Prison City

The Beat Them Up games had a golden era where they were famous. We had a lot of variety back in the SNES era, and they were a pillar of gaming that held the Video Games for a long time, making old people think gamers were going to get violent by playing these games at the same time gamers had a great time beating bad guys, defeating bosses, and wreaking havoc everywhere. That’s exactly what Prison City offers.

These games aren’t popular right now, which is sad, but there are devs out there remembering the good ol’ times and releasing games like Prison City, a classic Beat Them Up that will hit directly in the heart of those who were kids in the mid-90s. Let’s check it out.

Detroit, 1997

The thing that shines above the rest about Prison City is its style. Rather than being inspired by newer games like Street Fighter or Fatal Fury, the game is based more on games like Contra or MegaMan, at least its first few titles.

Prison City looks like a game released in 1989 for the NES, and that’s a pat on the back, as that was the main idea of the game. Well done!

The music is wonderful and exciting, and it’s packed with nostalgia. Chiptunes were a must of this game, and it delivered accordingly.

Escape the Prison City

Prison City takes place in an alternative Detroit in 1997. This Detroit is futuristic, but evil guys rule it, as it was evacuated in 1995, only to be used as a mega impenetrable prison no one can escape from. A terrorist group took the city by storm, and no one was there to stop them. Now, “The Boss”, who is the leader of the police force, called Hal Bruzer, a retired cop who used to be the best in the unit, to raid Detroit and end with the terrorist group.

Of course, you’ll be Hal Bruzer, and your task will be taking hordes of enemies down in a lateral scroll stage. You’ll go through all of Detroit, including factories, parks, natural reserves, sewers, etc. The game has a lot of variety, and that’s great to see.

Controlling Hal Bruzer And Co.

The game adapts its difficulty to the skill of the player, which is always a great thing to have in a game, as everyone can enjoy it no matter if you are good or bad at it. There are also different game modes which give some extra replayability to Prison City, like a Boss Rush mode, where you and your friends will compete to see who beats the bosses of the game in less time.

Pros

• The ambience, music, and gameplay are top-tier
• The Character Design is excellent, as it’s full of references to older games

Cons

• The game is very short