In the early 90s, Battletoads was one of Rare’s most consistent franchises, with the studio releasing games for the NES, SNES, Game Boy, and arcades. The last Battletoads game was 1994’s Battletoads Arcade, and the franchise has been dormant since, barring cameo appearances in games like Killer Instinct and Shovel Knight. But now Battletoads is finally back with a proper new game in the series, and we’re happy to report that it meets expectations and then some.
The first thing fans will notice about the new Battletoads is its visuals, with an art style that closely resembles modern-day cartoons. Battletoads‘ art style has been the source of some controversy since it was unveiled, but it works perfectly with the game’s tone. Not to mention, the Battletoads franchise was originally created to be a clone of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, so it fits.
Along with the cartoon-style art, Battletoads also has over-the-top, highly-detailed animations. These animations are most apparent in the characters’ attacks, as the titular Battletoads morph into different objects to pummel enemies. It looks fantastic most of the time, especially when players are able to string together a series of morph attacks in quick succession.
One issue that becomes apparent in Battletoads early on, though, is that sometimes the animations can’t keep up with the action on-screen. This issue is most noticeable with Rash, who will sometimes freeze in place, holding his rubber chicken that he uses as a weapon in front of him. Even though Rash is no longer animated, the attacks still register on-screen, with enemies reacting appropriately and the sound effects matching up as well. It hurts the game’s otherwise impressive visual presentation, but at least it doesn’t actually hurt the gameplay.
Most of the levels in the new Battletoads follow the traditional beat em up format, with players going from one screen to the next, fighting bad guys and tough bosses. Enemies don’t walk off-screen like they do in many other beat ’em up games, which ensures that players are constantly in combat instead of having to wait for enemies to walk back into frame. This may seem like a minor improvement, but it does wonders for the pacing and keeps the game more consistently engaging than others in the genre.
Something that does hurt the pacing a bit in Battletoads‘ beat ’em up levels are the puzzles that players occasionally have to solve, particularly the hacking mini-games. As the game goes on, these hacking mini-games becoming increasingly more time-consuming, and can become frustrating when players have to also rely on their co-op partner to complete them properly.
Besides beat ’em up levels, Battletoads also features a variety of other stages that represent different genres. To go too in-depth would be to spoil the experience, but let’s just say Battletoads gets very creative with some of its levels and as a result has a lot more variety than one would normally find in a beat ’em up game. Sometimes these levels have really clever riffs on game design, and there are definitely some memorable moments that come from these more experimental stages. That being said, there is a Donkey Kong Country mine cart-style level at one point that adds a gimmick that actually makes it one of the worst levels in the game, but otherwise, most of Battletoads‘ experiments pay off.
One level type that Battletoads brings back from the original games is the speeder bike sections. These levels don’t appear too often, but when they do, they definitely will push players’ skill to the limit. There’s one speeder bike level, in particular, that is ridiculously hard, but longtime Battletoads fans wouldn’t have it any other way. The speeder bike levels in the new Battletoads change things up a bit by positioning the camera behind the toads instead of using a side-view, but it still functions the same and the levels are still plenty exciting.
Battletoads has old-school difficulty in pretty much all its levels, though only if players want it. The old-school challenge is there, but Battletoads players can also go through on easy or activate temporary invincibility if they so desire, not unlike the gaming aids that Nintendo has been adding to its games lately. The game also has far more forgiving checkpoints and doesn’t stick players with limited lives, so while it’s still plenty challenging, it’s significantly less frustrating than past games and definitely doable. Even so, Battletoads‘ old-school difficulty may ultimately limit its appeal because players can’t switch difficulties after starting the game.
As Battletoads fans go through the game, they will be treated to cut-scenes that, like the in-game graphics, look like Saturday morning cartoons. The humor is also similar to modern day cartoons, with Battletoads having plenty of immature jokes throughout. However, there’s also a lot of genuinely funny, more adult-oriented comedy here, not to mention fun jabs at the franchise’s past that will definitely be appreciated by longtime fans. A couple of scenes in particular are absolutely hilarious, with the comedy anchored by the more well-defined personalities of the titular Battletoads.
Like in previous games, the new Battletoads has players taking on the roles of Rash, Zitz, and Pimple, though the characters stand out far more than they ever have in the past. Rash is dumb and obsessed with fame, Zitz is the leader, and Pimple is the voice of reason that has some anger management issues. The rest of the cast is mostly great as well, and there is some genuine character development and interesting, unexpected plot twists. The developers put a lot more work into Battletoads‘ story than one would expect from a beat ’em up, and the effort pays off big-time. The Battletoads cut-scenes actually feel like a reward for overcoming a level’s challenges, as even when the jokes fall flat, the clips are still entertaining to watch.
Fans can experience everything Battletoads has to offer with up to two friends in local couch co-op, and unlike many other local co-op games, the second and third player aren’t treated like second-class citizens. Everyone can unlock achievements, and everyone is able to participate in the QTE cut-scenes and other aspects of the game that would normally render the other players as passive observers. Battletoads‘ local co-op is very much appreciated and works great, but the lack of online co-op is a sticking point that’s likely to disappoint a lot of people, especially with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic keeping people stuck in their homes.
The lack of online co-op in the new Battletoads is definitely the game’s biggest flaw, so if fans can overlook that, they will find what is otherwise a great beat ’em up throwback with hilarious scenes, fun combat, and plenty of variety. And with it being on Xbox Game Pass, subscribers have no reason not to check it out. Overall, this Battletoads comeback is a major success and is sure to leave a smile on players’ faces, and so hopefully fans don’t have to wait 26 years for the next entry in the series.
Battletoads is out now on PC and Xbox One. Game Rant was provided with an Xbox One code for this review.
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