Dotemu Game Reviews
Review Marvel Cosmic Invasion (PS5) - Marvel's Most Fun Beat-'Em-Up in Decades
Beta Ray Brill
Between the brilliant TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Rita’s Rewind, retro beat-‘em-ups are enjoying a bit of renaissance. Marvel Cosmic Invasion is perhaps the highest profile effort yet, a sublimely presented four-player pixel art tribute to the arcade glory years, when smoky pool halls were ruled...
Review Absolum (PS5) - Dragon's Crown and Hades Combine in Stunning Beat-'Em-Up
Arcana believe it
Roguelike games are everywhere these days, to the point where you're actually surprised when the latest indie release isn't peddling death as a progression mechanic. It's a dreadfully crowded genre, but if there's any roguelike that deserves your attention this year, it's Absolum. Fusing the core gameplay of a side-scrolling...
Review Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound (PS5) - A Throwback Worthy of the Hayabusa Name
Clan of attack
The Ninja Gaiden series has been around for a long time, and it's changed a lot, moving from 2D action platforming to full-on, big budget, 3D adventures. While many will know the franchise from these later hack-and-slashers, the most recent entry, Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound, winds back the clock, taking us back to its side-scrolling...
Mini Review Metal Slug Tactics (PS5) – Some of the Best Tactics Since Into the Breach
Hooked on a Fio
From the moment it was announced Metal Slug Tactics was a winner in our eyes. Marrying the SNK classic with the turn-based tactics genre is a golden idea on paper. Hearing it’s a roguelike in the vein of Into the Breach was the coup de grâce for this game being anything but a banger. And we’re happy to say it lives up to those...
Turtles in prime
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge is a love letter to the era of licensed belt brawlers, with Konami’s legendary Turtles in Time being a clear inspiration. With co-op being a huge selling point for this beautiful beat-'em-up, we decided to play through as a trio – and present our review as a roundtable to reflect...
Review Windjammers 2 (PS4) - Frisbee Flingin' Has Never Felt So Fun
Disc hockey
They just don’t make them like this anymore, do they? French outfit DotEmu is fast establishing itself as retro revival specialists, and Windjammers 2 is another immaculate effort from the Streets of Rage 4 studio. This game of Frisbee blends the best of Pong and Street Fighter to make for a white-knuckle reboot of Data East’s...
Review Streets of Rage 4 - Bygone Beat-'Em-Up Classic Returns in Flashy Revival
Flashy but familiar
Video games have largely abandoned the humble beat-'em-up, a sub-genre superseded many times by faster, more thrilling action titles. Getting Streets of Rage 4 at this point feels a bit like your estranged but fondly remembered uncle showing up on your doorstep 26 years later with a beard and a redder face. It's great to see you,...
The discus’ whiskers
The real classics never die, and Windjammers’ peak popularity is proof of that. Despite being a relatively obscure Neo Geo release in the mid-90s, this game of futuristic Frisbee has endured the test of time – becoming a popular streaming attraction in recent years due to its balletic competitive play. And now, courtesy of...
Review Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap (PS4)
High above the mucky muck
The Wonder Boy series was one of the Master System's most beloved franchises, though its cult-classic status hasn't prevented it from falling by the wayside. A convoluted history, including a tangle of complications regarding the rights to the series, meant a comeback would be virtually impossible. In spite of this, a tiny...
Ys not?
Some eleven years after its original Japanese release, Ys Origin has been brought to PlayStation 4 by publisher DotEmu (via a PC localisation by XSEED back in 2006). Set 700 years before the events of the main Ys series, Origin steers away from the series' familiar protagonist Adol Christin in order to focus on the background of the series'...
Having a ball
Pang always seemed like a strange name for the then-popular game about bursting deadly alien bubbles. The word not only sounds like the perfect title for a shameless rip-off of Pong, but it means "a sudden, strong feeling of physical or emotional pain". When the original game was released in the US back in 1989, it adopted the name...
