Seeing TMNT Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants on modern systems feels strange, A 2024 port of a 2017 arcade game based on a 2012 animated series certainly makes for a fascinating licensed release, but it doesn’t make for a quality brawler. As a genre that’s gone through a recent renaissance, even with other TMNT entries, Wrath of the Mutants fails to stand out.
Like many other TMNT games, players will be able to choose between Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael as they beat up a ton of baddies before facing the evil Shredder. Players will travel through many familiar areas, from the streets of New York City to Krang’s Lair, as you beat up baddies and make your way to each boss.
Unlike other games with the turtles, TMNT Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants doesn’t really have a story connecting things together. As soon as the game starts, players can start from any of the game’s five available five stages. Once you beat all five stages, a sixth stage unlocks and players will be able to fight the iconic Shredder. While we don’t mind the simplicity, having some kind of story structure would have been appreciated.
That simplicity can also be seen in the gameplay. Each turtle only has one attack button, which means players can expect a lot of mashing throughout their playthroughs. Players can also jump, execute a special attack once the meter is filled, and use items that can eliminate mooks faster. All of these actions are easy to do and responsive enough, but the lack of variety does make the game feel incredibly repetitive.
You could argue that the older TMNT games are equally as repetitive, if not more, but they gave players more options during combat. Using Shredder’s Revenge as an example, that game lets you unleash charge attacks, dodge opposing moves, and unleash different specials when you’re jumping, dodging, or standing still. None of that variety is here, offering very little mechanical depth to master even compared to decades-old TMNT games like Turtles in Time.
Levels might have unique visuals here and there, but they all play the same. You choose a turtle, fight some enemies, pick up the same items to help with combat, and fight two bosses. Despite each boss looking different, their fights are very similar, with all of them having a deadly jump attack that each Turtle can easily avoid. Some levels try to spice things up with auto-scrolling and minor platforming, but they aren’t enough to brighten up some fairly dull stage designs.
Adding to the repetition is the limited number of voiced lines in Wrath of the Mutants. It won’t take long before players are sick of hearing the same catchphrases from their chosen Turtle or the boss. Expect to hear Bebop’s weird Michael Jackson impression a ton of times.
Even with three new levels created just for this version of the brawler, TMNT Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants can be finished in about two hours or less on Normal Mode. You can unlock a Hard Mode that increases the difficulty and even limits your revivals, but harder enemies and bosses don't hide the fact that each of these levels still play the same, just with some added challenge. The lack of more meaningful unlockables makes replaying this game even harder to recommend, as there are no new characters to use outside of the turtles.
What makes TMNT Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants almost impossible to recommend is the availability of far superior TMNT games for the same systems. Both Shredder’s Revenge and The Cowabunga Collection are readily available, swimming in content, and just a lot more fun. With both games frequently available for less than Wrath of the Mutants, there’s just no way we can recommend this to anyone other than the toughest shells of the TMNT fanbase
TMNT Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants might be a worthwhile purchase for hardcore TMNT fans or those who want to preserve weird licensed games. Everyone else should just pick up Shredder’s Revenge or The Cowabunga Collection, as they offer superior brawling experiences that fans and detractors of these characters can enjoy.
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