Difference between revisions of "River City Ransom"

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[[Image:River City Ransom - Box.jpg|thumb|256x256px|North American NES box.]]
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[[Image:River City Ransom - NES - USA.jpg|thumb|256x256px|North American NES box.]]
  
'''''River City Ransom''''' is like a mix between a beat-em-up and an RPG enough that I feel it can safely be called a [[:Category:Metroidvania|Metroidvania]] game. It was originally released on the [[NES]] by [[Technos]] in 1989, but has since been ported to various other platforms.
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'''''River City Ransom''''', known in Japan as '''''ダウンタウン熱血物語 Dauntaun Nekketsu Monogatari "Downtown Hot-Blooded Story"''''', and in Europe as '''''Street Gangs''''', is like a mix between a beat-em-up and an RPG enough that I feel it can safely be called a [[Metroidvania]] game, even though it's not technically a platformer. It was developed and published by [[Technos]] for the [[NES]] in 1989, but has since been ported to various other platforms.
  
 
In the game's story, you play a student at Cross Town High, but gang members from River City High have kidnapped your girlfriend. In order to get her back, you must fight your way through the turf of various other gangs, beat up their leaders, and finally infiltrate River City High. In order to become powerful enough beat the rival gangs, you must beat up weaker gangs, steal their money, and buy food and training to increase your stats.
 
In the game's story, you play a student at Cross Town High, but gang members from River City High have kidnapped your girlfriend. In order to get her back, you must fight your way through the turf of various other gangs, beat up their leaders, and finally infiltrate River City High. In order to become powerful enough beat the rival gangs, you must beat up weaker gangs, steal their money, and buy food and training to increase your stats.
  
My mother bought us River City Ransom along with [[Dragon Warrior]] from a garage sale somewhere in the early 1990s. I really enjoyed both games.
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My mother bought us River City Ransom along with [[Dragon Warrior]] from a garage sale somewhere in the early 1990s. I enjoyed both games, but I like RCR more.
  
 
==Status==
 
==Status==
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==Review==
 
==Review==
 
* '''Overall:''' 6/10
 
* '''Overall:''' 6/10
* '''Best Version:''' NES?
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* '''Best Version:''' Not sure, I haven't played the newer versions.
  
 
===Good===
 
===Good===
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* Two-player simultaneous play really adds to the enjoyment of the game, and I like that you can "accidentally" beat up your friends.
 
* Two-player simultaneous play really adds to the enjoyment of the game, and I like that you can "accidentally" beat up your friends.
 
* The animation in shops is hilarious, and there are tons of items to buy.
 
* The animation in shops is hilarious, and there are tons of items to buy.
* The things gang members say are hilarious.
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* The things gang members say are hilarious. BARF!
 
* The shop under the bridge is a nice hidden bonus.
 
* The shop under the bridge is a nice hidden bonus.
 
* I like that you can turn off and on special moves after you learn them so you can go back to doing older-style moves if you want.
 
* I like that you can turn off and on special moves after you learn them so you can go back to doing older-style moves if you want.
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* The Javelin Man and Fatal Footsteps moves are not very useful.
 
* The Javelin Man and Fatal Footsteps moves are not very useful.
 
* There are only two female characters in the game, and they're not even animated. Slick's girlfriend warns you to train hard, your own girlfriend whom you rescue is a stereotype only interested in shopping.
 
* There are only two female characters in the game, and they're not even animated. Slick's girlfriend warns you to train hard, your own girlfriend whom you rescue is a stereotype only interested in shopping.
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* The password is insanely long!
  
 
===Ugly===
 
===Ugly===
 
* The game is very monotonous. You have to do a '''lot''' of grinding to afford all the power-ups you'll need to become strong enough to defeat the later bosses. A larger map could have helped a little.
 
* The game is very monotonous. You have to do a '''lot''' of grinding to afford all the power-ups you'll need to become strong enough to defeat the later bosses. A larger map could have helped a little.
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==Documentation==
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<gallery>
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River City Ransom - NES - Manual.pdf|Game manual.
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River City Ransom - NES - Nintendo Power, Page 42.jpg|[[Nintendo Power]], 1.
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River City Ransom - NES - Nintendo Power, Page 43.jpg|Nintendo Power, 2.
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River City Ransom - NES - Nintendo Power, Page 44.jpg|Nintendo Power, 3.
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River City Ransom - NES - Nintendo Power, Page 45.jpg|Nintendo Power, 4.
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River City Ransom - NES - Nintendo Power, Page 46.jpg|Nintendo Power, 5.
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River City Ransom - NES - Nintendo Power, Page 47.jpg|Nintendo Power, 6.
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River City Ransom - NES - Game Map.jpg|Published game map.
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</gallery>
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==Box Art==
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<gallery>
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River City Ransom - NES - Japan.jpg|The original Japanese box art uses a nice cartoon style fitting to the game. This same art was used on the Sharp X68000 and TurboGrafx-CD covers.
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River City Ransom - NES - USA.jpg|The North American box art is well-painted and has a great logo, but the characters are a bit old to be high school students!
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River City Ransom - NES - EU.jpg|Terrible cheesy cartoon.
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River City Ransom EX - GBA - Japan.jpg|A nice homage to the original Japanese box art.
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River City Ransom EX - GBA - USA.jpg|Another terrible cheesy cartoon.
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</gallery>
  
 
==Gallery==
 
==Gallery==
 
<gallery>
 
<gallery>
River City Ransom - NES - Manual.pdf|Game manual.
 
