PixlBit

"Rival Terd" would be a better name for this beat 'em up monstrosity 

Beat 'em ups were all the rage in the late '80s and early '90s. Games such as Double Dragon, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Final Fight, and Streets of Rage had revolutionized the genre. But of course, there were imitators and rip-offs for these great games, and Rival Turf is one of them. It's bland, repetitive, and uninspired. From the very start, you can tell that this is a big rip-off of Final Fight mostly. Released in 1992 for the SNES, RT was developed and published by Jaleco. It has two main protagonists to choose from with a 1P and 2P mode. 

The game gives no story at all, but simply throws you into the action. The two protagonists are Flak and Nelson. Flak is a lot like Axel from Streets of Rage--his moves are very similar, including an over-the-should throw and a backwards suplex drop. The other guy, Nelson, is beefier and looks similar to M. Bison; he moves much slower and also does some wrestling moves. The levels are cliche places for this genre, including the streets of LA, a baseball stadium, skyscraper, and a jungle in South America. 

The combat is repetitive and cheap. Hit detection is a constant issue; many times you think you'll connect, but you don't. And somehow the enemies tend to connect with you a lot more often. This leads to another issue--your lifebar. It simply makes no sense. If you get knocked down, you'll lose a random amount of life as you get up (sometimes a big chunk, sometimes just a little), and get this: a few times my lifebar was empty, but my character was still able to fight. What the poop???? 

There are only about five different enemies in the game, and they're all beat 'em up cliches: the street thug, the guy who throws dynamite, the karate dude, the fat guy, and the biker dude. The enemies are cheap. They'll often hit you while you're attacking, and they can attack very quickly (you won't even know what hit you). Also, simple attacks often take big chunks of life. I went through lives so quickly that it felt like I was playing an arcade game! At the end of each level is a boss, and the bosses are pathetic. Regular enemies are much harder than any of the bosses, who simply walk around and rarely attack. 

What about the graphics? Well, they're boring. Character animations are quick and abrupt. If you get knocked down, your character will hit the ground like he's full of cement. There are no idle animations or even movement while you stand still. All the movement of the characters are stiff and way too fast. Backgrounds are generic and static, even if they contain something which should be moving (like a river). 

Besides the main game, there is a vs. mode, in which two players can fight each other, but you can only choose between the two protagonists. This mode works in TMNT IV because there are four turtles to use, but here it's nothing more than a nice oddity which will get boring fast. Are there any positives for this game? Well, some of the music is decent. But that's about it. Besides that, this game really is just a big terd. 

Final Verdict--2 Stars: Not Worth It

There is no reason to play this trash when we have such superior games such as Streets of Rage and Ninja Turtles. It's nothing more than a lazy rip-off. The game also makes no sense. It has no story, although you should be able to figure it out from the title. However, if you're fighting other gangs on rival turf, why do you fly to South America? And why are there biker dudes in the jungles of South America? I know I'm over-thinking this, but this game is truly awful. Let's just flush this terd down the toilet and forget about it.