Though it drops the multiple endings of the first game, it makes great strides in both gameplay and graphics. Streets of Rage 2 is easily the best of the series. The first time you face off against the twins Mona and Lisa, you're likely to espouse a few choice words of rage yourself.

Challenge is maintained not by skillful combat, but rather by giving opponents faster movement and better range. Though it was first released for home consoles, the game was designed with arcade mechanics in mind, and that is most visible in how the enemy attacks. Where Streets of Rage shows its age is in the enemy AI. If thrown, you can recover with a button combination to avoid damage and land on your feet.

It is possible to attack other opponents while being held. Throws and holds are automatic, based on range, though there is a surprising amount of depth here as well. One exception is the rear attack, which is done by pressing jump and attack at the same time. Attacks are context sensitive, with the game dishing out a punch or a kick depending on the situation. A third button releases a limited, but powerful, special attack that clears the screen of all normal enemies. Gameplay is fairly direct in Streets of Rage, with a single button dishing out attacks and another controlling your jumps. Armed with nothing more than their fists, the trio will do whatever is necessary to take down the syndicate. Upset with the department's inability to root out organized crime in the city, three police offers quit the force and take their fight to the streets. The original Streets of Rage lays down the basic framework for the franchise. Generational predecessors to the fighting game genre, beat-'em-ups have the player facing off against a large number of low-level opponents before going head-to-head with a boss character at the end of each stage. Known in Japan as Bare Knuckle, the three Streets of Rage games are traditional side-scrolling beat-'em-ups. The Genesis had a number of top-tier franchises that helped to set it apart from the Super NES, and Streets of Rage unquestionably sits near the top of that list. While the little blue speed demon may have gone head-to-head with Nintendo's Mario in the 16-bit war, he wasn't the only trick up SEGA's sleeve. Ask anyone to name SEGA's most successful franchise, and you're likely to hear Sonic the Hedgehog as an answer.

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