Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge by Tribute Games and Dotemu is a beat ’em up inspired by the classic animated series and video games. Find out if this revival hits the right spot in our Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge review!
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge by Tribute Games and Dotemu is a new beat ’em up inspired by the classic animated series and video games. After watching the greatly animated intro video with the theme from the 1987 TV series, you’ll get briefed about the game’s story – if you choose to dive into Story Mode. It starts with the Turtles, Splinter, and April watching TV. Suddenly, the broadcast switches to Bebop, the infamous mutant warthog and one of Shredder’s henchmen. You’ll then witness that the Statue of Liberty has been rigged and that he and Rocksteady have found the head of Krang’s exo-suit. It doesn’t take long for the crew to go on a mission to stop this.
When you start playing, you’ll have the choice between Story Mode and Arcade Mode. The Story Mode will give you three difficulty options, and you’ll have a number of lives that reset at the start of each of the levels. You’ll also gain points as you progress that will make your character level up, thus gaining things like an extra life or additional moves like the Super Dive Attack. In Arcade mode, those locked moves will be unlocked from the start, but you’ll be playing a harder version of the game in the sense that you have a limited number of lives, continues, and no saved progression.
When selecting your character, you’ll be able to see each one’s stats, which vary in terms of Range, Speed, and Power. The good news is that the controls are shared between all of them. Your character will move with the left stick or the D-pad. The X button is for jumping, while the Circle button will make your character do a backflip. The Square button is for your attacks (which can be combined with the jump or the backflip for additional moves), and the Triangle button will be used for any of the Super Attacks that consume a Ninja Power bar which is gradually filled as you defeat your enemies. If you’re playing in multiplayer, which can be with up to four players on the PS4 version, you’ll be able to cheer up or reanimate allies with the L1 button, and some team attacks will also be possible depending on how you corner enemies.
In terms of visuals, the team that created the game really nailed the classic cartoon TV series’ look while, at the same time, having some crisp and beautiful pixel art for characters and locations, all solidly animated. The soundtrack is also a strong aspect of the game, with a great mix of tracks and even contributions by the acclaimed rappers Ghostface Killah and Raekwon from the Wu-Tang Clan. The soundtrack’s availability in October 2022 definitely won’t come soon enough to be able to listen to this outside of the game.
Being a fan of the TV series, which was among my top shows as a kid, the first moments of the game with the intro and song already had me hooked, or at least with sky-high expectations. I had also played way too many hours of TMNT 2: The Arcade Game, again putting pressure on what I wanted out of this game. After playing a few levels, I was already convinced that the teams at Tribute Games and Dotemu had certainly delivered. The game looks great, the soundtrack is just as good, and the combat was fun and challenging (even on the easiest of the difficulties in Story Mode).
And along with the solid gameplay, where Shredder’s Revenge comes in strong is in the nostalgia factor, which can’t be put aside when talking about a franchise that is now closer to the 40 years mark. I won’t spoil all of the different areas you’ll visit and the many characters you’ll meet during your time with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge, but what I can tell is that this delivers on everything you’d hope to see in a TMNT bet ’em up, from the multitude of Foot Soldiers variations to classic villains like Bebop and Rocksteady.
The game has several trophies for you to work on adding to your collection as you try to add one more Platinum trophy to your trophy count. Although you can get quite a lot (close to 50%) just from playing through the Story Mode once, you’ll need to complete it with all seven playable characters to earn a few more trophies. Where the challenge will likely reside, though, is in having to complete the Arcade mode. What I can tell you is that it will be a very fun ride!
Dotemu is having a pretty solid track record in publishing great beat ’em ups. Let’s not forget that they previously published the also excellent Streets of Rage 4. Having them team up with Tribute Games for this one was an excellent idea since we’re getting an outstanding beat ’em up. If you’re a fan of the genre, of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and are up for a great retro-inspired experience, then you should definitely pick this one up. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge is out tomorrow on PlayStation 4 at a $24.99 price.
Disclaimer
This Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge review is based on a PlayStation 4 copy provided by Dotemu.
