The Best Beat’em ups I’ve played so far

The beat’em up genre is one of my favorites. These are my go-to games to relax and unwind from some of the more complex video games. You don’t need to follow a story, worry about getting lost, or anything else. Just go straight and punch bad guys in the face.

There is more to these games. While walking up to the enemies and punching or kicking them is a common approach, it might not be the best strategy. You need to watch the enemy’s pattern, especially when in a boss fight.

Many of these games are ports of arcade games. I’ve mentioned this before, but I didn’t live near an arcade growing up, so I experienced these games on the home console. There are a few original beat’em ups, but for the most part, they are arcade games.

I could’ve made this list much longer. I don’t think anyone wants to read a list with 50 or 100 games, so I limited it to 15. Let’s go over the list of my favorite beat’em ups, and as always, feel free to add your favorites in the comments.

Selection criteria

Let’s talk about what qualifies for this list. I’m not just going to be putting any random game on this list. Here are the criteria I used to compile this list:

• Needs to be a beat’em up or a hybrid of a beat’em up and something else.
• Has to be in my collection.
• I have to have enjoyed the game.

Knights of the Round

Developer: Capcom

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 7.6/10 (EGM)

This is a fantastic game! The SNES port of this arcade game is fantastic and one of the best beat’em ups on the SNES. It uses the source material of King Authur very well, and it creates a spectacular beat’em up with some light RPG elements to it.

Knights of the Round takes place before Arthur became the King of England. Arthur, Lancelot, and Percival go on an adventure to defeat an evil wizard or some such nonsense. The story doesn’t matter much; what it does is that this is an exceptional beat’em up where you slowly power up as you advance through the game.

Capcom did an amazing job with this game. It is a faithful port of the arcade game and one of my favorite beat’em ups on the SNES. If you want to play this game today, I would get the Capcom Beat’em Up Bundle. It has several awesome beat’em ups and online multiplayer.

The Pirates of Dark Water

Developer: Sunsoft

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 6.6/10 (Mobygames)

This might be an odd selection, and I sometimes feel like I’m the only person who likes this game. I’m sure other people like it, but I haven’t met them yet. I was a fan of the cartoon, which may have influenced my opinion of this one.

Nostalgia or not, I have had a lot of fun with this game. The graphics and gameplay are great, even if the enemy AI is sometimes comically bad. This is a very good beat’em up that offers a wonderful alternative to the other games on this list.

The Pirates of Dark Water is a wonderful game that reminds me of the cartoon. It is one of the better licensed games for the SNES. If you haven’t already, give this game a try.

Streets of Rage

Developer: Sega

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 75/100 (GameRankings)

This is one of my favorite series of Beat’em Ups. The first one is a spectacular game! The music is incredible, the graphics are great, and the gameplay is terrific!

Like many Beat’em Ups from this time, the story is very basic. These games don’t need a complicated story, but there needs to be a reason for why you’re punching seemingly random people and why they want to punch you. Streets of Rage is a short game, but it isn’t dull.

This is one of the games that I always assumed was in the arcades. It uses the Golden Axe engine but was made for the home console. There are many similarities between the two series, but I like this one better. Streets of Rage and Streets of Rage II are some of the best games on the Genesis/Mega Drive.

Streets of Rage II

Developer: Sega

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 26/40 (Famitsu)

This is my favorite of the original trilogy. I’ve gone back and forth on this game and the first, but I think this is the best. Streets of Rage 2 felt a bit easier than the first game.

You fight the same group of bad guys in this game as you did in the first game. It isn’t all that crazy, and it makes more sense than other Beat’em Up games. This game has a few more playable characters than in the previous one. Aside from that, everything feels the same as the first game, but in a good way.

I like this game a lot! Sega got everything right with this game, and it is so much fun to play! This is another game that I have a ton of memories of playing with my friends. My friends and I discovered this series in high school, and we played it quite a bit.

Golden Axe

Developer: Sega

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 29/40 (EGM)

This game is a classic! When I first started collecting video games, I stumbled across this series and really enjoyed it. My friends and I played it a lot in high school. Golden Axe is one of the first games I bought when collecting games for the Sega Genesis.

