The side-scrolling beat ‘em up genre feels like it’s going through a renaissance right now. After the huge successes of TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge, Streets of Rage 4, and the various fighting collections and remasters we’ve been getting from Capcom, they seem to be growing in popularity once more.
Ever since I played Streets of Rage on the SEGA Megadrive (Genesis), I’ve loved this type of game. I know it wasn’t the first to do it with all of those old arcade cabinets like The Simpsons, TMNT games and even Golden Axe, but it was MY first beat ‘em up love.
When Streets of Rage 4 was released in the heart of the pandemic, I purchased it on day one, and it was awesome… but I sucked at it. I was so bad; I could barely complete Normal mode. However, five years later, I’m back on it, and I’ve gotten slightly better. I’m on the verge of completion, with the platinum trophy in sight, so now I’m looking forward to the next installment in my side-scrolling beat ‘em up journey.
With that in mind, here are five upcoming great-looking games that could fill the void after I’m done with Streets of Rage 4.
Are you kidding me right now?!?! The guys that created TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge are at it again and with a MARVEL PROPERTY?!?! Holy crap! I loved Shredder’s Revenge so much that I got the platinum trophy for it (April O’Neil is the best). Cosmic Invasion looks amazing, using the same pixel art style as their previous game. All of the characters look terrific, having that '90s cartoon vibe instead of the more realistic MCU one. And it seems like there's a tag-team mechanic going on, too!
Developed by Tribute Games and published by Dotemu, this will be released later this year on all consoles and PC. I can’t wait to beat up some enemies with my Storm-Venom team that I’m going to main first!
Oh no! Controversy! Iain chose a game that’s NOT 2.5D! Well, who is to say what qualifies as a side-scrolling beat ‘em up anyway? Does it have to have a Y-axis as well as an X-axis? Well, that’s certainly the norm, but I think Pizza Kidd definitely fits in this list! It’s a dude that punches, jumps and kicks his way through levels, beating up hideous mutant monsters and delivering (and probably eating) pizza.
Developed by Kidd Games, and sporting a hand-drawn 16-bit pixel art style, this looks 100% my sh*t. Although there is no firm release date for this yet, the website says it’s coming to all of the consoles and PC in 2025! That’s THIS YEAR! There is also a demo available to play on Steam right now!
Scott Pilgrim is BACK!!!! Now, did I necessarily love the original Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game? No, I hard bounced off that one. But I have much more faith in this game, which looks super cool. I haven’t had much experience with side-scrolling beat ‘em ups that are a bit more open world than just linear levels, so I’m looking forward to seeing how Scott Pilgrim EX implements the open world design. And, look, any game in that world where I can beat up a bunch of vegans, then I’m in.
Developed by Tribute Games (yeah, another one!), this one will be coming to all of the consoles and PC in 2026. This one is a bit further out than the rest of the games on this list, so, unfortunately, we’re just gonna have to eagerly await more information!
Look at this ridiculously pretty game! It looks like it’s been lifted straight out of a medieval manuscript. King’s Blade definitely wears its influences on its sleeve. There’s some Golden Axe, some Streets of Rage, and also some Xena, Hercules or Conan vibes. Sporting four-player local co-op, this game looks so fun.
Developed by Alexey Suslin, King’s Blade will be released on Steam on August 7th 2025. In a little under a month, you can add this game to your Steam library and have at it. I’d expect it to be reasonably priced at under $15-$20, as well. But why not try it out first, because there is a demo available to play right now!
I’m not gonna lie, this is my most anticipated game on this list. Absolum bills itself as a Rogue ‘em Up - a beat ‘em up with roguelike elements. Its gorgeous art style and animation, its fantasy setting and interesting character designs make Absolum look freaking awesome, and I can’t wait. I wonder how far the roguelike features will actually go. Survival mode in Streets of Rage 4 was hella fun, but it was just a special mode with no story, so I’m excited to see how they construct the narrative around it.
Developed by Dotemu and Guard Crush Games, who made my current obsession, Streets of Rage 4, Absolum will be coming to the PlayStation 4 and 5, Nintendo Switch, PC, and is currently slated for this year. No confirmed release date yet, though, so we’ll just have to keep an eye out. Damn, this game looks great.
What is your most anticipated side-scrolling beat ‘em up? Did you like Streets of Rage 4 as much as me? Do you also agree that Axel was the worst character in that game? Let us know in the comments!
