics of the game argue that it has been neutered in comparison to its Japanese counterpart, Bare Knuckle 3. In this game the plot is much more fleshed out, as the explosive substance in the bombs is revealed to have been developed by Dr Zan himself and also deals with the disappearance of a military general. In the US and UK releases however, all mentions of the development of the explosive substance are deleted and the general is morphed into the Chief of Police.

There were also changes in clothing, as many of the female characters had dominatrix style clothing in Bare Knuckle 3, whereas this was changed to more modest clothing in SoR3. In addition to this Axel's traditionally white shirt is changed to the same yellow shade that Adam wore in SoR, and Blaze's costume also experiences a palette swap.

The biggest disappointment though, is the deletion of a certain secret character. Ash is a minion who can be unlocked as a playable character in Bare Knuckle 3. He is tall, has a golden necklace depicting the female symbol and black high heeled boots. Ash is also quite clearly gay and lets out the same effeminate scream as the female characters when defeated. This was apparently enough to warrant his exclusion from Streets of Rage 3, probably because SEGA deemed the US and UK to be too conservative in their sexual views to accept this type of charater. Interestingly, Final Fight has a similar character in Sid. This will be dealt with in more detail in Final Fight's inevitable induction, but it is interesting to note that Japanese developers seem to have a thing for including homosexual or transvestite characters in their beat-em-ups.

When push comes to shove though, this doesn't really detract from what is a superb game. The combat has a depth that up to this point was simply unmatched and the game itself was just a massive improvement over the first two incarnations, and finally announced Streets of Rage as the serious rival to Final Fight's crown. The game was even made more difficult for Western players, as the game's normal mode was harder than the top difficulty in the Japanese release, so at least we got that instead of secret characters and the developer's intended plot...



The Aftermath

This should be the part where I tell you that SoR3 broke all the sales records set by the other games in the series and become one of the most universally appreciated beat-em-ups of all time. Unfortunately I would be lying. SoR3, especially in the West, was released with more of a whimper than a bang. Attention was being diverted away from the 16-bit era by the impending release of the SEGA Saturn and the PS1 and the sales for SoR3 were, in a word, disappointing. Sales failed to even come close to the first two games, to the point where an original SoR3 cart is now a collector's item.

SEGA itself soon turned it's attention to the SEGA Saturn. After the release of a couple of other good titles, such as Sonic and Knuckles. They would never again attain the popularity they achieved during the Genesis era, with many considering the Saturn and the Dreamcast commercial failures, despite the huge amount of quality games developed for the console. Eventually SEGA dropped out of the console race altogether and now develops games for all platforms.

As for the Streets of Rage franchise, well its gone the way of many of SEGA's popular series. Fans are clamoring for and updated version on a new console, but SEGA are remaining tight-lipped as to whether or not we will ever see one. For those who need another dose of rage though, there are fan made games around. Firstly its worth checking out Streets of Rage Remake for a lovely new graphical update. It also a good idea to check out Beats of Rage, a game inspired by SoR.

As for a proper sequel, we can but hope. After all it happened for Nights and what did we honestly think the possibility of that was?

The Final Word

Streets of Rage 3 is an absolute must have for any retro-head, as are the first two games in the series. It stands as the pinnacle of the 2D side-scrolling beat-em-up genre on the Genesis, however its arguable that its quality deserves its current price tag on the collector's market. It may be best to pick it up via Virtual Console or in one of the SEGA collections out on the PS3 and Xbox 360.

The Price is Right

So I've hyped the game up as a collectors item so now you want to see what its worth. Perhaps you have a copy of the game and had no idea that it was considered a rarity? Or maybe you want a copy but want to know what sort of prices you should be paying? Either way the Retronomicon is here to help you figure out just how much Streets of Rage 3 is worth. As usual only hit the upper bounds price wise if you are getting a mint condition game

UK

Megadrive - £25 – 55 (It is actually quite difficult to find a copy at the lower end of the spectrum. It appears most copies are now owned by collectors or people who know how to keep their games in good nick).
Xbox 360: SEGA Megadrive Ultimate Collection - £15-25
PS3: SEGA Megadrive Ultimate Collection - £15-25
Wii – 800 Wii Points

US

Genesis - $15 – 40 (In contrast to the UK, it seems a lot of copies in the US are unboxed)
Xbox 360: Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection - $18 – 30
PS3: Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection - $18 – 30
Wii – 800 Wii Points

Spreading the Word

Hope you enjoyed the column this week. Make sure to check out the older stuff if you're a Retronomicon newbie and look forward to having you read next week. Now have a gander at all this lovely 411 goodness.

Firstly, be sure to bookmark the site or make it your homepage.

Be sure to check out the 411 Games twitter right here;

http://www.twitter.com/411games

And here's some more good reading to take up your time;

The 10th Hour
GAME POW
Working Title
Living LIVE
The Release List

And of course, the multi-staff efforts;

The 411 Games Top 5
Fact or Fiction

The Guy Who Can do it Better Than You

Another new feature in the Retronomicon to send it out on a bang, here I'll be showing you a video of somebody who's pretty damned good at the featured game. Think you can do better? This week its the first in an 4-part speed run of the game using Shiva. Check this out then check out the other vids.



Enjoy and ta-ta for now.