Streets of Rage 3

Eurogamer.net (UK) (9 out of 10) (90%)

Streets of Rage is a varied and inventive take on a genre that suffers far too many uninspired knock-offs. Well worth the effort for casual fans, downright essential for fighting fans.

IGN (8 out of 10) (80%)

If you've got 800 Wii Points set aside for just one of the Streets of Rage titles, spend them on Streets of Rage 2. But if you've already experienced that game and want more of the same, invest eight more dollars in this third series installment without hesitation. It's hard to talk about it as a standalone game when it's right there in the shadow of one of the Genesis system's best titles, but Streets of Rage 3 is an impressive experience all on its own. Even if it has a bit of a wacked-out plot.

Nintendo Life ( ) (80%)

My advice is simple - if you're a fan of the series then Streets of Rage 3 should be near the top of your retro shopping list (assuming you're sad enough to have one). If you've never played any of the Streets of Rage series before, Streets of Rage 2 is probably a better entry point, but be sure to sample this third outing at some point.

1UP N/A

Streets of Rage is widely regarded as the worst game in the series. And that's true. It lacks the inspiration -- well, if you can call "totally ripping off Final Fight" inspiration -- of its immediate predecessor, and the characters are kinda meh, too. But even so, it's still a solid beat-em-up that still manages to be a lot better than the competition. And its Yuzo Koshiro-composed soundtrack is still more awesome than you. If you only download one beat-em-up for VC, it should be Streets of Rage 2. But if you download two, this makes a nice runner-up.