Beat 'em up

While some game series are lost to the annals of the industry’s history, others meet a fate that’s a bit worse in some ways. I’m talking about franchises like Star Fox or Double Dragon that just keep going but almost solely focus on recapturing their former glory. Yes, Double Dragon continued after its heyday in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but it’s also a series that feels stuck in the designs and iconography of that era. Games like Double Dragon Advance, Double Dragon Neon, and Double Dragon IV called back to…

This weekend, PAX East returned to Boston with a lively show full of panels and game demos. It was a return to form for the gaming expo after suffering a few difficult years during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Digital Trends was on the scene once again this year, sampling a wide range of indie games during the multi-day event. There was a lot to get excited about this year, from stylish roguelikes to a riff on Vampire Survivors featuring capybaras. After many hours of behind-closed-door previews and…

For reasons unbeknownst to me, we’re currently living in a second golden age for 2D beat ’em up games. That trend began in 2020 when Dotemu released the fantastic Streets of Rage 4 and has only continued with hits like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge. Players currently seem to be resonating with those modern-retro releases, but nostalgic genre revivals can be a double-edged sword. Even the genre’s greatest hits are filled with frustrating gameplay quirks that tend to carry over into faithful…

Although the Nintendo Switch has some of the best AAA titles, the system has become known as an indie machine to many people. The portability of the Switch and Switch Lite makes them ideal for some of the best indie games, and dozens of small developers seem to love releasing their games on the hybrid console. Better yet, plenty of previously released indie games, such as Hollow Knight, have received increased attention and acclaim after landing on the Switch. It’s become a win-win for developers and Switch owners.…