SEGA has certainly taken their time reviving Streets of Rage – the last entry was in 1994, beating the 18-year hiatus between Shenmue II and III by some seven years.
During that time a handful of franchise reboots were pitched to SEGA. You’d think they’d jump at the chance of rekindling memories of one of the Mega Drive’s finest hours, but no, they were seemingly waiting for the right place and time to bring the urban brawler back.
Or perhaps the right team. The weight of Streets of Rage 4 rests on LizardCube and Guard Crush Games, with Parisian outfit Dotemu handling publishing duties. Safe hands indeed – LizardCube gave us the wonderful Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap remake while Guard Crush was responsible for the well-received indie brawler Streets of Fury. It also seems to be taking inspiration from franchise high note Streets of Rage 2, rather than the disappointing third entry, packing some retro flare along the way.
SEGA also believes the time is right to bring Sakura Wars to the west. This RPG franchise has been running since 1996 in Japan, with sales in the millions. Only one entry has made to the west prior to this week- Sakura Wars: So Long, My Love on Wii, published by NIS – so the arrival of the latest instalment on PS4 is a big deal.
Set in an alternate version of 1940s Tokyo, this is the first in the series to feature an action-based battle system instead of a menu-driven affair. You’ll find the trailer below. Physical copies are also out in the wild but may be hard to track down.
The same goes for SnowRunner – Focus’ follow-up to the sleeper hit MudRunner – the belated console release of zombie shooter DAYMARE 1998, and Team17’s couch-based couch mover Moving Out, all of which are due at retail.
Reviews of Moving Out surfaced last week, being a mixture of 7s, 8s and a handful of 9s. “Moving Out performs a seemingly impossible balancing act. It’s both a challenging couch co-op physics puzzler, and yet it’s completely accessible to everyone sat on that couch, regardless of their video game experience. Moving Out is fun, it’s frivolous, it’s joyful and it will have you laughing from beginning to end. Who could ask for more?†said TSA.
DAYMARE 1998, meanwhile, started out as a Resident Evil 2 fan remake before evolving into a standalone project. The PC version launched in September 2019 to mixed reviews. Word has it its heart is in the right place – this is a game for and by survival horror fans – but its hindered by technical hiccups. Incidentally, the retail release is a deluxe pack with pins, stickers and other bits.
This exceedingly busy week (indeed, the majority of games planned for April all arrive this week) also includes the FMV investigative thriller Telling Lies, visual novel Arcade Spirits – set in a world where the 1984 market crash didn’t happen – and the cartoon-like tactical RPG Dread Nautical.
It may even be a record-breaking week for the Xbox One – 23 titles are due, including a belated release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Remastered, extreme sports sim Shred! 2, and the arcade racer Super Toy Cars 2. The majority of those 23 titles are also on PS4 and Switch, but still, there’s plenty to choose from this week no matter which format you own.
New release showcase
Sakura Wars
Streets of Rage 4
Telling Lies
SnowRunner
Moving Out
DAYMARE 1998
Arcade Spirits
Dread Nautical
The Inner Friend
Super Toy Cars 2
New multiformat releases
- Streets of Rage 4
- Daymare: 1998
- Moving Out
- SnowRunner
- Telling Lies
- Arcade Spirits
- Dread Nautical
- The Inner Friend
- Active Neurons – Puzzle Game
- Gun Crazy
New on PSN
- Sakura Wars
- Arcade Archives PLUS ALPHA
- A Fold Apart
- Spirit of the North
- Down the Rabbit Hole
- Book of Demons
New on Xbox One store
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Remastered
- Ghost Sweeper
- Fight the Horror
- Miden Tower
- Shred! 2
- Levelhead
- Star Crossed
- Crawlers and Brawlers
- Robot Squad Simulator X
- Sin Slayers: Enhanced Edition
- Super Toy Cars 2
- Chop is Dish
New Switch retail releases
- Moving Out
- Code: Realize Future Blessings
- Arcade Spirits
- Snooker 19 Gold Edition
- Finding Teddy 2 Definitive Edition
Next week: John Wick Hex, Infinite – Beyond The Mind, SuperMash, Fury Unleashed, and Void Bastards.