Neon City Riders is a game that appeals to all the senses and attracts your typical '90s lover. From the upbeat retro music to the neon colorful aesthetic, from the NPCs to the enemies you encounter throughout the game, taking down the four gang leaders of Neon City and regaining control of it has never been better.
This is a 2D pixel beat'em up type of game. Along with being tasked with taking down four different gang leaders in different sections of the city, there is a variety of unique and diverse NPCs consisting of humans, robots, animals, and even alien mutant-looking people, who give you certain side quests to do for them. The way that some of the quests work is different than your typical fetch and retrieve linear quests in other games. Here, when you accept a quest, sometimes you might not be able to complete it. You might be missing a certain item or a specific skill you need in order to progress through it. When that happens, you'll just have to skip it and come back to it later when the time is right.
While there is a log journal in the game where you can look up the quest and the location of it, I found it kind of tedious to have to go back on forth with a quest and having to save it for later or accidentally forgetting about it as I went on through my playthrough. When I accept a quest in other games, I normally complete it right away so I don't forget about it later on.
At the beginning of the game, there is a guy who highlights the important people in the section that you should talk to, but I left this setting off because I feel that everyone is worth talking to with their witty dialogue.
During your playthrough, you'll start to collect four pins that give you access to new skills and abilities. You have access to those abilities at the beginning of the game, the tutorial level, but sadly they're stripped from you due to a virus in a VR training simulation. Other than that, you'll be pretty much mashing the X button repeatedly until you find your first pin. Sounds boring right? Well, you're kinda wrong.
The enemies that you encounter in the game all have a certain attack pattern. Some attack in straight lines, some create bubbles that explode with different projectiles coming in all directions, and weird buff cat-looking people charge you and beat the snot out of you. I'd be lying if I said that I didn't die a bunch of times when I just charged in mashing X. When dealing with the enemies, you actually have to use a little bit of strategy, especially when they decide to jump you all at once.
The boss fights in the game are challenging as well. After dying a couple of times you'll start to develop a rhythm or a method of how to take them down, and when it works a feeling of accomplishment washes over you. Considering the fact that that one boss fight took me about 15 minutes to complete and I can only expect it to get harder, I could see myself putting a decent amount of hours into this game. Plus with having to go back and complete side quests as well, I can guarantee you that Neon City Riders will keep you occupied.
The graphics of the game are beautiful and one of the main reasons why I wanted to play this game in the first place. I'm a sucker for the '90s retro vaporwave style, so I always try any game that includes it. Neon City Riders executes it perfectly with the neon vibrant colors and nails the aesthetic on the head cleanly. Even though the game is a pixel game, the art team behind it gets my seal of approval on their fine handiwork. The music consists of '90s style beats and sounds that fill the atmosphere and set the mood, whether you're fighting a boss or an enemy or just walking around and enjoying the scenery and taking in the sights. If there was a soundtrack available to purchase, I would buy it.
The gameplay, the strategy behind it, the scenery, and the music is everything I expected from Neon City Riders when I first saw the trailer for the game. Even though it's not a 2D side scroller, I picked up major Scott Pilgrim vs. The World and River City Girls vibes, which are my two favorite games. When any game reaches that level, it's without a doubt considered a masterpiece in my book. Please, suit up, indulge yourself in the '90s vibe, clean up the streets, and take back Neon City.
