River City Ransom (known in Japan as Downtown Nekketsu Monogatari) is a highly influential beat 'em up RPG from 1989 that has seen numerous ports and remakes over the years. I'm partial to the PC Engine version, myself! Back in 2017, an enhanced remake of Ransom was released on 3DS called River City: Rival Showdown. That game is now heading to PlayStation, Switch, and Steam in October with both local and online co-op!
With the 16-bit classic, River City Girls Zero, having finally received a worldwide release this year and the freshly launched River City Girls 2 currently knocking gamers’ socks off, it’s time to take a fresh look at the original River City Girls from WayForward and Arc System Works. RCG1, as we’ll call it, combines elements of t...
The River City/Kunio series has seen numerous installments over the years, but precious few of them received English releases until a few years ago. Once Arc System Works took over the license from the defunct Technos, more games starring Kunio and his buddy Riki started making their way out of Japan. WayForward’s release of River City Girls ...
While beat 'em up fans continue to wait patiently for WayForward's River City Girls 2 and River City Girls Zero, those aren't the only games in town. Straight from Arc System Works themselves, River City Saga: Three Kingdoms has just landed on PlayStation, Switch, and Steam. This installment transplants the River City/Kunio-kun cast to China's Three Kingdoms period. Both a 2-player story mode and a 4-player arcade mode are included, each supporting local and online co-op. Oh, and the "River City Girls" are in it too!
Last week, we interviewed Adam Tierney of WayForward about River City Girls Zero, which is out on Switch and scheduled to arrive on other platforms soon. Zero isn't WayForward's only upcoming River City Girls game, though. River City Girls 2 is due out this year. To learn more about the hotly anticipated beat 'em up sequel, we inte...
Earlier this year, Arc System Works released the Double Dragon & Kunio-kun Retro Brawler Bundle for modern consoles and Switch, bringing heaps of NES beat ‘em up goodness to Sony’s console. It looked like Xbox owners would be left out of the fun, but that has thankfully changed today. Seven of the games from the Retro Brawler Bundle are now available as $5 individual downloads on Xbox One. At last, Microsoft fans can play Double Dragon II, Double Dragon III, and River City Ransom in local and online co-op! While the Xbox Store page does list Double Dragon as having co-op, since this is the NES version of the game, it actually does not offer cooperative play - instead it's a two player versus mode.
Well, it looks like Alex and Ryan (or was it Kunio and Riki?) have gotten themselves in a pickle once again, and just like last time, the only solution is to punch and kick the crap out of every living being in sight. That's right, there's a new River City Ransom game in town!
River City Ransom set an early precedent for how a brawler should control and feel. Utilizing RPG and twitch based mechanics to tell the emotionally charged story of high school students Ryan and Alex beating the stupid out of frat guys and jocks to rescue a pretty lady, River City Ransom is something of a cult classic among gamers of the 8-bit generation and beyond. Developer Conatus Creative aims to give this highly cherished game a sequel worthy of its heritage via Kickstarter.
Co-Op International has already looked at the little-known Japanese Turbografx CD version of River City Ransom. This time we return with a River City Ransom sequel/spin-off that was never released outside of Japan. Downtown Special – Kunio-Kun no Jidaigeki Dayo Zenin Shuugou! for the Famicom (Japanese NES) looks and plays even better than River City Ransom, but it takes place in Japan. And thanks to the magic of an English translation patch, anyone with an NES emulator can fully enjoy it.
Our previous Co-Op International looked at the Japanese versions of Double Dragon II. This month we follow up with River City Ransom. Think the GameBoy Advance version is the best? No way! Read on to discover the River City Ransom that never left Japan but does feature awesome co-op.
Pop quiz! What do classic co-op brawlers, RPG elements, sequels, BARF!, and a little male nudity have in common? If you said River City Ransom, you are a winner! If you said Downtown Nekketsu Monogatari, stop being pretentious. And if you said my house on Tuesdays, stop spying on me! Naked D&D Spaceballs Punch Club Tuesdays are sacred. That's beside the point. River City Ransom, the old school brawler, is getting sequel for home consoles and PC. It should be out for home consoles this summer with a PC release coming in 2012.
