Final Fight: Streetwise

"Better than Beatdown"

Regardless of what the professional reviews say this is actually a good game. It is a far cry from the reviews and scores it received. I am starting to wonder about the reliability of professional game reviews, at least when it comes to beat em ups.

I enjoyed it from start to finish; in fact I could not put it down. Although it fails to fully rekindle to true spirit of Final Fight it does hold its own with a decent story line, nice cameo appearances and most important a good fight system.

Graphics 7/10
I thought the graphics were pretty decent. No slowdown and everything moved fluidly. The urban environment looked as well as the level design. The burning house level was cool. As well as the Burning Hood level, very Resident Evil-esque. Presentation wise think of this game as a step above the warriors.

Sound 10/10
They did a great job with the sound design in this game. Punches kicks, explosions and voice acting were all top notch. The music was excellent, it fit the atmosphere of the game perfectly and it always pumped you up as you played the game. Not to mention you can select which track you want to hear and which ones you don't (like True Crime). Hip Hop beats from RZA, MF Doom, mixed with some heavy guitar music from Soulfly and Slipknot provide great background music in this game. Also the tracks from the lesser known artists are good as well. I have found myself researching their music outside the game.

Gameplay 8/10
Honestly this game exceeded my expectations. From the trailers I saw I really thought this game was going to blow hard. I almost didn't even bother to play it. I am glad I did, because contrary to professional reviews this game was very enjoyable.

The fight system although isn't perfect, works well for the game. There are a decent number of moves that you can mix a match to defeat different enemies. Even individual weapons have either own special combo. Thought the entire game the over list remain fresh and distinct. What I didn't like what the instinct system. I didn't make much sense and it seemed somewhat out of place (although very useful at times) I also didn't like the counter system to much. It is difficult to block as is in this game. Trying to time a block perfectly from multiple enemy attacks is very hard. Trying to do the instinct counters is nearly impossible. This part of the game could have used more work.

The side missions are ok. Some are fun, some are annoying. Some of them you have to do, but most of them you don't, its all up to you.

The final bosses are tough, frustrating and annoying so be prepared, level up fully if you can.

Replay value 7/10
The story mode last for around 5 hours although it is very fun. I could definitely see myself going back to play a second time through just to beat on people and jam to the tunes. I was disappointed with the 2 player Arcade Mode. They toned it way down and made it cheesy (like Rockstar did with armies of the night) I wish you could use the same moves and listen to the same music you can in story mode. In that aspect Capcom really dropped the bomb. Heck for the arcade mode all they had to do is make Story Mode 2 player without the running around doing side mission stuff.

Overall 8/10
All the extra effort they put into “modernizing” these beat em ups ends up in vain. I wish they could stick to the old formula where you and a friend got experience some good fighting action with plenty of combos to mix and match. Still FFSW is a good game that far exceeded my expectations.

With the release of FSW, Spikeout Urban Reign, Beatdown and The Warriors we can only hope that an awesome 3D beat em up is just waiting around the corner. Hold on guys, perhaps we're almost there. Streets of Rage anyone?

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 03/31/06, Updated 05/05/06