Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge Review

It’s here. It’s finally here. In what feels like the longest window between announcement and release, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge has arrived. Bizarrely, it really hasn’t been that long, with little over a year between that first trailer and its release date confirmation at Summer Games Fest, yet there’s something about these ninja turtles that meant it fast became one of the most anticipated games of 2022.

No sooner did the release date reveal come, and the game was made available. The turtles are back. Irrespective of your affinity with the series, it’s hard not to be intrigued by a game centred around the teenage mutants. Their bright, bold personalities, and their even brighter and bolder character designs, make them the perfect fit for a beat ’em up video game series.

This proves true from the get-go. The story beats are introduced through an early cutscene depicting an enemy faction taking over a news station. They threaten to give the Statue of Liberty a makeover, only to find one of the TMNT crew entering the TV network offices to put a stop to it all. It’s very typical of TMNT, both in presentation and purpose, and offers an excellent point of reference to the narrative being told.

Not many people play a beat ’em up for the story though, and thankfully it isn’t long before you are wielding nunchucks or katana blades and wreaking havoc. There is a 21-point tutorial to get through first, though. I found it a little unfortunate that your first foray into the many movesets and fighting options at your disposal is through a passive, pre-recorded explanation without any option to practice them yourself. With several different combos and a couple of fiddly button presses, practicing in a safe space without an oncoming rush of enemies would have been ideal.

Six characters are available from the beginning: Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, Donatello, April, and Splinter. Each has been given a star rating out of three for their range, speed, and power, and differences between each character are felt as you play. The character variety is excellent, offering many reasons to have repeated runs either as the same character, or as different ones. They bring their own unique style, and it won’t be long before players settle on their inevitable favourite: Donatello…

Level design is equally impressive. After visiting the opening locale, Channel 6 Studios, the game introduces a central hub in which you can progress the main story or pick up a side mission or two. Each level offers something a little different, and I particularly like the way the levels have been designed with multiple layers — some areas have higher platforms and others have large, open spaces as well as smaller, more compact areas to go toe-to-toe in. All these design decisions have been centred around the realities of the location itself, and there’s an authenticity to them that feels free from the constraints of a side-scrolling beat ‘em up and yet perfectly suited to one.

Naturally, the art style plays a pivotal role in the success of the level design, and I am pleased to report that it looks as good as you could hope, if not better. The colours pop, the animations are wild, and the attention to detail in all aspects of the design is outstanding. It really is pixel perfection.

The original voice-acting cast have reprised their roles for Shredder’s Revenge, and this is just one of many examples that exude quality. That, coupled with Wu Tang Clan’s collaboration on one of the songs from the soundtrack, should highlight just how much effort went into the making of this game. I do find some of the tracks repetitive and less inspired, and the voice acting is a little shaky in places, but it complements the action extremely well.

Within each level, there are challenges to complete as well as secrets to be found. This is an excellent inclusion that serves to highlight the replayability once more. However, I did find that some challenges are often repeated and some rather difficult to achieve. For the completionists, it’s a major plus.

The notion of repetitiveness is the only flawed theme in an otherwise stellar performance from the development teams. Typical enemy tropes make elements of the game fairly predictable: enemies move in the same way, attacks are relatively similar, and there’s a growing feeling as the game progresses that we’ve seen it all before. This feeling isn’t exclusive to this game, but more a sign of the genre itself. There’s nothing here to move the genre forward, nor does there need to be, but for a team responsible for the one of the greatest beat ’em ups of all time — Streets of Rage 4 — this now feels like more of the same. Well, more of the same, but less ground-breaking because it’s been seen before.

It goes without saying with games of this nature that multiplayer is where it’s at. Whether in four-player local coop or six-player online multiplayer, there is so much fun to be had. Witnessing six players on screen is a sight to behold, and the absolute best way to experience this modern classic.