Official Website

Platform: Playstation 2

Genre: Fighting

Number of Players: 1 - 4

Peripherals: Multi-tap Adaptor

Namco and fighting games; those are two things that go together like peanut butter and jelly. It's been a match made in heaven as anyone who has played Tekken or Soulcalibur can attest to. Forget about games like Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat, Namco has those titles beaten hands down. However, the creators of everyone's favorite street fighting franchises has some new blood more than ready to "take it outside" . . . . and even inside, but Urban Reign isn't going to be a clone of the fighting games that you love so dearly.

Welcome to Green Harbor, a city that's anything but a tourist trap. Crime is running rampant in the streets and local authorities are doing anything and everything they can to curb the problem. The Zaps, one of Green Harbor's notorious gangs, has recently had one of it's members turn up missing and they believe that Shun Ying Lee and her gang have something to do with it. She has a solution though, and she's enlisted the assistance of Brad Hawk, a fighter that is more than capable of holding his own. The violence is about to escalate, but the real question is if Shun Ying Lee is innocent as she says, who is really behind this disappearance.

When a friend of mine came over, he picked up the copy of Urban Reign sitting on the table and commented that it looked a look like Final Fight. That's not a bad comparison, but there's a bit more to this game than just being some side-scrolling button masher. Urban Reign is in some ways what the bonus Devil Within mini-game in Tekken 5 could have been. This also isn't some area based fighter where the first to score two victories wins. This is a fighter, but of a much different caliber.

First, you should know that just in the story mode, Urban Reign features 100 different missions, so you've got your work cut out for you. You missions will involve things such as taking out a single boss, sometimes with a time limit, and other times you simply need to beat down everyone. Urban Reign will not always be a one-on-one fight, though you will always find yourself being alone, at least if you're playing solo. You have three basic types of attacks; high, mid, and low, and this will be dictated by direction. Push up, you'll get in a high attack, push low . . . . you get the idea. If you were just punching and kicking though, that really would make for a repetitive game, and one that would get stale rather quickly. Urban Reign offers more moves than just throwing fists and unleashing kicks. You can grapple opponents and your grapple moves are much the same as your attacks. What's nice with these is grabbing some gang punk and then tossing him into one of his friends or any nearby item that will break away.

As you may have already guessed, your opponents can grapple as well, and this is where things can get nasty. One of them alone is fine, but when you're dealing with more than a single foe, they can double-team you, performing some very nasty moves in the process. It's a bit like the double team moves that were in Rival Schools, but here they are much more flashy. Don't be too alarmed though since you do have the ability to dodge and even counter moves, and yes, so can those gang bangers that you're dealing with. The grapples though are cool. Not only can you do these while standing, you can run and do flips off the walls and grab someone on the way down. Plus, forget about that saying of not kicking a man when he's down. You're more than free to do that, or you can jump on top of them and get in a few more good punches. There are also special attacks (you'll see a special meter under your health bar) and as you progress through the game, you will learn more of them. And again, yes, your opponents have their own special moves as well. Ah, and let's not forget that there are also weapons to be used.

Upon completion of each stage, you will be awarded with points that can be used to boost abilities, and these are divided into two different categories. The first involves your general fighting, so you can put points into your attacks, your grappling, even your weapon skills. The second section involves defense, and this one is a little interesting. Much of your defensive capabilities are set up according to high, mid, and low regions, and it really is important to improve these. This will help you in the long run and let you take more damage. But, working up your fighting is just as important, so you will need to spend those points wisely. Once you've confirmed, there's no going back.

In the main story mode there will be times that you can fight along side a partner, but why wait for all of that? Urban Reign also features a multiplayer mode. You can play with up to three other friends, assuming of course you have a multi-tap adaptor, and the game also boasts some 60 playable characters. Some of course will have to be unlocked, and there may even be a couple of faces that you recognize from another of Namco's games, but I'm not going to give that away as I'd lose my status of "king" if I did (that should be enough of a hint for you.) In these bouts you can fight side-by-side or you can go up against each other in any combination that you want. It's more than just fists that are used though, and you can even draw blood in weapons battles if you want. Outside of this, you will also find a free play mode that will allow you to replay any mission already passed or Challenge Mode that will have a number of conditions for you to meet.

I'd have to say that in terms of looks, Urban Reign is very comparable to Tekken to a certain extent, but it's uniquely different as well. As mentioned, this really is what Devil Within could have been. Urban Reign though doesn't sport bland backgrounds and foregrounds, and there is a lot going on, plus a great deal of interaction. I've enjoyed slamming enemies into light poles, taken pleasure in watching them get smashed through tables and pallets, and taken a certain joy in seeing them smash their faces against walls. That's the type of interaction that this game has. The game however isn't limited to only being able to hop back a couple of steps, and you have the option to freely run about the area that you are in. These won't be huge areas, and its still like being in an arena, but since you do fight multiple enemies, you can move out of their way and such, even targeting them if need be. While you will notice a few of the character repeated at times, you will see a variety in the foes that you face, and what I really do like is the visual approach, especially how the game will zoom in if your jumping on someone to bash their skull in or how it will go into slow motion when you take down your last opponent.

There are some thing I would have loved to have seen included in Urban Reign however, and the first is online play. The multiplayer option is good, if you constantly have friends around to play the game with, but late at night, being able to team up with or go against people all over the world really would have been a nice addition. Multi-tiered areas to fight in would have been great as well. Think of the fun you could have by throwing someone into a door in the bar, only to have it break away where you could continue the fight, throwing other foes back into the bar by way of the nearby window. A little more variation with the fighting styles would have also been a nice touch. Seeing the move palette of someone like Tekken's Eddie Gordo would have really added some interesting attacks into the game.

Urban Reign isn't going to be the thing to replace Tekken or Soulcalibur, but then again, it's a different type of fighting game. It's a good way to kill some time before the next big fighter comes out, and it's also the perfect thing to go back to once the novelty of that latest and greatest fighter has worn off, and it will, believe me. Urban Reign is a figher, it's a button masher through and through, and it's really not a bad game on it's own, either alone or with a friend or two. Beating down wanna-be gang punks has never been so much fun, just don't take it out in the streets for real.

-mike-