In this game, you play as one of three characters. There is magic in the game that acts as your special attacks. These can be upgraded by gathering items. This is a good port of an enjoyable arcade game. It was a ton of fun to play with my friends.

My memories of this game are tied to the discovery of the Genesis library. There were so many games I didn’t know about because I was reliant on my friends to learn about new games. While most of them had a Sega Genesis, they tended to rent the same games, and many of those games were sports games.

Golden Axe II

Developer: Sega

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 66/100 (GameRankings)

I like this one a little more than the first game. It kept everything from the first game and made it better for the home console. Golden Axe II is one of the many games I learned about in high school. With no arcade near me, I had to find a copy on the Genesis.

Like the previous game, you have three selectable characters and a magic point system for the special attacks. This is a familiar formula, and Sega has made a bunch of games using it. The only bad thing I can say is that they didn’t try anything new.

This was one of the many games that my friends and I played in high school. For some reason, we all bought the Sega Genesis, and while I knew of some of the games, we all discovered the library together. It was a ton of fun, something that I imagine other groups of friends had done at some point.

The King of Dragons

Developer: Capcom

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 9.5/10 (My Score)

King of Dragons is my favorite beat’em up on the SNES! It took everything I liked about Knights of the Round and improved on it. There are more playable characters, the gameplay is better, and everything looks better.

This game feels like it was inspired by Dungeons and Dragons or one of the swords and sorcery games of the late 1980s. There are five playable characters, and you gain levels over the course of the game. The story isn’t anything special, but it doesn’t need to be.

This is an amazing beat’em up. I wish I had played it in the 1990s when it would have been one of my favorite games. I first learned about this game from the Capcom beat’em up bundle. Then, when I was looking at the beat’em ups on that system, I went out to find the SNES version.

Double Dragon II

Developer: Technos

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 8/10 (Nintendo Life)

This is the best Double Dragon game on the NES. Its controls take a little time to adjust to, but they are still very good. This is one of the games I remember renting a lot when I was a kid.

This is a standard beat’em up for the time. You don’t have a choice over which character you play, and it doesn’t matter which one you end up with. It is an improvement over the first game and much better than the third game on the NES.

A part of me feels like there has to be a Double Dragon game on this list. I feel the same way about other iconic beat’em ups. This game is my favorite from the Double Dragon series I’ve played so far.

Kung Fu Heroes

Developer: Nihon Games

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 5.1/10 (Nintendo Life. Take this review with a grain of salt)

This is a fun little game. It is a single-screen beat’em up where you fight waves of enemies until you can advance to the next level. It is a simple game, but it is a lot of fun.

Kung Fu Heroes has two playable characters. They control the same, but the developers made their clothes a different color so you can tell which one you’re controlling. It is a fun little game.

This is an early example of a beat’em up. There is a story, but it isn’t all that important. The controls and graphics are okay, and yes, the name was changed when it was ported to the NES.

TMNT IV: Turtles in Time

Developer: Konami

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 83/100 (GameRankings)

Konami made the best beat’em ups in the arcades at this time, and their home console ports were awesome. They were a little better than Capcom, Data East, and Technos in terms of consistent quality. Modern reviews of them have some complaints, but in the 1990s, I don’t remember anyone complaining about them.

Like most TMNT video games, you have to defeat The Shredder because he is doing something evil. Hyperstone Heist is very similar because that game was based on Turtles in Time. The graphics and controls are spectacular, and this is a wonderful game to play.

TMNT IV: Turtles in Time is one of the many games I discovered when I started collecting games. I didn’t know about the arcade game and was pleasantly surprised this wasn’t the TMNT fighting game. It is my favorite of the games on this list and one of my favorite beat’em ups.

Fighting Force

Developer: Core Design

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 55/100 (GameRankings)

This game is on the PS1 and the N64. I played the N64 version when I reviewed the game, and I think it is very good! It isn’t as good as Dynamite Cop, but it is a fun game despite some issues I had with it.

Fighting Force feels like a paint-by-numbers beat’em up. It has a familiar story of a big bad guy trying to destroy the world, and for some reason, there are only three people who can stop him. The gameplay is good, and the graphics are hit-and-miss, but I like the game a lot.

