Team17 has announced that Raging Justice - the upcoming beat-'em-up created by ex-Rare developer, MakinGames, will be hitting Nintendo Switch on 8th May. If that's not enough good news for you, we've been checking the game out for ourselves to share our initial thoughts with you lovely lot! A pretty good day, then.

With crime, corruption, and wave after wave of bad guys around every corner, it’s all down to a team of hard-hitting, justice-seeking mavericks (and you), to clean up the streets with some brutally tough justice. The game is a classic beat-‘em-up with a polished, modern looking aesthetic that sees you fighting your way through various 2D environments.

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Right from the off, we instantly realised that this game is no walk in the park. Plonking ourselves onto the 'Normal' difficulty setting, we imagined ourselves breezing through each wave, knocking opponents senseless along the way, but reality soon washed over proceedings, bringing with it a realisation that this game is seriously tough. Walking and dashing along a 2D screen, with the ability to edge slightly forwards and backward from the camera, too, you'll be punching, kicking, grabbing, and throwing various items such as knives, baseball bats, and bins at your opponents, but they put up more than a good fight.

A combo move is available by hitting the 'X' and 'Y' buttons simultaneously, resulting in a fancy, powerful attack, but perhaps the most interesting mechanic in play is the 'arrest' function. If you manage to stun an opponent, during which time they'll wearily hover on the spot, you can choose to arrest them rather than brutally kick them in the face some more. Doing this results in them being taken out of the game and leaving a giant sandwich behind (obviously), which can restore some of your precious health. This means that you can either go all-out for high-scores with constant attacks, or sacrifice some points for a health boost.

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We had a go with two of the three available characters (the third of these was announced today), and there are noticeable differences between them in their speed and power, enabling you to pick your favourite based on their feel. A 'Brawl' mode is also available, which is essentially an endless horde setup tasking you with waves of increasingly difficult enemies, and all of this content can be played either solo, or in local co-op. Be warned, however, because an optional friendly-fire setting could leave your friendship in tatters as you accidentally knock each other to the floor!

With some fiendishly tough gameplay, and some even tougher boss fights, we can see fans of the genre's classics falling in love all over again here if everything continues in a similar vein. We'll make sure to give the game a proper beating when it launches next month to bring you the definitive verdict.

So, what do you think? Will Raging Justice be bringing maximum brutality to your Switch in a months' time? Make sure to let us know if you'll be grabbing a copy!