River City Girls

The basic fun of fighting is counterbalanced by some punishing design that makes it hard to get fully invested in the action

Impressive effort with a few noticeable problems holding it back. Won't astound everyone, but is worth your time and cash.

With a bright, pixel art infused splash, River City Girls throws you headlong into an old-school brawler that at times evokes the best of the genre.

Not since Scott Pilgrim vs The World was released nine years ago have we played such an entertaining, satisfying beat 'em up. Whether you're playing alone or teaming up with a friend in co-op mode, River City Girls is a visually superb, aurally fantastic, out-and-out love letter to the genre. Fans of River City Ransom and other Kunio-kun games will adore how it respects the past but makes it relevant today, while those new to the series will simply find a hugely enjoyable and infectiously cheerful scrapper.

River City Girls is an absolutely fantastic beat 'em up with a simple, funny plot, great dialogue, awesome music, solid production values, and a mystery box-style shopping system. Unfortunately, the controls are so incredibly clunky that they knock the game down a whole notch in my rating—at least when playing on a keyboard. Plus, for a price of just under thirty euros, a three-hour playtime is really not enough. In co-op, however, it’s a fun beat ’em up—as long as you’re not crammed next to each other and fighting over the right buttons.

While it was a slow start I enjoyed my time in River City with Misako and Kyoko. The hand drawn art is incredible and the song list adds to the pacing and overall vibe. The move list eventually gets into enough depth to feel like a new addition to the genre. I’m eager for River City Girls 2. We’ll see how Wayforward changes up an already strong entry on the next go-round.

With the problematic screen transition issue fixed and some other tweaks implemented since launch, River City Girls is in better shape than ever no matter what format you play it on. But factor in a sprinkling of PS5-centric improvements, and you have what is undoubtedly the best version of the game yet. If you’re a fan of side-scrolling beat ’em ups, consider this a must-have.

I'd classify River City Girls as a fun, anime-inspired romp that's worth the time if you're looking for a balance between the visceral satisfaction you get from pummeling enemies on-screen and some of the off-center humor one can find in pieces like "Scott Pilgrim vs The World." It has that kind of vibe, and it's a great change of pace from the more heavy-handed stuff out there.

Smash through hordes of enemies in a stylish beat'em up, where getting in the way of two cheeky teenagers is really not a good idea.

River City Girls is like a sweet treat of the beat 'em up standard and does not overstay its welcome.