The Best Beat ‘Em Up Games of All Time, Ranked

Key Takeaways

• Konami and Capcom dominated the brawler genre with classic titles that remain fun and must-play experiences for fans.
• Some brawler games like
  Battletoads
  offer intense difficulty while delivering a unique retro experience for players to enjoy.
• Modern brawlers like
  Scott Pilgrim Vs The World: The Game
  offer a nostalgic and engaging experience for fans of the genre.

The arcades were flooded with a lot of genres that are almost distinct in the modern gaming world today. There was a wide variety of vertical and horizontal shooters, fighting games, racing games, and brawlers. The brawler/beat ‘em up genre was largely successful thanks to two companies: Konami and Capcom.

They made some of the best brawlers in history and they are still fun today. Both classic and modern brawlers are a blast to play, with some titles being must-play brawlers that any fan of the genre should check out for themselves.

Updated November 4, 2024, by Hamza Haq: Despite the dwindling numbers, the Beat ’em up genre community is not out for the count just yet. While AAA studios have mostly given up on making new games for this niche, enthusiastic indie developers have taken up the torch in their stead, using their passion for keeping these games alive and introducing new twists to keep the new additions fresh and different from the classics. Even some old franchises that haven’t seen an installment in years have re-entered the industry with new offerings, to mostly positive results. The nature of trends is ever-cyclical, and beat ’em up games may just return to the forefront in the coming years.

16 Battletoads

Notorious Difficulty, Timeless Fun

A game notorious for its immense difficulty, Battletoads combined a wealth of genres to make for a unique retro experience that showed Rare at its very best. The majority of its gameplay involved beating up goons, but the title didn’t shy away from forcing players through various other gameplay loops, including a brutal speedboat section that has become notorious in the gaming community.

To this day, fans can’t stop raving about the brilliance of Battletoads, despite its difficulty rendering it downright impossible to complete for all but the most dedicated video game players around. It may be a challenge, but two players up for the task can try pushing themselves to complete this fun retro game.

15 Mother Russia Bleeds

A Grim Tale With Bloody Action

• Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Microsoft Windows, Linux, macOS
• Developer: Le Cartel Studio
• Initial release date: September 5, 2016
• Genres: Beat ’em up, Fighting game, Indie

A violent beat ’em up game with excellent pixel artwork, some people felt that the sluggish gameplay of Mother Russia Bleeds took away a lot from what should’ve been a fun experience. While this is true to an extent, players willing to bear the slow pace of the game’s combat will find themselves enjoying a pretty decent title.

It helps that the violence elevates the action to new heights, letting players wallop their enemies to smithereens and humiliate them with a dishonorable death. Mother Russia Bleeds has some rough kinks that players need to work around, but the game has the ability to keep players engaged with its numerous strengths.

14 Comix Zone

A Stylish, Art-Driven Beat ‘Em Up Classic

A classic beat ’em up game with a riveting art style, Comix Zone is one of the most stylish games that players can check out. It’s also one of the hardest, and players will struggle to get through certain stages because of the punishing difficulty.

This is mainly because Comix Zone comes around a time when brutal arcade difficulty was the norm, with players getting frustrated at the sheer number of deaths in this title. However, most would argue that this repetition is part of the experience, and the fun gameplay more than makes up for a slightly unfair difficulty curve.

13 Double Dragon

Arcade Action With A Legendary Legacy

• Developers: Technōs Japan, Arc System Works, Mastertronic
• Platforms: Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo Switch
• Initial release date: June 1987
• Genres: Beat ’em up, Fighting game

A legendary beat ’em up that needs no introduction, the premise of Double Dragon is as simple as they come. Players control two brothers, Billy and Jimmy Lee, who must save their love, Marian, from the Black Warriors gang. They must go through several stages and beat up numerous enemies on the way, only to be left bamboozled at the end when both players must battle against each other to secure the affection of the woman they saved once and for all.

