Topic: Your Top 10 side scrolling (console) beat-em-ups?

Below are my Top 10 side scrolling (console) beat-em-ups.
This post comes courtesy of a question from @Maniac over at the Super Double Dragon review:
http://retro.nintendolife.com/reviews/2009/10/super_double_dr...
However, I am such a cheat, I've broken my own rule (ie. only horizontal scrolling brawlers which incorporate into the screen's foreground/background movement, so the list does not include beat-em-ups like Kung-Fu Master, Dragon Ninja, Vigilante, Splatterhouse, Two Crude Dudes, Ninja Warriors Again, Viewtiful Joe etc.
Yet, I have still included Guardian Heroes despite its fixed three separate horizontal planes. Cut me some slack folks, the prominence of Saturn games at the top of this list reflects the tear running down my crinkled cheek. Tip your glasses to my stolen Sega Saturn collection, those thieves will have had no idea the treasures that they snatched. Bah!

• 1) Guardian Heroes (Treaure, 1996, Sega Saturn)
• 2) TMNT: Turtles in Time (Konami, 1992, SNES)
• 3) Dungeons & Dragons Collection (Capcom, 1999, Sega Saturn)
• 4) Final Fight Tough (Capcom, 1995, Super Famicom)
• 5) Batman Returns (Konami, 1993, SNES)
• 6) Final Fight One (Capcom, 2001, GBA)
• 7) Streets of Rage 2 (Sega, 1992/3, Mega Drive)
• 8) Double Dragon Advance (Atlus,2003/4, GBA)
• 9) Burning Fight (SNK, 1991, Neo Geo AES)
• 10) Golden Axe (Sega, 1989, Mega Drive)

I am really interested to see other Nintendo Life user Top 10 side scrolling (console) beat-em-ups. Cheers
Are there any other fans of my 1st choice, or perhaps you may not care for beat-em-ups, you may prefer hopping around on hungry green, sticky tongued, egg laying dinosaurs (which is fair enough):
"I don't care about that sword! I'm tired! Let's eat now."

Take out Burning Fight, Final Fight Tough (well, 3) and DD Advance and you'd pretty much have the same list as me. I'd add Spider Man Maximum Carnage, even though it isn't that good of a game.

@TheFox Ha, ha, I was hoping that someone would notice my mention of 'Burning Fight' and 'Final Fight 3', because they are not generally considered as being highlights of the genre. Sometimes I come across games in my favourite genres and I can't help but love them, warts and all (Final Fight 3 does not have many warts, it is a decent sequel. Battletoads had warts. Doh! lol). I think that I may be able to claim the "No.1 Fan of Burning Fight" title, there can't be too much competition.
Maniac mentioned 'Spider Man & Venom Maximum Carnage', I missed that LJN game, I wonder if it had extra content in the beefy(ish) 16 Mbit cart. I checked it out on YouTube and the large, cartoon main character Venom sprite looked pretty good.
Did you play Sega's (System 32) arcade 'Spider Man: The Video Game', from 1991? It had really ambitious sprite scaling effects.

I still think Guardian Heroes is overrated - it's a nice looking game, great soundtrack and a stunning intro, but I just don't think it's as fun as Streets of Rage (yeah, apples and oranges Damo, I know!) Sorry.

My personal favourite scrolling beat 'em up is Streets of Rage 2, I think. The first one has better music though. I also like Altered Beast.

I don't have many but some that come to mind are Castle Crashers, Golden Axe, and TMNT IV.

SOR2 is my favorite hands down

@Prosody The 'Guardian Heroes'/ 'Streets of Rage' "apples and oranges" comparison is a good point, 'Guardian Heroes' possibly should not have even been included on the list (the controls, mixed with the planes, almost gives it a 2D fighter feel...kinda). I was blown away by its depth, levelling up, multiple paths, instructing the Golden Warrior etc. This is a contradiction, considering it is my No. 1, but I've not played it for 9 years!
@WhoKnew I can't wait for 'Castle Crashers' to hit PSN, 'Alien Hominid' was brilliant. Would you recommend it?

Yes I would. Lots of weapons, characters, and tons of DLC. The story mode isn't too long but not too short also. 4 player co-op and battle (local and online), and a minigame. Great game.

I've literally just played 'Final Fight Tough' through to completion on my SNES, to see if it was pure nostalgia clouding my enjoyment. I think it is cool that you can team up with an AI controlled player (despite slight sprite glitches), the running ability and special move move set is a nice addition, too. Of course, it is always good to see Guy return to the fray.
Even so I have baffled myself that I placed it above 'Streets of Rage 2' (what was I thinking?), I am glad I have it in my list, but I should have positioned it a bit further down.
I would still like to see what other people consider to be their favourite console brawlers, for example should Saturn 'Die Hard Arcade' be in the Top 10? Is 'TMNT: Turtles in Time Re-shelled' better than the original SNES version? and following @WhoKnew recommendations, should 'Castle Crashers' be in there, too?

@Jamie0
Yep, I have fond memories of Sega's Spider Man arcade game. I always thought the side scrolling sections broke up the gameplay and kept things fresh. Shame we've never seen a home release. Some of the enemy voices were incredibly annoying but that's the only real problem I had with it.

