As a child made in the 80s, I really don’t have to tell you how important Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were. After all, if you’re anywhere near my age, those lean green fighting machines were probably just as important to you. But of all the comics, action figures, VHS tapes, and anything else with the logo I gobbled up, I think none were as special as the videogames. Outside of beating up my siblings and cousins with yardsticks while wearing a sock for a headband, videogames were the only place I could be my favorite Turtle and act out in the correct environment. It was a special aspect I feel most kids connected with. The same aspect that makes Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge one a shell of a time! (Okay, I’ll try to keep the puns to a minimum.)
Among the aforementioned products bearing the TMNT name, the arcade game was the holy grail. Sure, we had the NES game but what more can be said about the game’s questionable design and unforgiving difficulty? We also had an ambitious NES port of the arcade and a sequel, but they just couldn’t live up to the magic of that original cabinet. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles arcade transcended a simple game, it was a special occasion. An event! Sadly, that magic was always lost in translation with console games.
With shows, movies, and countless videogames, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IP has never really gone away. So what makes Shredder’s Revenge so special? Let’s take a closer look.
Upon pressing start and selecting a game, Shredder’s Revenge sets up the tried-and-true pitch: Shredder kickstarts a make-shift plan for world domination (I guess?) and it’s up to the awesome foursome to stop him. Okay, so no one has ever argued this IP or its videogame adaptions were ever really deep but that’s kind of the appeal of heroes of that bygone era. The Turtle boys must traverse through the streets of NYC, rooftops, a zoo, the mall, and all sorts of locales to reach the final showdown. Along the way, they’ll bop through thousands of Foot Soldiers, the who’s-who of the Technodrome rogues gallery, and even a few surprises. In terms of story, Shredder’s Revenge isn’t so much a follow-up or reinvention of the pizza.. er, wheel, but more of a greatest hits package.
The same can be said about the gameplay. Well, in Arcade mode anyway, but more on that later. Simply put: you walk from the left to the right, slaughtering anything that moves, and taking down a boss at the end of the level. You have an attack, jump, jumping attack, and a few evasive moves. There’s also a special attack (mapped to a separate button, thankfully) but it takes a little bit of your power to pull off. There are hilarious taunts you can do to increase your special attack meter as well as high-fives to help your teammates. Your character is very intuitive and controls exactly like how you remember the OG arcade. Obliterating legions of faceless Foot Soldiers has never felt so good!
Beyond its candy-coated surface, Shredder’s Revenge has quite a bit more depth than your run-of-the-mill nostalgic beat ’em up.
For the first time in a classic arcade-style TMNT game, each character has his or her (yes April O’ Neil is a playable character this time) own skill set. For example, Donatello has the best reach but is by far the slowest. Michaelangelo has the speed but lacks the power. Etc. When playing in Story Mode, you can upgrade your stats and learn special moves along the way by going on various scavenger hunts within each level. Or by simply beating up enemies. While not as complex as rogue fighters such as Hades, it’s nice to have an extra incentive to play through the game’s 16 levels.
Speaking of replayability, it’s the buddy system that will keep you coming back for more. Shredder’s Revenge supports up to 6 players be it online or locally. And let me tell you, having Leo, Don, Raph, Mike, Splinter, and April on the screen slaying the Foot at the same time is complete utter chaos! There’s so much going on at any given moment, you’ll be laughing hysterically, if just for the sheer absurdity of it all!
While the comfort of familiar gameplay and tight controls are nice, Shredder’s Revenge defines itself by its extraordinary presentation.
Despite borrowing heavily from the original 1987 animated series and featuring the original voice actors for the Turtles, Shredder’s Revenge isn’t exactly classic TMNT. The sprites are colorful and wonderfully detailed but have a subtle modern anime-style edge to them. The vibrant and bouncy art direction goes a long way to make the world pop from your screen. The backgrounds have the slightly washed-out and exaggerated pseudo-comic style of the original cartoon. If the game wasn’t so fun to play, you could have just as much of a good time watching it.
Adding an extra layer of gnarly awesomeness are the tubular tunes of Tee Lopes. Every single note of every level’s theme sends you back to a time when Konami soundtracked our lives. Combining new with old, Tee Lopes brings the same amount of love and care he recently brought to the Sonic The Hedgehog and Streets of Rage franchises. In addition to the modern-retro synths of Tee Lopes, Shredder’s Revenge features instant classic collabs with Anton Corazza, Jonny Atma, and Mega Ran. Not to mention a new song from Wu-Tang’s Ghostface Killah and Raekwon, as well as an explosive rendition of the classic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles theme by Faith No More’s Mike Patton.
Despite going bananas over anything TMNT related, I’m not one for chasing nostalgia. But Tribute Games and Dotemu don’t revel in the past as much as it celebrates it.
Singing along to the theme song during the opening credits didn’t make me want to be a kid again. Throwing Foot Soldiers toward the TV screen didn’t make me sad I have responsibilities. The immense fun wasn’t because I longed for a time when the idea of eating Captain Crunch cereal and watching cartoons on Saturday morning was enough to get me through the week. No, the fun I had with Shredder’s Revenge was more like seeing an old friend after many years of being apart. They’ve changed a little, I’ve changed a little. But after a few minutes, it was like no time had passed. We were bashing Bebop and Rocksteady’s heads in just like old times!
Tribute Games and Dotemu have created something more than a retro throwback capitalizing on 90s nostalgia. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge is the result of respect and adoration of a franchise. A proper continuation of a cherished IP as well as a beloved friendship that started in the 1980s. While it might be hard to say if this is the best Turtle game, it is by far the most satisfying. And for the very first time since the arcade days, a Ninja Turtles game feels like a special occasion again. Unfortunately, we may no longer be sinking quarters or turning in coupons for personal pan pizzas these days. But when the evil Shredder attacks, there’s still absolutely no incentive for cutting him slack. Cowabunga indeed.