Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge is the latest game based on the popular TMNT franchise. Developed by Canadian studio Tribute Games, Shredder’s Revenge is a throwback to the classic 1987 cartoon show, as well as the numerous arcade games it spawned at the time. It’s been released to massive critical acclaim, and players are loving it too.
There are several mistakes that new players might make as they jump into the game for the first time. Therefore, here’s what to avoid in order to get the best possible experience in this exciting new brawler.
8 Skipping the Intro
Starting up a new game for the first time, players might not be willing to sit through a long intro sequence as they’re eager to jump into gameplay. However, any fan of the '80s cartoon would be missing out on something special if they did this.
When the game first loads up, it greets players with a radical recreation of the classic theme tune by composer Tee Lopes, with vocals from rock legend Mike Patton, accompanied by a brand new animated sequence. It’s a clear statement that Shredder’s Revenge is committed to being a throwback to that era of TMNT and is doing everything it can to evoke nostalgia.
7 Ignoring the How to Play Demo
Presentation aside, there is something else players would be wise not to skip on their first playthrough. Whenever they jump into the game, a How to Play demo will show up, and it’s worth giving it a watch so that they are fully armed with knowledge before playing.
Skipping through with the shoulder buttons reveals the wealth of moves available to the turtles and friends. While the control system isn’t overly complex, there are a number of moves that a new player might be unaware of that could prove useful as they battle the Foot Clan. Consider taking a moment to study all this before jumping in. Even for those already familiar with previous TMNT games.
6 Assuming Everyone Plays the Same
From the start of the game, there are six playable characters: the four turtles, Splinter, and April O’Neil. There is a seventh player character, Casey Jones, but he’s not available until later. And it may be tempting to just pick your favorite character from the show and stick with them, assuming that every character plays the same.
This would be a mistake. While each character has largely the same move set, the properties of these moves change drastically between characters, giving each of them a different feel. For instance, April and Mikey are much faster, while Donny’s staff has a much longer reach than other characters’ weapons. It’s worth taking the time to experiment with each cast member and find who works best for a play style.
5 Not Paying Attention to Positioning
Anyone new to the old-school beat-em-up genre may feel like throwing themselves into Shredder's Revenge so they can start smacking enemy ninjas around with impunity. However, it’s worth being a little more methodical and paying more attention to a character's positioning on the screen.
A staple feature of the genre is enemies that can jump out at the player from the sides or top of the screen without much warning, and anyone not watching out for this can easily be tripped up. Keep on the move, approach enemies from above or below, and don’t get complacent. Of course, any veteran of the genre likely already knows this, but it’s still worth mentioning.
4 Neglecting the Backflip
It should be noted that no matter how vigilant someone might be, sometimes Shredder’s Revenge will throw a curveball or two at the player out of nowhere. Positioning is important but sometimes a quick escape is required, and this is where the backflip is essential.
A quick little dash with some invincibility frames, the backflip is the key tool to escaping sudden danger and can be followed up with a unique attack. It’s especially useful against bosses, as it allows players to evade their counterattacks and get a few more hits in. Admittedly, it’s a little difficult to keep track of when to use it in the chaos of a co-op game but it’s a tool that simply cannot be ignored.
3 Letting Defeated Enemies Lie
Another important tool for success in Shredder’s Revenge is ninja power. Each character has a series of super moves that are significantly more powerful than their regular moves, whether it’s a big, flashy area-of-effect move that can prove useful when surrounded or a heavy slam move that does a lot of damage. But these moves use up ninja power, as represented by a bar next to the character’s health bar.
The simplest way to fill up this bar is through combos. Each hit on an enemy fills up the bar slightly, but what might be easily missed is that when an enemy turns a darker shade to indicate they’re defeated, hits do still register. This means that as long as they don’t touch the ground, a player can juggle them, extending their combo and subsequently filling their power bar faster. Incredibly useful, and also really satisfying to pull off.
2 Neglecting the Taunt
Just like the backflip, another move that’s easily ignored but incredibly important is the taunt. Each character has a unique taunt animation that not only shows off their personality but also fills up an entire bar of their ninja power instantly.
In other words, if juggling enemies and stringing together combos feels like too much work, simply tap the taunt button between sections and the bar gets instantly filled again. A handy little tool for anyone looking to use a lot of supers.
1 Not Breaking Everything in Sight
In story mode, characters can gain new abilities, extra lives, and additional ninja power as they level up. Experience points are earned through defeating enemies and completing levels, but there are a few other ways to sneak some points in that shouldn’t be missed.
Across each level there are numerous breakable bits of scenery, usually indicated by bolder outlines than the rest of the background. Smashing these will occasionally hand the player a bunch of points off the bat, but sometimes they might also contain cameo characters or collectibles. These collectibles can be handed over to these characters to gain a hefty bunch of points for the character who does so, making this valuable for leveling up characters quickly.
TMNT: Shredder's Revenge is available now on PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.