Of all the games on this list, Fighting Force is the one that could be easily replaced. I like it despite the flaws. It is a solid game with nothing that makes it stand out from other beat’em ups. When I update this list, I expect this and Kung Fu Heroes to be replaced.

TMNT: Hyperstone Heist

Developer: Konami

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 31/40 (EGM)

This is arguably the best Beat’em Up on the Sega Genesis. It is a game that I didn’t know about until I started looking for games on the internet. It wasn’t until the 2010s that I started collecting video games again, and I could play this game. It is a spectacular game!

You’re trying to stop Shredder like the other TMNT video games, cartoons, and movies. I don’t think this game takes anything from the comics. The graphics and gameplay are fantastic! It is a wonderful game to play. This game is based on the Turtles in Time arcade game, but it has been edited into something new, which helps it stand out from the SNES port of the arcade game.

I loved HyperStone Heist! It was a game that I’ve tried before, but didn’t get into it all that much. When I played it recently, I think it is one of, if not the best, Beat’em Up on the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive. I like this game a little more than the SNES port of Turtles in Time.

The Punisher

Developer: Capcom

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 73/100 (GameRankings)

This is one of the superhero beat’em ups I didn’t know about. I did see the X-Men and Spiderman arcade games, but I never saw this one. It is a great beat’em up, but it is very weird.

You play as either The Punisher or Nick Fury, and you’re trying to defeat the Kingpin. He did something bad, and it is up to you to try to stop him. You don’t need much more than that. The controls and the graphics on the Sega Genesis are awesome.

This is a wonderful port of the arcade game. I wish I had been able to play it in the arcades, but thankfully, I have it on one of my Arcade1up cabinets. It is such a fun game to play, and the Genesis version is a good alternative to the arcade game.

Captain America and the Avengers (Genesis Version)

Developer: Data East

Genre: Multi Genre

Review Score: N/A

This is another beat’em up I missed when it was in the arcades. The Genesis seems to have gotten several great ports of these arcade games. If you want to play this game, I would try to get this version or the arcade game.

In this game, you play as one of four Avengers, and you try to defeat the Red Skull. There are a bunch of lesser-known villains in the game, or at least villains that people who don’t read comic books wouldn’t recognize. Like other beat’em ups, you fight through several stages that alternate between beat’em up and shoot’em up stages. Eventually, you fight the Red Skull and beat the game.

The Genesis version of the game is very good! It looks great and has wonderful gameplay alternating between beat’em up and shoot’em up stages. This version of the game is much better than the SNES version.

Dynamite Cop

Developer: Sega

Genre: Beat’em up

Review Score: 58/100 (GameRankings)

I have a lot of memories of this game. It is one of the best 3D beat’em ups I’ve played, and it blends humor with great gameplay. When I revisited it, I was pleasantly surprised by how much fun it is.

This is a sequel to Die Hard: The Arcade Game. It uses quick-time events as transitions between each fight. Dynamite Cop has many similarities to other arcade beat’em ups. You have three playable characters, stages lock until you defeat all enemies, and you have to fight bosses at the end of each stage.

This game made me want to look at older video game reviews. Some of the reviews for this game were hilariously bad. They make some good points, such as the game’s length, but for the most part, they were way off base.

Conclusion

This is by no means a best of list, and I know that I haven’t played all of the beat’em ups out there. The beat’em up genre has been around for a long time, and games are still being made in the 2D and 3D styles. There are also the Dynasty Warriors games that have seemingly spawned a separate genre.

As I play more of these games, I’ll make a few lists on the modern systems and my favorite from the modern beat’em ups. There are so many of them out there, and I’m looking forward to playing them. For now, this is a list of my favorite games I’ve played so far, and I’ll write some updates as I keep playing.

Overall, I think I like the beat’em ups on the Sega Genesis more than any other system. The SNES has some of the best, like The King of Dragons and Knights of the Round, but there were more games I enjoyed in the Genesis. While I was struggling to get to 11 on the SNES, I had no problem finding games I loved on the Genesis. I do wish Sega had gotten some of the Capcom beat’em ups.

If you liked this list, please check out my lists of the best SNES and Genesis beat’em ups.