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Any attempt to bring the brawler genre back from the dead should be welcome, but after having suffered through Spikeout: Battle Street, we’re beginning to think that maybe, just maybe, this genre should throw in the towel. Now along comes Namco’s Urban Reign. While it’s not nearly as bad as Spikeout, it’s a very hard game to love.

Smooth Criminal

Just what is it about beat-‘em-ups from Japan? It seems like each and every gang member you dispatch throughout these games is tragically stuck in the mid-'80s. Cut-off denim vests? Come on, guys. That hasn’t said “tough” since… well, since ever. It’s really hard to get into a good fighting groove when you feel like you’re picking on a bunch of fashion victims.

But where are our manners? You’re probably wondering just what Urban Reign is about. Mainly, it’s about beating up everyone you come across. There’s a story mode (which is the only thing unlocked at the beginning of the game) where you plow through 100 different missions with such varied objectives as “beat up all the bad guys” and “ beat up all the bad guys within a ridiculous time limit.” Occasionally, the objectives get really wacky and you’re charged with “beating up just one bad guy.”

Beat It. Just Beat It.

Each mission is set in some enclosed urban environment: an alley, a bar, a store, a parking lot, etc. Once the mission begins, you have at it until you either emerge victorious or you get sent to the retry screen. Sometimes you have several different missions to choose from, but you have to beat them all in a roughly linear order in order to progress.

Unlike your standard beat-‘em-up, Urban Reign sports a more sophisticated fighting engine. While not nearly as robust as a one-on-one fighter, the game definitely places emphasis on technique instead of button mashing. Standard attacks are pretty easy to pull off as are the most basic grapples. Once you start exploring some of the more complex moves, the depth in Urban Reign becomes apparent.

This is most noticeable in the dodge and counter system. There’s no block button in the game. Instead, all defensive moves come with accurately timed presses of the dodge button. With practice you can evade most attacks, or better yet score a reversal that will damage the enemy instead.

You Know I’m Bad. I’m Bad. You Know It.

But Urban Reign has a punishing learning curve that will drive away most players before they come to grips with the system. Until you figure out the nuances of defense, the game appears absurdly difficult and filled with cheap moves. Enemies string combos together that will juggle you and leave you stunned. And just as you’re attempting to shake off the stun, another enemy will come in and start a combo. While most of these combos can eventually be broken, the player isn’t given enough information about the defensive controls to learn the system. After lots of trial-and-error, you’ll probably pick it up.

But the gameplay is so repetitive you’re not going to want to sit around perfecting your defensive timing. Right after the first few missions you’ve seen almost everything there is to see in the game. Some variety in the way of AI teammates who join you in battle and usable weapons is doled out from time to time, but these treats don’t come often enough.

You Know I’m Cheap. I’m Cheap. You Know It.

Perhaps the biggest insult is that once you figure out the gimmick to the enemies’ attack style, Urban Reign ceases to be challenging altogether and instead just become a contest of who can be cheaper.

As you meet more difficult enemies in later missions, many of your moves become worthless because the computer AI will automatically counter them. So you either spend most of the game countering attacks in the hopes of getting in a good shot, or using the one move that for some reason they can’t block. Either way, it’s a waste of a potentially fun fighting system.

If you actually do finish the 100-mission story mode, you can play any of the missions in any order. Doing this allows you to unlock tons of playable characters. Each character has a unique fighting style and it’s a pretty nice perk. But who was the idiot who decided to lock all of these away until after you’ve suffered through the story mode? Really dumb move.

Reign On Our Parade

Urban Reign is a perfectly adequate rental, especially if you’ve got a multi-tap and three friends. Playing against human opponents is much more satisfying than the cheesy computer-controlled ones. Forcing the player to endure 100 repetitive missions just to unlock the meat of the game is an insult, as is the imbalanced fighting engine. This reign has come to an end before it started.