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River City Ransom EX
GameRatio Review
GBA |
View Full Game Info
Published by
Atlus Software
Released on
2004-05-25
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| 77% GameRatio |
80% GR% Review |
xenoranger
Reviewed on
2004-06-03
Not quite the River City we remember…
Back in 1989, Technos released two titles in the same month. One was Double Dragon II: The Revenge. This was the follow up to the 1988 NES debut of Double Dragon. The other game released was River City Ransom. Both games were of the beat-em up action style, but since Double Dragon had the established franchise, River City Ransom sunk into obscurity. After receiving only a single page mention in Nintendo Power, only a handful of people actually paid any mind to RCR. The game eventually became a cult classic. The sad truth is that RCR was superior to DD2 in almost every conceivable way.
Moving forward, Technos recognized that there was a new market that enjoys the customization and growth of characters. So, they are trying to market River City Ransom EX on the Gameboy Advance. To be honest, I was one of the hard core players of the NES version of RCR, so I just couldn’t wait to see RCREX on GBA. The results are in, and they are most certainly mixed.
The presentation of RCREX is about what you would expect from an updated port to GBA. First I’d like to point out that the graphics on this game do not quite resemble River City Ransom 2 for Super Famicon. The characters have the original block heads, but this time they added shading to the faces. The scenery is definitely more complex. Even the weapons have been touched up. As for the music, they tweaked the old 8-bit beeps and are now using more complex midi. The sound effects are a far cry better that anything the old NES could’ve put out. Overall, I have no complaints regarding the updated visuals or audio.
The original story of RCR was a bit cliché in its time. You are a martial artist who finds out that your girlfriend (Cindy in this case) has been captured by the leader of an evil organization (in this case, Slick). He is bent on controlling the ________ (fill in blank, but for RCR, we say City). At the time, the story was nothing special. With the latest incarnation, they added a whole lot more content. While playing RCREX, you no longer have to follow the same linear story. There are places were you can decide to skip boss fights or take on the bosses in a different order. Doing so will cause the flow of events to change. In some cases, you will have to alter your original game plan to get access to the inside of River City High (the senior high school/headquarters for Slick). In all honesty, I really don’t mind this. It makes the game a little more interesting.
Play remains virtually the same. You can kick and punch, just like any other martial arts game. What originally made RCR better than Double Dragon II: The Revenge was the ability to learn moves. By stopping at book stores and spending your hard earned cash that you relieved fainted gang members of, you can purchase books that will teach you new techniques. This remained true in RCREX. The only divergence here is that you can start with either Dragon Feet or Mach Fist (originally Stone Hands). These are the essential techniques to winning the game. Dragon Feet and Mach Fist allow you to kick and punch (respectively) at a rate that is nearly unblockable by 90% of the enemies in the game. There is an added technique called Grand Slam that allows you to do the same, but while holding weapons. The downside to the technique setup is that since brass knuckles are considered a weapon, having learned Mach Punch does not mean that you can use the technique while in possession of brass knuckles. RCREX adapted Technos Samurai’s AI Partner system. This allows you to have 1 (2 in RCREX’s case) AI that will fight along side. The AI is fully customizable, making it as useful as your assessment of the situation. Bad customization means that the AI will end up juggling you against opponents. A well customized AI team, on the other hand, can lead to a swift victory in any situation.
The diversity between the original game and the GBA reincarnation causes a bit of an inner controversy. To be perfectly honest, the original RCR is #1 on my list of entertaining games. But RCREX just doesn’t feel like RCR. The first thing I noticed when playing was that Technos added at least 4 new gangs (the Rockers, the Dragons, the Gamers, & the Locals). Yes it adds more variety, but when you read the comments from these gangs, it seems like they spent some time in a ghetto trying to pick up new lingo. Also, a few of the maps have changed. The warehouse no longer has the wall that players needed to navigate to reach the other side of River City. Some areas originally had doors that players must walk up to or they’ll take damage for running into a wall. These doors have been removed. To progress the extended story, some of the key dialog (Roxy’s warning on the bridge) has been changed. In addition to that, newer boss characters were inserted to standard areas to progress the enhanced story. Other diversions include the inability to request a smile from the waitress at Merv’s Burger Joint. Though the smile was only for kicks and served no real purpose, it was just a fun little addition to the RCR world.
Despite the differences between the old and the new, River City Ransom EX is still a fun game. It may not have all the crazy humor and bits that made NES owners keep coming back for more, but in the grand scheme of things, it is a worthwhile addition to any GBA collection. If you’ve never played the original RCR, here’s your chance to see what you’ve been missing. If you have, remember that this is really RCR, for a new generation.
GameRatio review by xenoranger
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