The success of Double Dragon was legendary, prompting a wave of arcade beat ’em ups to become the norm. It takes something really special to change the landscape of gaming itself, and Double Dragon‘s fun gameplay loop was exactly what fans wanted at the time.

12 The Simpsons

Springfield’s Quirkiest Brawler Adventure

• Platforms: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Arcade video game, Commodore 64, DOS, MS-DOS
• Developers: Konami, Backbone Entertainment, Novotrade Software Kft.
• Initial release date: 1991
• Genres: Beat ’em up, Fighting game

The Simpsons has seen several games developed in its name, with the arcade beat ’em up being a fan favorite of many. The simple and fun goodness of controlling Homer and walloping enemies never ceases to be tiring.

Given how ridiculous The Simpsons can get at times, it’s easy to see why this brawler fits with the series in such a fitting manner. Fans of unique beat ’em up titles should definitely give this arcade classic a shot.

11 Scott Pilgrim Vs The World: The Game

A Comic Book Beat ‘Em Up Adventure

Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Game is everything a fan could want in a modern brawler and as a tie-in to one of the nerdiest comics out there. The overall comic sees the titular Scott Pilgrim going after the evil ex-boyfriends of his girlfriend, Ramona Flowers so that they can finally be together. Going through the comic or movie is certainly not necessary to enjoy this game, but it helps, and they are both worthwhile anyway.

The game references stuff from the comic along with games like Super Mario Bros., Mega Man, Guitar Hero, and many others. It is a treat for fans of the comic and brawler genre with four-player co-op waiting for any eager challenger.

10 River City Girls 2

Stylish Fights And A Funky Soundtrack

River City Girls was a reboot of the Kunio-kun franchise, and River City Ransom is part of that series. River City Ransom was unique on the NES because it was a brawler, but it also had forward-thinking ideas like an open city to explore, leveling up, a money system, and so much more.

The best brawlers, most of whom appear on this list, owe their lives to River City Ransom. That said, River City Girls 2 improves upon both its direct predecessor and River City Ransom in a myriad of ways. The gameplay is smooth, the art is gorgeous, and the soundtrack is pumping.

9 Sifu

Fight, Die, Repeat

Sifu combines old-school brawling action with a roguelike. Players assume the role of a martial artist who is seeking revenge for the death of their master. This hero can die, but every time they get resurrected a certain number of their overall life will be lifted from their body which is represented by age.

Players only have one human life to get their revenge, and it may not be enough. Thankfully, roguelike upgrade elements help keep the fight alive in this intense punch quest.

8 Castle Crashers

Colorful Knights With Quirky Powers

Castle Crashers was one of the earliest indie games to rock the Xbox 360 when they were bringing young developers to the spotlight. Players could choose to play as one of four colored knights and they all had unique elemental powers besides their various weapons. The Blue Knight could shoot ice whereas the Green Knight could spray poison.

Knights leveled up, more characters could be collected along the way, and other secrets were hidden too. The four-player co-op was one of the best features then and it remains one of the best features now especially for brawler fans.

7 Dragon’s Crown

Heroes, Loot, And Legendary Battles

• Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita
• Developers: Vanillaware, Atlus
• Initial release date: July 25, 2013
• Genres: Action role-playing game, Beat ’em up, Adventure, Fighting game

Dragon’s Crown, compared to the other brawlers on this list, is an RPG first and a brawler second. It still makes the list because it knows how to blend the two genres. Players can choose one of six characters to start as like a Fighter who is a strong melee fighter with high defense or an Elf who is speedy and shoots from a distance.

Go through a level, collect loot, and repeat. There are not that many levels, but each one has a branching path to keep players coming back. Also, like most good brawlers do, Dragon’s Crown has four-player co-op, and it is one of Vanillaware’s best.

6 Yakuza 0

Underworld Drama Meets Pure Brawling

Yakuza 0 is a prequel to the entire series and a great place to start for any beginner. This modern-day 3D brawler combines the best elements of classic games like River City Ransom and Japanese dramas. It is one of the zaniest games in the series and that’s saying something because Yakuza games are notoriously odd.

