I've got to say that Streets of Rage 2 has one of the best soundtracks of any video game. Ever. Yuzo Koshiro's mix of techno and slower tunes works well. I do like the use of the Streets of Rage theme as the background for Round 8, as it really gears you up for the final confrontation with Mr. X.

The special attacks are what really distinguish this game from its predecessor. These are probably the best addition to the game as they take it beyond a simple Double Dragon-style game where the only moves are to punch and kick. Special mention must also go to the inclusion of ninja weapons to slice punks up with...

Also cool was that the annoying features of the original were removed and the enemies were also given names and energy bars of their own (in the style of Final Fight), something I think that was stood out as missing in the original.

There is very little I don't like about Streets of Rage 2, but there are a few little things. Firstly, the game is very easy to complete, especially in two player, a problem the original suffered from also (my solution to this is play on the secret Mania difficulty setting!). However, the game has immense replay value, which compensates for this. Secondly, why were some of the more interesting features of the original, such as multiple endings, scenery that you could throw punks/be thrown off, and team attacks dropped for this game? (they did make a return in Streets of Rage 3). Also dropped was the beer bottle weapon - why? No weapon beats a beer bottle to the head!

Streets of Rage 2 is one of my favourite Genesis/Megadrive games and definitely one of favourite games of all time. If you haven't got it go find a second-hand Genesis/Megadrive and a copy of the game right now!