dracula x. what a mess. its reputation as a shittier rondo doesn't really do justice to how sloppy it is. some pretty awful amateur level design instincts on display here. I hate all the impossible jumps that loop you earlier into the stage with a respawning health drop. that dracula fight... oh no.
December 8, 2025 at 4:55 PM
dracula x. what a mess. its reputation as a shittier rondo doesn't really do justice to how sloppy it is. some pretty awful amateur level design instincts on display here. I hate all the impossible jumps that loop you earlier into the stage with a respawning health drop. that dracula fight... oh no.
finally properly beat final fight 3, which is entirely a function of patience. adding complexity to player control doesn't make up for weak enemy density and variety. not great. probably still a top 5 snes beat em up.
December 2, 2025 at 7:17 PM
finally properly beat final fight 3, which is entirely a function of patience. adding complexity to player control doesn't make up for weak enemy density and variety. not great. probably still a top 5 snes beat em up.
for your consideration:
November 24, 2025 at 3:36 PM
for your consideration:
played both dynamite deka games back to back. I liked the first more. 1 felt more aesthetically cohesive, even ignoring 2's kinda yikes back half. really liked the control that the varied throws gave me in 1, which 2 didn't quite deliver.
November 18, 2025 at 8:00 PM
played both dynamite deka games back to back. I liked the first more. 1 felt more aesthetically cohesive, even ignoring 2's kinda yikes back half. really liked the control that the varied throws gave me in 1, which 2 didn't quite deliver.
every facet of final fight streetwise is abysmal, except the gameplay, which I would call serviceable but disappointing. like, it would stack up well in a lineup of mid tier ps1 3d beat em ups, if it weren't for the... everything else. it's very bad in predictable, well trodden ways. bleh.
November 14, 2025 at 2:16 AM
every facet of final fight streetwise is abysmal, except the gameplay, which I would call serviceable but disappointing. like, it would stack up well in a lineup of mid tier ps1 3d beat em ups, if it weren't for the... everything else. it's very bad in predictable, well trodden ways. bleh.
the bouncer is a master class in this very specific aesthetic. doesn't do much else. I was caught very off guard by this like, 3:1 cutscene:gameplay ratio. wacky. it's a strange enough package that I think I came away feeling fond of it, though I'm not exactly singing its praises.
November 12, 2025 at 12:37 AM
the bouncer is a master class in this very specific aesthetic. doesn't do much else. I was caught very off guard by this like, 3:1 cutscene:gameplay ratio. wacky. it's a strange enough package that I think I came away feeling fond of it, though I'm not exactly singing its praises.
okay yeah, I get why ppl won't stop talking about god hand. I feel like most every action game leans into either making individual enemies complex to fight or making them simple in favor of fighting crowds all at once. this game does both. everything you do feels manual and deliberate. delightful.
November 3, 2025 at 2:57 PM
okay yeah, I get why ppl won't stop talking about god hand. I feel like most every action game leans into either making individual enemies complex to fight or making them simple in favor of fighting crowds all at once. this game does both. everything you do feels manual and deliberate. delightful.
gun valkyrie. now here's a game with a learning curve. it's unintuitive and strange and the game doesn't do nearly enough to explain what it expects of you. but once you get it, man. feels totally unlike anything else. cool game.
October 29, 2025 at 5:00 AM
gun valkyrie. now here's a game with a learning curve. it's unintuitive and strange and the game doesn't do nearly enough to explain what it expects of you. but once you get it, man. feels totally unlike anything else. cool game.
tron ares rules. it's also: not very good. characters and story drag it down. but it's so cute, all these silly lil computer guys. adorable. the soundtrack is doing a lot of heavy lifting but holy moly can it ever lift. gives it a very different tone than the other two. I had a great time.
October 29, 2025 at 1:24 AM
tron ares rules. it's also: not very good. characters and story drag it down. but it's so cute, all these silly lil computer guys. adorable. the soundtrack is doing a lot of heavy lifting but holy moly can it ever lift. gives it a very different tone than the other two. I had a great time.
score and time for my first completed run. had a good lil fanboy squeal unlocking dolores mode btw. assuming I'm gonna have to unlock the other extras mode option by clearing the difficulty prior to arcade mode, lol.
October 14, 2025 at 1:29 AM
score and time for my first completed run. had a good lil fanboy squeal unlocking dolores mode btw. assuming I'm gonna have to unlock the other extras mode option by clearing the difficulty prior to arcade mode, lol.
undercover cops is a pretty fun beat em up. that akio oyabu (metal slug) art goes hard. rosa definitely seems like the right character to play, with her instant jab and throws that cover the entire screen. good times.
October 14, 2025 at 1:29 AM
undercover cops is a pretty fun beat em up. that akio oyabu (metal slug) art goes hard. rosa definitely seems like the right character to play, with her instant jab and throws that cover the entire screen. good times.
the senran kagura folks made a halfway appealing cast of characters for once but could not help themselves and made the selling point panty flashes of extremely generic anime girls. insane fumble. look at my beautiful boys. please make uppers 2 for the fujoshis.