From chicken friends to panty thieves to killer robots, this series has it all. Players can rewind time to the 80s and have a great, colorful time by bashing thugs with bikes, couches, umbrellas, and whatever else is in reach. The fact that some people get more invested in Majima’s endeavors to make Club Sunshine a hit instead of actually focusing on the intense main story is a great example of what the Yakuza games are all about.

Class-Based Brawling Action

Full Metal Furies was developed by the same team that revolutionized the roguelike genre, Cellar Door Games, through Rogue Legacy. Full Metal Furies is a strict brawler with four characters who adhere to different classes. Two of them are based on melee while the other two are gun-based fighters.

There are specials with cooldowns, and basic attacks, and players can team up in four-person squads to wreck the armies of evil. Characters can level up, upgrade weapons, and so much more in this sprawling brawler.

4 Streets Of Rage 2

A Beat ‘Em Up Masterclass

• Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Sega Genesis, Microsoft Windows
• Developers: Sega, Ancient, Overworks, Sega AM1, Mindware, Shout!Designworks Co., Ltd
• Initial release date: December 15, 1992
• Genres: Beat ’em up, Fighting game

Streets of Rage is one of the most iconic beat ’em up franchises around that was on a break for the longest time. Thankfully, with the release of Streets of Rage 4, fans can finally enjoy a modern entry in the series.

However, even this title couldn’t capture that solid beat ’em up goodness present in Streets of Rage 2. Even after all these years, the second game is still a masterclass in every way and one of the best beat ’em ups fans can check out to this day.

3 Fight’N Rage

A Nostalgia-filled Modern Love Letter To The Greats

• Platforms: PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Xbox Series X and Series S
• Developers: SebaGamesDev, Blitworks
• Initial release date: September 19, 2017
• Genres: Fighting game, Indie game

Fight’N Rage caters directly to the player base who prefers the tried and true side-scrolling beat ’em up action of the classics from the ‘golden age’ of the genre. The old-school art style is meant to evoke nostalgia for the kind of graphics that were commonplace in arcades in the 1990s. There is even a CRT mode in the display settings to replicate the screen feel of that era.

The skill ceiling is high enough that getting good at the game takes time. Each character feels just a tad different from the other, and more are unlocked as players progress. With high enough skill, it’s technically possible to beat the game in under one hour, though most players will take a lot longer than that. There are multiple possible endings with unlockable characters to give players even more reasons to replay the game over and over. The only reason Fight’N Rage isn’t higher up the list is because it doesn’t support online multiplayer to play co-op with friends. It does, however, allow for up to three-player local co-op.

2 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge

Classic Brawling, Modern Turtle Power

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time is probably the TMNT game that most fans would vote as number one. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge, like River City Girls though, improves upon that as a spiritual sequel. It’s a modern recreation of what players thought was good about Turtles in Time and reworks it in a new light.

The inclusion of more playable characters like Casey, April, and Splinter is one way that makes it better. The leveling-up systems, overworld, and six-player co-op option are other ways that make it a stronger experience.

1 Streets of Rage 4

A Return To Form

Released in 2020, Streets of Rage 4 is the newest installment in the legendary beat ’em up franchise and a return to form for the series. The previous title, Streets of Rage 3, was released over 20 years ago in 1994, though there was a remake of the original Streets of Rage in 2011 as well. The critical acclaim and rewards the title received have reaffirmed that fans of the genre are alive and well and thirsting for the next great beat ’em up game to spend their cash on.

Streets of Rage 4 sticks to tradition for the most part and rehashes what worked for the previous games in the franchise but with a fresh coat of paint, promising some solid action without going too far off the rails. Combined with some killer music, tons and tons of unlockable content, a downright gorgeous art style, and multiple game modes, its replayability value is off the charts, and it keeps players coming back for more. The combat is, of course, the main focus of the game, deep enough to keep players interested but not so complicated as to become tedious.