

It’s available for Xbox Live Arcade as well, for just 800 Microsoft points.įinal Fight: Double Impact (Capcom, Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network)Ĭody, Haggar and Guy have been around for years now, and even though they mostly appear in fighting games these days, nothing beats their original romp through Metro City, where they took on the Mad Gear gang in the hopes of rescuing Haggar’s daughter from peril. While we’re recommending that style of game, Phantom Breaker Battleground, which just came out over a week ago, is worth a look, with humorous 8-bit style graphics, combo-filled gameplay and multiplayer mayhem. Sega was gracious enough to bring that game back as a downloadable release for XBLA, complete with online support, colorful visuals and the ability to play in “classic” mode, if you prefer the Saturn motif. Years ago, Treasure, the developers of Ikaruga and Gunstar Heroes, eked out a fun little role-playing beat-em-up called Guardian Heroes for the Sega Saturn, featuring some interesting characters (including a lumbering, dead knight who follows your commands), a groovy soundtrack and an arena mode where you could fight alongside friends. Guardian Heroes HD (Sega, Xbox Live Arcade) You can find this game by itself on both XBLA and PSN, as well as in the Streets of Rage Collection on Xbox Live and the retail release Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis Collection, which also comes with the other two SoR games. With supercharged moves, a wonderful soundtrack from Yuzo Koshiro, and the ability to brawl online alongside a buddy, Streets of Rage 2 is a not-miss brawling party.

The original Streets of Rage was good, and we even like the third chapter in some ways, but we always seem to come back to part two, where cops Axel and Blaze team up with wrestler Max and street kid Skate to take down Mr. Streets of Rage 2 (Sega, Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network) If you didn’t get the game, though, not to worry, as Konami’s X-Men the Arcade Game and The Simpsons Arcade are also available for relatively cheap – and pack similar arcade thrills without having to fork over any quarters. The servers are still going today, so if you did manage to snag this, hop into a session and, ahem, shell out some justice. Ubisoft has taken the classic four-player Konami arcade hit and reconditioned it with online play and unlockable Achievements galore. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Arcade Game (Ubisoft, Xbox Live Arcade)Įven though it’s currently delisted from the XBLA service, many of you were lucky enough to grab this $5 deal when it first launched a few years back. Here’s our current list of favorites that you can find for relatively cheap… Though not many beat-em-ups see release as of late, there are still a few that are making the rounds on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. And you would do this for various stages on end before finally reaching the end boss and putting them away for good.

Nothing beats the art of the beat-em-up, the side-scrolling game where you can pummel someone into oblivion, either alone with or friends, before facing a tougher boss enemy.