October 10, 2025 at 11:44 PM
the senran kagura folks made a halfway appealing cast of characters for once but could not help themselves and made the selling point panty flashes of extremely generic anime girls. insane fumble. look at my beautiful boys. please make uppers 2 for the fujoshis.
uppers is a letdown. I started it like, well, the bones seem solid, but the enemies don't do anything. when the enemies get around to being threatening then this could be solid. but they never did that. sleepwalked through it on hard expecting to unlock a higher difficulty. nope.
October 10, 2025 at 11:44 PM
uppers is a letdown. I started it like, well, the bones seem solid, but the enemies don't do anything. when the enemies get around to being threatening then this could be solid. but they never did that. sleepwalked through it on hard expecting to unlock a higher difficulty. nope.
oh yo, I saw these folks at a convention recently. really loved their setup. looking forward to the game!
September 24, 2025 at 7:29 PM
oh yo, I saw these folks at a convention recently. really loved their setup. looking forward to the game!
nekketsu oyako kills me. after a generation of consoles not being able to keep up with the action of arcade bmups, the ps1 got to launch with a rough lil game that could really churn out an absurd number of enemies. a little slow maybe, but extremely promising. even better ported to saturn.
September 23, 2025 at 7:00 PM
nekketsu oyako kills me. after a generation of consoles not being able to keep up with the action of arcade bmups, the ps1 got to launch with a rough lil game that could really churn out an absurd number of enemies. a little slow maybe, but extremely promising. even better ported to saturn.
my beat em up fixation folded back in on an old dos game import fixation from a few years ago. korea has all the cool ones. thinking about Eojjeonji Joheun Il-i Saenggil Geot Gateun Jeonyeok again. I found pictures of the physical release, lookit. no leads on how I might get a copy though.
September 22, 2025 at 3:33 PM
my beat em up fixation folded back in on an old dos game import fixation from a few years ago. korea has all the cool ones. thinking about Eojjeonji Joheun Il-i Saenggil Geot Gateun Jeonyeok again. I found pictures of the physical release, lookit. no leads on how I might get a copy though.
was watching @onemillionpower.com's brilliant scrolling down the belt series and raised an eyebrow at the mention of a custom rigged alchemy button for final fight. did some digging, and sure enough! this is so cool. I'd love to try this.
rapidturbo2000.blog.fc2.com/blog-entry-8...
rapidturbo2000.blog.fc2.com/blog-entry-8...
September 16, 2025 at 9:20 PM
was watching @onemillionpower.com's brilliant scrolling down the belt series and raised an eyebrow at the mention of a custom rigged alchemy button for final fight. did some digging, and sure enough! this is so cool. I'd love to try this.
rapidturbo2000.blog.fc2.com/blog-entry-8...
rapidturbo2000.blog.fc2.com/blog-entry-8...
gunners heaven is solid. turns out, if you clone gunstar heroes and get 80% of the way there, you get an 8/10 video game. it has just enough of its own mechanical identity to feel unique. I like it a lot.
September 16, 2025 at 6:27 PM
gunners heaven is solid. turns out, if you clone gunstar heroes and get 80% of the way there, you get an 8/10 video game. it has just enough of its own mechanical identity to feel unique. I like it a lot.
panzer bandit is an incredibly appealing game. it looks great, sounds great, and feels great, with lots of options at your disposal and lots of comboing to do. but the enemies barely put up a fight and there are only like three of them on repeat. it's not enough to support its hour long runtime.
September 16, 2025 at 6:27 PM
panzer bandit is an incredibly appealing game. it looks great, sounds great, and feels great, with lots of options at your disposal and lots of comboing to do. but the enemies barely put up a fight and there are only like three of them on repeat. it's not enough to support its hour long runtime.
highlight of the direct: innsmouth no yakata english, maybe? possibly? ???
September 12, 2025 at 2:04 PM
highlight of the direct: innsmouth no yakata english, maybe? possibly? ???
related: I finally took the time to also play through double dragon and, wow, the difference is stark. it gives you the feeling of traversing a world, and two player is neat, but it runs like butt and that elbow mindlessly dominates the whole thing. I get why it's better remembered. not as good.
September 10, 2025 at 9:09 PM
related: I finally took the time to also play through double dragon and, wow, the difference is stark. it gives you the feeling of traversing a world, and two player is neat, but it runs like butt and that elbow mindlessly dominates the whole thing. I get why it's better remembered. not as good.
surprised by how much I've been enjoying nekketsu kouha kunio-kun, aka renegade. impressive number of options for the first ever beat em up w/ vertical movement. meaningful decisions to make regarding crowd control and priority targets. short but incredibly tight. I really love it.
September 10, 2025 at 9:09 PM
surprised by how much I've been enjoying nekketsu kouha kunio-kun, aka renegade. impressive number of options for the first ever beat em up w/ vertical movement. meaningful decisions to make regarding crowd control and priority targets. short but incredibly tight. I really love it.