Rita's Rewind Is Shaping Up To Be The Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers Game Of My Dreams

Summary

• It's been a long time since we've had a new Power Rangers game, but Rita's Rewind is here to fix that.
• I played through one of the game's side-scrolling levels at Gamescom and found it was very similar to Shredder's Revenge - which is a very good thing.
• The full game also offers unique vehicle and Megazord sections that should add a lot of variety to the beat-em-up formula.

Although I haven’t kept up with Power Rangers for a very long time, it was a huge part of my life growing up. It didn’t stick with me as much as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles did, but I still had all the toys, watched every new series, and spent most of my childhood with the Wild Force theme song stuck in my head.

Unsurprisingly, I also played pretty much every Power Rangers game that launched in my lifetime, from Dino Thunder on the PS2 all the way to SPD and Time Force on the Game Boy Advance. As much as I loved the series and took every opportunity to jump into the world of spandex and strange helmets, even my underdeveloped brain knew that none of them were particularly good.

TMNT: Shredder's Revenge Final Preview - Turtle-y Awesome

Shredder's Revenge is looking like the best game the heroes in a half-shell have ever starred in.

Since then, there’s really only been one decent game in the series, Battle for the Grid, which has felt like a big missed opportunity considering how well other staples from my childhood like TMNT have been adapted in recent years with games like Shredder’s Revenge. Power Rangers has been begging for the same treatment, and it looks like it’s finally got it with Rita’s Rewind, which was one of the best reveals of Summer Game Fest.

Rita's Rewind Is Basically Power Rangers' Version Of Shredder's Revenge

I’m an absolute sucker for colourful side-scrolling beat-em-ups, especially when they’re based on IP, so I’ve been looking forward to Rita’s Rewind ever since I first laid eyes on it. After getting the chance to play through one of the game’s early levels with Digital Eclipse editorial director Chris Kohler, I’m very happy to report that the stage is set for it to be the Power Ranger game we’ve all spent the last few decades dreaming about.

My preview started with a brief run-down of the game’s plot, which sees the modern 2024 Power Rangers doing their weekly routine and going up against Rita Repulsa. In an act of desperation, Rita decides to time travel back to 1993 and team up with her past self, leaving it up to everyone’s favourite Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers to take both versions of her down.

From the moment I started playing, it was clear that Rita’s Rewind takes some heavy inspiration from Shredder’s Revenge and Turtles in Time with its side-scrolling beat-em-up stages. Not only does it capture the same pixel art look and chip-tune soundtrack, but it also has very similar combat mechanics, which includes basic attacks, a launcher, a dodge button, and a screen-clearing ultimate move that is charged over time.

The enemy juggling and combo potential also reminded me of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game, which is a very big point in its favour.

A Loving Tribute To Power Rangers

Although Rita’s Rewind doesn’t do much to differentiate itself from other arcade brawlers with its gameplay mechanics, the combat and movement do feel approachable and satisfying. I’m not sure how much depth there’s going to be and hope that more moves and abilities are unlocked throughout the adventure, but I still had a lot of fun with what I played.

As you might expect, it’s the Power Rangers coat of paint that shines the brightest, though, as it’s simply a joy to go up against classic enemies like Goldar and see each Ranger use their Power Coin to channel their respective Zords and take everyone down with ease. For a series that has been so surprisingly unrepresented in the world of gaming, it’s nice to see the Rangers get the classic arcade treatment they deserve.

It was also made very clear during my preview how much love and respect Digital Eclipse has for Power Rangers. There were a bunch of deep cut references in the level I played, ranging from the enemy types that the Rangers battled to Mr Ticklesneezer being a collectible and even "Go-Go" popping up when a new area is unlocked. I’m very behind on my Power Rangers since it’s been a while since I watched the series, but there’s already a lot for long-time fans to love.

As much as I enjoyed my brief time with Rita’s Rewind, the thing that excited me the most was something I actually didn’t get the chance to try out. While the side-scrolling beat-em-up sections seem to be the meat and potatoes of the whole game, Kohler explained there’s a lot more to the game than that as those levels are broken up by vehicle sections and boss battles using the Megazord.

Kohler also dropped some heavy hints that we’d be seeing Tommy Oliver (the Green Ranger, of course) at some point during Rita’s Rewind, which makes sense seeing that he’s the all-time most popular Ranger.

It was a shame that I didn’t get to play any of those stages for myself, but from what I’ve seen so far it seems that they’re going to be a great way to inject some variety into a very familiar genre. Considering how close Rita’s Rewind feels to Shredder’s Revenge from what I’ve played (which is absolutely a good thing), those unique levels are going to be key to making it stand out, and are something I can’t wait to try for myself when the game launches at some point later this year.

Don’t Play Avowed As Anything Other Than A Mage

Avowed’s melee combat feels a bit dated, but flinging spells around is pure magic and lets the top-tier writing and characters shine.