When we talk about Ninja Turtles in video games, two names immediately come to mind: Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles released on the NES in 1989 and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time released two years later on Super Nintendo. These two titles signed Konami have remained in the collective unconscious the two best games stamped TMNT, even if we must still mention the excellent TMNT: Tournament Fighters (Mutant Warriors, its original Japanese name) if we like a little the 2D fight. The children of yesteryear who have become adults – and developers – today have not forgotten this golden period when “everything was better before”, and the desire to rediscover the sensations of yesteryear led them to pay homage to these games. their way. It is from this basic premise that DotEmu and the Canadian studio Tribute Games have teamed up to give birth to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge. If the two companies found themselves a bit by chance (both aimed to make a neo-retro Ninja Turtles game), the objective was however the same: to give a sequel – at least spiritual – to Konami's Turtles in Time. Since its announcement, its screenshots and its trailers distilled here and there, we knew that the beat'em all of 1991 was going to be respected to the letter. Visually and artistically to begin with, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge is a real success, with its plump design and pastel colors reminiscent of the 1987 animated series, the goal is clearly to send us back to our childhood. Tribute Games has even opted for the choice of rendering in pixel-art, instead of 2D HD graphics as we have seen in Streets of Rage 4 or the recent Asterix & Obelix: Slap them All by Microids and Mr. Nutz Studio. For forties like us, it's an immediate hit, for the younger generation, probably a little less. But what do you want, not everyone has the science of good taste...
FORBIDDEN AT LEAST 30 YEARS
Anyway, with this Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge, DotEmu and Tribute Games don't care about pleasing the Millennials, the target audience being the children of yesteryear, those who have significant purchasing power today. Everything has been thought out for them, from the graphics to the gameplay, including the countless references found in the game, such as this famous map which takes up that of the TMNT game on the NES from 1989, without forgetting the music created by Tee Lopes which has also immersed himself in the game Turtles in Time and the animated series of 87. Difficult for big children like us not to fall under the spell of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge which takes up all the codes (but also the structure ) of Konami's Turtles in Time, so much so that we are closer to a 2022 remake than a tribute. Incidentally, as in the 1991 game, the story of TMNT: Shredder's Revenge still revolves around the Statue of Liberty. She's not going to disappear to travel to different eras this time around, but she's once again the object of all the desires of Shredder and his Foot clan.
Anyway, with this Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge, DotEmu and Tribute Games don't care about pleasing the Millennials, the target audience being the children of yesteryear, those who have significant purchasing power today. Everything has been thought out for them, from the graphics to the gameplay, including the countless references found in the game.
So here we are transported to a seductive New York through 16 levels, each ending with a boss to defeat. There are also 20 in total, some appearing as a duo, which unfortunately will have no effect on the difficulty of the game, but that, we will come back to that a little later. As for the cast, Tribute Games has been particularly generous, since we obviously find our four famous turtles, to which are added Master Splinter, April O'Neil, but also Casey Jones, who automatically unlocks once the adventure finished. What is rather nice is that each of these characters are different, in the sense that they are distinguished by their range of different moves, but also by their skills cut into three categories: Range, Speed and Power. Everyone will make their choice according to their affinities, and on our side, we won't hide a little weakness for Donatello and April O'Neil, the first for his reach and the fact that he uses a Bô, and the second for its velocity and attacks reminiscent of Street Fighter's Chun-Li. Speaking of Capcom's fighting game, Raphael also refers to it, since he is able to perform a dragon (Sho Ryu Ken), useful for hitting aerial enemies.
STREET BRAWLER
But the great strength of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge is by far its variety, both in its gameplay, but also its environments. Unlike Asterix & Obelix Slap it All by Microids, which didn't hesitate to recycle certain levels to the point of disgust (the boat, not to mention it, eh), TMNT Shredder's Revenge never repeats the same stage twice. Filthy alleys, shopping center, metro, zoo, TV building, arcade room, park, building under construction, we move from one setting to another with real pleasure, especially since they are all full of details, animations and interactions welcome. It also takes several passages to discover everything, but that's also the principle of a 2D beat'em all, namely a certain replay value by linking runs with different characters. As said above, the gameplay does not lack charm or variety either, with a fairly substantial range of movements. If we find the standard attacks and combos to do by pressing the same button, we quickly realize that the possibilities are numerous. Double-jump, forward or backward roll to dodge enemy attacks, air strikes, anti-air strikes (with differences depending on the chosen character), sliding attack on the ground, choppes with several variants, powerful blow (by holding the button of attack for a few seconds) and finally the furies to be triggered when the super bar allows it, as much to tell you that the possibilities are numerous and guarantee the total absence of boredom. The bestiary also does not lack character, especially since it knows how to distill itself as you progress through the levels. Of course, it is the Foot that we will see most often, knowing that they differ according to their color and therefore their behavior, but other enemies will be added in fights which in the end are sorely lacking in challenge.
PIECE OF CAKE
Indeed, the difficulty is also the big weak point of TMNT: Shredder's Revenge and the latter goes against its intended forty audience. Between the enemies who have very few life points (a series of 3 shots and it's over), their fairly limited number on the screen and ultra-readable patterns, we go through the levels at an incredible speed. And it's unfortunately not the bosses at the end of the course that will add to the challenge, since they were shaped in the same mold of simplicity. Quite honestly, up to level 13, it's a health walk and it's even almost impossible to die facing a boss if you've been fed up with 2D beat'em all. We are obviously talking about the standard difficulty mode and in Hard mode, the game is certainly a little more difficult, but nothing insurmountable either, the opposite of what Asterix & Obelix Slap them All was in terms of challenge . In barely 5 hours, the TMNT: Shredder's Revenge adventure is over and leaves an unfinished aftertaste, as if something was missing to nibble on. No additional mode like a Time Attack or a Survival to keep us going, just can we count on the challenges that appear during the game, such as managing not to be hit once in a level. It is undoubtedly on this point that the game disappoints and fails to transform a test into a real masterstroke. Of course, we don't forget that TMNT: Shredder's Revenge has another great quality that shouldn't be overlooked: the possibility of playing up to 6 players in coop, both locally and online. This is a significant bonus, especially since Tribute Games has integrated a mechanism to revive your partner if he falls in battle, which allows you to strengthen the bonds of friendship, even with someone you don't know. not online. It's quite pleasant, but we won't hide from you that 6 characters on the screen, it's quickly a rat race and the whole thing quickly becomes a joyous mess to follow. In truth, the game remains pleasant up to 3 people simultaneously, after which it becomes a rather detestable visual shambles. But we emphasize (and welcome) the possibility nonetheless.