@The_Fox I agree about the variety brought about by bits of fixed side scrolling, Sega's 'Spider-Man: The Video Game' completely dropped my jaw in 1991, for a sprite game it looked like a cartoon (possibly even more than Simpsons Arcade). The scaling was really versatile, the sprites looked as sweet tiny as they did huge (like massive Venom on level 1). It was not disorientating like Arabian Fight (Sega, 1991), either. The voices and music were a bit corny, like you said. I don't know much about Marvel, are Hawkeye, Sub-Mariner and Black Cat popular choices for characters?
I can understand why we never got a conversion in the early '90s, but it could have easily been emulated on modern systems. This is where I get down on my knees and beg:
"Please Sega, differentiate the VCA with exclusive releases, unleash the 'System 32' 32-bit arcades games.... most of all... please, please release 'Golden Axe: The Revenge of Death Adder' (1992)".
Pheew! I'll dust my scuffed knees down now and try to claw back some dignity. lol

Well, I love beat-'em-ups, but I haven't played that many, so I'll list what I have played:

1. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3 (NES)
2. Streets of Rage 2 (Genesis)
3. Simpsons Arcade (Arcade)
4. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Hyperstone Heist (Genesis)
5. Streets of Rage 3 (Genesis)
6. The Adventures of Batman and Robin (Genesis)

Yes, I have a Genesis but not an NES or SNES (played TMNT 3 years ago at my cousin's house).

I really hope we'll one day see TMNT 2, 3, & Turtles in Time on Virtual Console. Yes, the first one is already there, but I've heard it's really bad.

@Bulbasaurus_Rex It is a good list, mate. I like Streets of Rage 3 as well and Simpsons Arcade is all kinds of awesome!
At first I thought that Hyperstone Heist was a recycled mix tape of Turtles in Time, but it has loads of its own backgrounds, like the ghost ship and the sunset stage leading to Shredder's Japanese hideout. It is a shame that the old '90s Turtles tune is no longer licensed for use in any further releases of these games (including Turtles in Time on GameCube). I like comparing the details, shading and graphic style between the Mega Drive and SNES versions of these Turtles games. I do not know as much about NES Turtles, though.
Sega's 1995 Adventures of Batman and Robin is a game that I had almost forgotten about, as well as punches and hanging kicks it had almost a run and gun feel to it too, with black skull smart bombs. The visual style was really strong as a later Mega Drive release. Either I was rubbish at it, or it was hard, I do not remember getting very far into it, though. Thanks for the memories

@JamieO
I like the way you think. Seeing it and Golden Axe: The Revenge of Death Adder hit VCA would be awesome. I'd also pay extra to see Cadillacs and Dinosaurs and Capcom's Alien vs. Predator hit as well, but that 's probably a pipe dream.
Regarding the characters in the Spider Man arcade game, Black Cat made sense as she was frequently involved with Spider Man in the comic books. Sub Mariner and Hawkeye seemed like odd choices that were thrown in for no reason, though.

Snap! & ditto on hoping for 'Cadillacs and Dinosaurs' and 'Alien Vs Predator' on VCA @The_Fox , I would also add Capcom's 'Armored Warriors' (1994) and 'The Punisher' (1993) to that list (although we both know that Spider-Man, A Vs P and the Punisher etc will depend upon licensing rights, like you said "a pipe dream").
On a side note, Irem had a really well drawn future apocalypse brawler called 'Undercover Cops' (1992), it was nicely detailed visually, It would be great to play that one on VCA, too. Cheers.

1. Viewtiful Joe (Gamecube)
2. River City Ransom (NES/VC)
3. The Simpsons (Arcade)
4. Golden Axe (Gen.)
5. Dungeon Magic (Arcade)

Cool @Ricardo91 , a shout out for 'Dungeon Magic' (1994), I do not know that many isometric style beat-em-ups. If you have a PS2 pick up 'Taito Legends 2', you will be able to play your No. 5 game on that compilation.
Despite being tough, you can't beat the style and flair of Viewtiful Joe 1 and 2, too.

@JamieO - Yes, Batman and Robin is really hard, especially for this genre. I can't even beat the first boss, and interestingly, the game is even harder in 2 player coop, effectively negating the advantages you get with a second player. At least there's a level skip code, so you can still enjoy some other levels.

Anybody like any 3D (real 3D, not isometric) beat-'em-ups? I like the first TMNT game on GameCube (hate the second one), and I expect good things from Spyborgs when I can get it.

By the way, I can't wait for Pokémon Rumble. It's putting my favorite franchise in my favorite genre.

• If you buy GameCube TMNT 2: Battle Nexus you can play through to unlock the original emulated TMNT Arcade game from 1989.
• If you get hold of TMNT 3: Mutant Nightmare on GCN, you are able to play it to unlock the arcade version emulation of Turtles in Time from 1991.
  These discs work just as well through Wii's ability to play backwards compatible GCN. It is a cheap and fairly easy way to get hold of Turtles in Time (it has a 4 player option too, although apart from that, the SNES version is actually superior).
  I think that the PS2 3D gang movie beat-em-up by Rockstar, The Warriors, is brilliant.

@JamieO. TL2 was where I played it in the first place.