It's not Final Fight, and it's not deep: Tokyo Beat Down

(tags game, Dual Screen, side scroll, beat-em-up)

Just because there was some coverage about the localization for Tokyo Beat Down (originally 野獣刑事) for the DS (and plus I was in the mood for fighting because of Final Fight One and Double Dragon Advance), I purchased the game and gave it a whirl. This was about two weeks ago.

Its a "my first" Final Fight. I am disappointed.

The first 30 minutes did not draw me in, since the fighting combos are so weak. There is a promise of longer combos if you progress in the game. The best thing is hitting the X button (punch) for 8 times, and you can interrupt that with the Y button (kick) and vice versa. There are three characters, but it's hard to discern the difference between them, when talking about combos.

The whole atmosphere is juvenile. The story is not compelling and the actual action is just not fun. I'm on the second day now, and it has taken me 1.5 hours of interrupted playing just to get there. Today is probably the last time I'll play it. Hopefully I'll get a power up to extend my combo and finally get something that feels new.