River City Super Sports Challenge ~All Stars Special~

While Western players might not recognize the Kunio-kun series by name, they’re likely to have appreciated some of the long-running franchise’s localized iterations. From Renegade, River City Ransom, Super Dodge Ball, Crash ‘n’ the Boys: Street Challenge to Nintendo World Cup, gamers outside of Japan have received the intermittent installment. Failing to recognize a connection between the titles is understandable, after all each publisher offered their own adaptation, significantly altering plotlines as well as the reoccurring protagonist’s name.

As such, delving into River City Super Sports Challenge ~All Stars Special~ is poised to fan the flames of nostalgia for retro gamers. From the moment you’ll spy the game’s stout eight-bit era sprites, the source material becomes clear. But distressingly, lead character Kunio and his classmates haven’t mechanically matured, offering the same type of rule-bending sports events that entertained players during the late eighties. Like the fun-loving friend who never seemed to grow up after high school, hanging out with River City Super Sports can be entertaining, but is best enjoyed in short durations.

That’s not to say that Kunio and the Nekketsu jocks haven’t been completely stagnant. While the expressive sprites remain untouched, the background have been given a modern reworking, allowing the team to explore satisfyingly rendered Japanese locales. In theory, putting blocky characters on detailed, 2.5D backdrops seems visually dissonant. But in execution developer Million Corp. pulls it off with panache, with just enough pixelated elements to make the effect work.

The Kunio-kun franchise has consistently complemented its sporting events with spirited storylines and River City Super Sports is no different. In keeping with tradition, the impetus focuses on members of the Nekketsu student body facing off against a procession of competitive, often conniving rivals who are attempted to bounce back after their student council president is shamed.  Amusement stems from a string of devious antics and good-natured responses, extending a plot which wouldn’t feel out of place in any lighthearted, high school-situated manga.

For some, the abundance the characters might be an issue, with over 164 different personalities in the game. Fortunately, an encyclopedia can be found in the options menu, detailing the attributes of each athlete. Bu the larger problem is the game’s localization, Grammar errors are frequent, and the text formatting is often an eyesore. Given the elevation of narrative, River City Super Sports deserves better.

Whether players opt for the story-driven campaign, free battle mode, online competition, or building their own series of contests, All Stars Special has four different sports waiting for players to delve into. Cross Country and Obstacle Race are similar, tasking competitors with making their way through a succession of single screen and scrolling sections. While contestants can try to be the first to finish each segment, there’s also the possibility to throwing punches, kicks, or using any of the miscellaneous items that a scattered across each course.

Pick up a bowling ball, baseball, or magic wand allows players to pummel rivals- with points distributed on the brutality of your bashing. Your score is also increased by beating your opponents on each leg of the race; naturally crossing the finish line first provides an even bigger payoff. But save for the Cross Country’s amusing elements (the runners sprint through a family’s house during dinner) and the Obstacle Race more absurdist elements, both activities feel a bit too similar. It’s also worth noting that both sports feel decidedly old-school, with a simple three-button system culled from Technōs Japan tradition. That’s not to say the events aren’t fun, but players shouldn’t expect a wealth of contemporary complexity.

The same applies to River City Super Sports two other diversions. Camphor Ball challenges players with shimmying up and whacking either the giant ball dangling from the top of the venue or other opponents. While it could use a bit more nuance, the activity can be fun for local parties. Battle Royale is arguably the best of the lot, delivering playful pugnaciousness as players beat other with appendages or an assortment of items that materialize around the ring. Combatants can either whittle down the health bar of foe or throw them off the side of the ring; either method eliminating the fighter from the round.

Previously released on PlayStation 3, the PC version of All Stars Special suffers from a few porting issues. Resolution options can be a bit limited, forcing gamers to play in non-native screen formats. On one AMD-powered laptop the game repeatedly said it was ‘preparing to play’, becoming stuck before the title screen was displayed. One problem that is carried over from the console version is the lack of any tutorial. Expect to accumulate a few losses before you understand the goal of each game and the proper route through courses.

As a single player experience, River City Super Sports Challenge ~All Stars Special~ extends a wealth of incentives- certainly unlocking all the characters and leveling them up can keep motivated gamers busy for hours. But doing so involves playing the four straightforward activities repeatedly, which has the potential to wear down the patience of players. Sure, online play should make the tedious more tolerable, but a lack of opponents means that your rivals will have to be local participants.

River City Super Sports Challenge ~All Stars Special~ was
played on the PC with review code provided by the publisher.