River City Ransom - Nintendo Power.jpg|A Nintendo Power excerpt.
 
 
River City Ransom - Map.png|Map.
 
River City Ransom - Map.png|Map.
 
River City Ransom - Fan Art.png|Fan Art.
 
River City Ransom - Fan Art.png|Fan Art.
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==Links==
 
==Links==
 
* [http://www.mobygames.com/game/river-city-ransom mobygames.com/game/river-city-ransom] - MobyGames.
 
* [http://www.mobygames.com/game/river-city-ransom mobygames.com/game/river-city-ransom] - MobyGames.
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* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_City_Ransom en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_City_Ransom] - Wikipedia.
 
* [https://www.gamefaqs.com/nes/563453-river-city-ransom gamefaqs.com/nes/563453-river-city-ransom] - GameFAQs.
 
* [https://www.gamefaqs.com/nes/563453-river-city-ransom gamefaqs.com/nes/563453-river-city-ransom] - GameFAQs.
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_City_Ransom en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_City_Ransom] - Wikipedia.
 
* [http://www.gamesdatabase.org/Media/SYSTEM/Nintendo_NES/manual/Formated/River_City_Ransom_-_1990_-_Technos.pdf gamesdatabase.org/Media/SYSTEM/Nintendo_NES/manual/Formated/River_City_Ransom_-_1990_-_Technos.pdf] - Manual.
 
 
* [http://www.thealmightyguru.com/Games/Hacking/Wiki/index.php/River_City_Ransom thealmightyguru.com/Games/Hacking/Wiki/index.php/River_City_Ransom] - NES Hacker Database.
 
* [http://www.thealmightyguru.com/Games/Hacking/Wiki/index.php/River_City_Ransom thealmightyguru.com/Games/Hacking/Wiki/index.php/River_City_Ransom] - NES Hacker Database.
  
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[[Category: Games]]
 
[[Category: Games]]
 
[[Category: Video Games]]
 
[[Category: Video Games]]
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[[Category: Game Boy Advance Games]]
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[[Category: NES Games]]
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[[Category: Sharp X68000 Games]]
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[[Category: TurboGrafx CD Games]]
 
[[Category: Action]]
 
[[Category: Action]]
[[Category: Fighting Games]]
 
 
[[Category: Beat-Em-Up]]
 
[[Category: Beat-Em-Up]]
 
[[Category: Metroidvania]]
 
[[Category: Metroidvania]]
 
[[Category: Games I've Beaten]]
 
[[Category: Games I've Beaten]]
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[[Category: Multi-Player]]
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[[Category: Multi-Player Co-op]]

Revision as of 15:58, 8 February 2018

North American NES box.

River City Ransom, known in Japan as ダウンタウン熱血物語 Dauntaun Nekketsu Monogatari "Downtown Hot-Blooded Story", and in Europe as Street Gangs, is like a mix between a beat-em-up and an RPG enough that I feel it can safely be called a Metroidvania game, even though it's not technically a platformer. It was developed and published by Technos for the NES in 1989, but has since been ported to various other platforms.

In the game's story, you play a student at Cross Town High, but gang members from River City High have kidnapped your girlfriend. In order to get her back, you must fight your way through the turf of various other gangs, beat up their leaders, and finally infiltrate River City High. In order to become powerful enough beat the rival gangs, you must beat up weaker gangs, steal their money, and buy food and training to increase your stats.

My mother bought us River City Ransom along with Dragon Warrior from a garage sale somewhere in the early 1990s. I enjoyed both games, but I like RCR more.

Status

I've beaten River City Ransom on the NES, maxed out a character, and hand-wrote out the results of every item in the game.

Review

  • Overall: 6/10
  • Best Version: Not sure, I haven't played the newer versions.

Good

  • The game has nice colorful cartoon graphics and good music.
  • Player controls are responsive and fluid.
  • The various moves you can learn really make the game more interesting as you go.
  • There are a lot of interesting weapons to use, and you can use them in various ways. In addition to being able to swing and throw each weapon, you can also kick crates and trash cans, roll tires, and even use fallen foes as weapons. These are really cool additions!
  • Two-player simultaneous play really adds to the enjoyment of the game, and I like that you can "accidentally" beat up your friends.
  • The animation in shops is hilarious, and there are tons of items to buy.
  • The things gang members say are hilarious. BARF!
  • The shop under the bridge is a nice hidden bonus.
  • I like that you can turn off and on special moves after you learn them so you can go back to doing older-style moves if you want.

Bad

  • It's pretty much impossible to guess what type of stat bonuses you'll get from items, and the manual doesn't list them, so you're forced to buy every single one to find out.
  • There seems to be a bug with the Frat Boys. They are much more powerful than their place and money reward suggests. They should be placed around the Homeboys and the Mob rather than down by the Generic Dudes.
  • The Javelin Man and Fatal Footsteps moves are not very useful.
  • There are only two female characters in the game, and they're not even animated. Slick's girlfriend warns you to train hard, your own girlfriend whom you rescue is a stereotype only interested in shopping.
  • The password is insanely long!

Ugly

  • The game is very monotonous. You have to do a lot of grinding to afford all the power-ups you'll need to become strong enough to defeat the later bosses. A larger map could have helped a little.

Documentation

Box Art

Gallery

Links