I have very fond memories of playing the original River City Ransom with my younger brother back in the NES days, and it remains one of my favorite games of all time. This update of the Technos classic is every bit as good as the original, and even makes a few improvements. If, like me, you loved this game back in the day, stop reading this now and just go buy it. You'll still love it as much as I do. On a basic level, everything is unchanged. The side-scrolling brawling, stat-boosting shopping, deformed characters, and bizarre dialogue are all still here. The animations are better, and there are even a few new moves. A few modernizations were also added (like being able to buy emo music from the record store), but nothing ruins the retro vibe. It's also funnier than I remembered: I had forgotten that the theme from Double Dragon plays during the fight with the Twins near the end of the game. Those who didn't grow up with this title may not be quite as charmed with it as old fans, but many of them will still enjoy it. The RPG-infused brawling may seem a little thin today, meaning River City Ransom will probably become a cult classic for the second time.
Concept:
The NES classic makes a long-awaited return on GBA with a few technical upgrades
Graphics:
Much like the Mario Advance titles, EX looks better than the NES original without losing the flavor
Sound:
Pure 8-bit goodness
Playability:
For better or for worse, EX plays exactly the same as the original. A jump button would have been nice
Entertainment:
This new port proves that River City Ransom is still one of the best cult classic games of all time
Replay:
Moderately High
Rated: 8 out of 10
Editor: Jeremy Zoss
Issue: June 2004
2nd Opinion:
River City Ransom has always boasted a healthy cult following for its endearingly stumpy character designs, solid brawler action, and strange English-as-a-second-language plot and dialogue (dying enemies often exclaim "BARF!" for no apparent reason and there is even a street gang called the Generic Dudes). All nostalgia aside, this is a fun, if fairly repetitive beat ‘em up that will likely seem a bit dated to younger fans.
Rated: 7.5 out of 10
Editor: Matt Helgeson
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