Donatello, Raphael, Michaelangelo, and Leonardo, collectively known as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Hero Turtles if you’re a 90s Brit kid), have seen quite the comeback lately. We’ve seen a fantastic new film and several game announcements, including this one. But does Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants have the turtle power to impress?
Grab a Slice
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants is a tie-in to the 2013-2017 animated series. The game was originally released by Raw Thrill back in 2017 alongside the final season and was only available on arcade machines. That is, until now. GameMill Entertainment has taken the step to port the game to PC and all current consoles in the wake of the 2023 film.
It’s business as usual for our shelled lads. The Foot Clan, led by Master Shredder, are causing issues in New York City with the help of Krang from Dimension X. It’s your job to send them all running with your ninjutsu skills and the power of brotherhood, like any good part of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series!
As Was the Style at the Time
The game lacks a narrative beyond the premise. There is an introduction and an ending but beyond that, it’s just the Turtles getting their steps in while introducing the Foot to their fists. Even the 1989 NES game had a little more meat to its story, but Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants was originally designed for the arcade (and modern arcade at that), so this is to be expected.
Luckily for this type of game, the minimal story just about works, at least as long as you’re familiar with the basic premise of the Turtles and their enemies.
Eat Foot!
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants firmly falls into the category of scrolling beat ‘em up, also called a belt action scroller or walk-and-punch. I’m sure from those words you can fathom how the game is going to play. You walk and you “punch” enemies until the end of the game.
This is a familiar genre for the Turtles. They’ve had several arcade titles including Turtles in Time, which was Konami’s best-selling arcade title at the time, and more recently the phenomenal Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredders Revenge. It’s safe to say Wrath of the Mutants is going to have to do something rather special to stand out here.
The game features five stages to pick from initially, with the unlockable final sixth stage available upon completion. It has the Amusement Park and Dimension X which are exclusive to the 2024 versions, along with the original stages NYC streets, Sewers, Techno Cosmic Research Institute, as well as the unlockable Shredder’s Hideout stage.
Every stage plays out in the same fashion. You walk to the right of the stage and clear the screen of enemies using the singular attack button, or you can do a jump which can also be combined with an attack. There’s also occasionally an item pickup, all varieties of which clear the area around the character. It’s rather simple combat.
At the end of the stage, there’s always a boss fight with an iconic villain from the series such as Bebop. Then it’s onto the next level again and again until the Shredder has been evicted from New York City.
Not Quite Charles’ Mutants
The issues with this title are apparent instantly. Despite being based on a 2017 title, the combat feels cripplingly dated. Even for this genre known for repetition, it hits painfully fast due to awkwardly soft feedback against the limited enemy types. You need your core gameplay loop to be engaging and fun while giving players instant gratification, so dropping the ball in this aspect just cripples the entire experience.
The stages are standard affairs, with little in the way of set pieces. Sadly, they tend to lack any of the charm or the cheeky little nods that adorned the stages of Shredder’s Revenge. What little flair there is tends to be stuff like cars to dodge or spooky monster cutouts that slightly obscure the screen. It’s dull stuff and a pity to see.
The lack of spice in the stages and the limited combat aren’t saved by the game’s pickups, which as mentioned essentially all do the same thing (perform a screen-clearing attack). One makes your chosen Turtle spin around in their shell, one summons either Leatherhead, Metalhead, or Ice Cream Kitty, and the other pick-up fills your “Turtle Power”. Once that initial “Oh it’s Leatherhead” is done, the excitement wears off.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants just feels cheap to play. It’s disappointing too, as the crew usually does well in this genre. Instead, the only “Raw Thrill” you’ll get from this title is from owning what was once considered a “lost” Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game.
Safe but Lacking
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants uses the CGI art style of the 2013 show. It is a faithful recreation of the visual style for the character models, but just lacks a lot of the charm the show had.
Graphically, it would barely pass as a Playstation 3 title at its very best. Stages lack details and the game is very sparse with any effects. Fortunately it has smooth performance throughout, and never once dropped a frame on the PlayStation 5.
The audio is made up of completely forgettable music. There are voice clips from the cast of the show reprising their roles, which is a nice bonus, but it’s far from a redeeming factor to save this title.
Verdict
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants is sadly another classic example of why licensed titles still have a stigma. While it’s not the most egregious licensed game in terms of quality, it commits the sin of being boring to an almost painful degree.
The original arcade release only had four levels and frankly, that feels like a mercy compared to the six-stage slog on offer here. It clearly seems designed as a quick time waster rather than a more robust, nostalgia-inducing time.
It pains me as a huge Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fan to have written this review, but in an age where titles like Turtles in Time and Shredder’s Revenge exist, Wrath of the Mutants just isn’t worth any more than the quick 10-minute play I gave it on those half-broken sticks back at the arcade.
WAIT FOR SALE ON TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES ARCADE: WRATH OF THE MUTANTS
If you love beat’em ups, how about checking our reviews of Double Dragon Neon and Streets of Rage 4.
Many thanks goes to GameMill Entertainment for a PlayStation 5 review code for this title.
Pride of utopia & greatest thing ever, I found the One Piece, Collected the Dragon Balls & won the Mortal Kombat Tournament in one night, it was quiet for me that night! Follow me on Twitter @powahdunk
