When a new beat ’em up collection comes out, we’d usually expect it to be Capcom or Namco, but indie publisher QUByte Interactive (Music Drive) isn’t particularly synonymous with the genre, except for the superb 99 Vidas and perhaps even Musashi Vs Cthulhu.
And, as we’re evidently creating a paragraph of links to previous reviews, the dev/publisher does have experience with compilations, as they also released Visco Collection.
This entry, Beat ‘Em Up Collection (QUByte Classics), is a selection of games that you might not immediately know, but have perhaps dabbled with on your retro journey, or can recollect the memory from your fading grey matter.
I am of the second group as First Samurai was a favourite of mine on, surprise, the Amiga 500. You do play a samurai in 16-bit glory, taking on all manner of oni and xenomorphs(!?) in this classic side-scroller. It was also released on console, and in the olden days, it seemed to be the norm to have some god awful soundtrack playing throughout.
It exists here, and you can thankfully mute it so you can hear the wails as your chonmage avatar floats back to a checkpoint having been mauled by some horrible lot.
Its sequel, Second Samurai, also makes an appearance, but it’s completely new to me and equally wasted as the first one is, where my allegiance lies. This one was too ‘pretty’. Gourmet Warriors is another familiar, as is Iron Commando and Legend.
The other games included Sword of Sodan – heard of, but never played until now, and The Tale of Clouds and Wings (Water Margin). Let’s cut to the chase: these are all games you most likely have never heard of, played, or are likely to seek out from this review alone.
There’s nothing bad to say about Beat ‘Em Up Collection (QUByte Classics), as the way it is compiled is on par with the Digital Eclipse series, such as Worms Armageddon; however, the selection of games somewhat lets it down.
With a blanket approach, Beat ‘Em Up Collection (QUByte Classics) has a digital manual for all, and while that’s nostalgic, it’s not quite the same as sniffing the folds of a booklet and subsequently spilling your 7-Up onto the pages. Honest – that’s why the pages are sticky.
And, like many emulations (notably the Switch), there are options for save states and rewinds at key points of the games, bevel options and more cosmetics.
If 99 Vidas was included in this collection, it would have been an easy recommendation for that alone, but for Beat ‘Em Up Collection (QUByte Classics), the focus is the nostalgia train.
Nostalgia is personal, and for me, the real call-out here was First Samurai, and I would have been happy with that alone, as it’s stupidly hard for no reason, but carries with it a lot of positive memories.
The same perhaps is for Gourmet Warriors, or any of the other titles on the list. However, if you aren’t familiar with any of these titles, will it warrant a looksee?
While you might not have your Final Fight characters or Streets of Rage familiaries, the games included in the Beat ‘Em Up Collection (QUByte Classics) are perfectly serviceable and at least worth trying out, though the target audience are most likely going to be retro fans more than anything as I’d be surprised to hear if there’s a fanbase for the other games.
Regardless, very well presented with lots of worthwhile features and excellent value. Oh, there are also CRT effects, if that’s a dealbreaker.
