This may be the most difficult review I’ve ever had to write, only because I had to tear myself away from Shredder’s Revenge long enough to write it. The beat ’em up experts at Dotemu and the pixel art pros at Tribute Games have gone and done it: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge is a retro-inspired masterpiece that is so good it made me cry.
There was a time when Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was my entire life: I was addicted to the Saturday-morning cartoon. I maintained a healthy diet of TMNT Pies (fresh from the sewer to you!). And I lost my eight-year-old mind when my parents took me to the 1990 feature film. I was all in on the ‘green machine’. But for all the love I had for my turtles, on my rabbit-eared television set and on the silver screen, as a sloppy pie and a frozen dessert, there was no iteration where my love for TMNT was greater expressed than for its video games. Local pizzerias were hip to ‘Turtlemania‘, and any pizza shop worth its sauce had a dedicated area for coin-up arcade games with TMNT front and center. I would spend countless hours and countless quarters absolutely glued to the arcade screen. It wasn’t long before TMNT: The Arcade Game and Turtles in Time – two of the most iconic arcade beat ‘em ups of all time – were ported to home consoles. These games – along with The Manhattan Project (my absolute favorite TMNT brawler) – not only defined my childhood, but are very much the reason why I love video games so much. These games mean something to me. And thankfully, they meant something to Dotemu and Tributes Games as well.
Shredder’s Revenge begins with a stunning animated opening sequence that feels like you are about to settle in for an episode of the classic cartoon series. The story kicks off with the four heroes, joined by their rat sensei Splinter and best gal pal April O’Neil, tuning in to an episode of Vernon’s Views, a segment on Channel 6 News hosted by none other than the cowardly cameraman himself, Vernon Fenwick. Vernon opens a mysterious box containing the head of Krang’s android body. It isn’t long before Bebop shows up and hijacks the broadcast, sending the turtles on a mission to stop what appears to be Shredder’s latest plot. It’s an appropriate start to an adventure that takes our heroes all over New York City, from the Channel 6 Newsroom and the Museum of Natural History, to Coney Island and eventually Dimension X. And you are going to have a ‘shell’ of time every step of the way.
The first thing you’ll notice with Shredder’s Revenge is its presentation. The overworld is very Super Mario World-esque, featuring a great big map that unlocks stages and side-areas as you progress. Its design is an obvious nod to the Turtles‘ first outing on the original NES which, as derided as it is, still holds a very special place in my heart. Shredder’s Revenge features the most vibrant, colorful, and detailed pixel art in a game ever. Each stage or ‘episode’ as the game refers to them, is gorgeously rendered and jam-packed with references and easter eggs to all things Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Without spoiling too much, one of my favorites is rescuing the Punk Frogs, a group of mutant frogs that were allies of the Turtles. The soundtrack is equally as mesmerizing, with composer Lee Topes supplying some of the most bangin’ tunes this franchise has ever experienced. The songs are infectious and stay in your head long after you finish playing. It almost makes you want to stop playing and watch some of the old cartoon episodes or play some of the old games. And you might be tempted to do so, if it weren’t for the fact that Shredder’s Revenge is just as much fun to play as it is to look at and listen to.
As a side-scrolling beat ‘em up, TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge is a masterstroke for the genre. Old-school gameplay has been taken to new heights with dynamic, super-fresh mechanics. Our heroes are no longer limited to attacking and jump-kicking their way through a never ending assault of Foot Soldiers, Tricereton Warriors, and Rock Troops. Taking a cue from Dotemu’s critically-acclaimed Streets of Rage 4, the turtles’ techniques have been modernized and expanded upon. For example, there is now a dedicated Dodge/Evasion Button, allowing your characters to backflip out of harm’s way. If you follow-up an Attack, your character will quickly strike, allowing you to stun your enemies and unleash with a deadly flurry of blows. Pressing the Attack + Jump Button at the same time (which is such a throwback to the old TMNT games) triggers a ‘rising-kick’ maneuver which is great for dealing with the game’s numerous airborne adversaries. Special Attacks also have a dedicated button and can be used once you fill up a meter which resides above your Health Bar. These massive attacks are great for crowd control and hacking off chunks of a boss’ health. Your Special Attack Meter can be filled by either defeating enemies or my personal favorite way, using the Taunt. There is a bit of a risk/reward factor that comes with taunting your enemies. While it does refill your Special Attack Meter, it does leave you quite vulnerable to attack for a couple of seconds. However, given that each character has their own unique taunt, like Donatello who pops a squat and takes out an OG Gameboy or April who sticks out a microphone and asks “any comments?”, it is well worth the risk to see these charming moments unfold. Even the Jump Button got an upgrade! Sure you execute a tried and true ‘jump kick’, but now you can also perform a double-jump, followed-up by a spinning, aerial attack. Not to mention of course that you can level up your character, unlocking additional health and special attacks. All of these elements combined make for a ridiculously engaging brawler that is non-stop fun. You will giggle with glee as you pummel enemies from all sides and master the moves unique to each hero. Every playable character brings their own unique personality and style to the action which makes the combat even more satisfying. It also makes for some very fun boss encounters.
As a young gamer hooked on the TMNT games, my eyes always lit up whenever I reached the end of a level and encountered a boss. It was the one thing I always looked forward to the most: “who am I going to fight and what sort of attacks will they have?” That same feeling is back on full display as each of the game’s bosses bring with them that sense of wonder and awe. Dotemu and Tributes Games have assembled some of the best villains that the Turtles have ever gone up against, along with a few surprises that I was not at all prepared for.
TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge isn’t a terribly long experience unfortunately, with the Main Story taking just under four hours to complete. There is however TONS of stuff to do in this game aside from the main campaign. Within each level you can stumble across ‘Collectibles‘, which range from finding Irma’s Diary, and Vernon’s Lost VHS Tapes. There are also ‘Challenges’ unique to each episode for you and your friends to really test your Turtle Power. These can be relatively simple like ‘Defeat (4) Enemies Using Environmental Objects‘ or intensely challenging, like ‘Complete the Episode Without Taking Any Damage’. There is also an ‘Arcade Mode’ which sticks to the arcade rules of yesteryear, meaning limited lives/continues and no saves, so when it’s over – it’s over.
TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge is as much a dream come true for the fans, as it is for its developers. Tributes Games has been building up to this moment for the last ten years. Their previous titles have acted like love-letters to some of gaming’s most iconic franchises and now they’ve finally been given a chance to honor a beloved IP and bring it back to the players in a way that feels right. Shredder’s Revenge perfectly captures the series’ retro gaming magic and should be a wake-up call for all dormant IP holders out there; this is what you are missing out on.
