The highly influential Kunio-kun beat-’em-up RPG series first debuted in arcade cabinets and Apple II computers – all the way back to 1986, well before Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Streets of Rage , if you can believe it. – and since then, it’s slowly built up a long legacy, spanning over 20 game releases in Japan. Though far fewer people have made it to the west. But recently, developer ArcSys has streamlined Kunio-kun’s beat-up role-playing formula with the help of 2017’s River City Ransom: Underground and its sequel, 2019’s River City Girls. It is well-received for its smooth combat, fun soundtrack, and powerful level design. And now, three years on, the developers WayForward and ArcSys are back with River City Girls 2. It promises to be a worthy sequel for brawlers as well as Kunio-kun fans, and I had a chance to play its first level while absorbing the original story sequences as three of the six playable characters, exploring a small portion of its vast map. and defeat its first boss. It feels like the perfect sequel to both the original River City Girls and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge, so buckle up.
River City Girls 2 is a pure comedy that revolves around a cast of bizarre but self-interesting characters including anime-inspired characters who are said to be of high school age but look… have a general preference for violence, which would not be appropriate for any actual teen. Regardless, the whole town wants a piece of you and you’ll quickly find you’re fighting everyone. It’s a bit like Cobra Kai meeting One Punch Man, if that helps.
There are now six playable characters to choose from (up from the original’s four core characters), including new additions Provie and Marian, who can previously break boomboxes with the button. Y and breakdance with the B button. Yes, these are realistic combat moves that can deal tons of damage to surrounding enemies and there are many more that I can unlock by visiting the Dojo and buying they are in game currency. These characters all seem to have their own fighting styles, movements, personalities, and dialogue, though I only tried three of the six, including Kunio and Riki. Kunio himself is a heavier attacker, while Riki deals less damage per attack but moves faster. According to the developers, a game can now have up to four players at once with the new four-player co-op mode, although I wasn’t able to try that in practice.
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River City Girls 2’s pixelated style is as colorful and expressive as ever, and it looks great in 2K. Recently exited TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge, based on the same art style, it’s really hard to complain. In action, everything is as smooth as you would expect. The environment is full of objects to break and weapons to pick up, including other enemies, and River City Girls 2’s map seems particularly open because you can go into shops and look into areas. Side areas along the main road – at least in the first part of the level. Like its predecessor, it has a rich soundtrack that oscillates between 16-bit inspired tunes and pop songs with stellar vocals from the likes of Cristina Vee and Megan McDuffee, and features Lots of sarcastic humor directly into some of these vocals. This mall area, for example, is scored by a song that openly and cheerfully mocks you throughout the entire section. It captures a lot of laughs and many moments this story is set up with a lightness that often breaks the fourth wall – which certainly fits the tempo of a brawl involving high school students. .
I also found some cool new combat features here, including the ability to recruit up to two downed opponents. They then become summonable allies that you can join the battle for for a very limited time, but depending on how you choose to equip your character – this is a RPG – looks like you can specialize your summons, making them spawn more often and deal more damage. I can’t see the full progression system of River City Girls 2, but the characters clearly grow stronger as you use them and invest in their gear and skills, and it’s great to evolve. Develop your own skills along with theirs.
