River City Ransom, known as Street Gangs in PAL regions, is an open world beat 'em up video game originally for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It is an English localization of Downtown Nekketsu Monogatari for the Famicom. The game was developed by Technōs Japan and released in Japan on April 25, 1989.
The Kunio-kun (くにおくん) series is a video game series started by Technōs Japan. The series is now handled by Arc System Works who purchased all of the intellectual property rights from Technōs' successor, Million Corp. The first game in the series is fully titled Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun (熱血硬派くにおくん), which roughly translates to "Hot Blood Tough Guy Kunio", with Nekketsu being the name of the series' title character Kunio's high school. The kun suffix after his name is an informal Japanese honorific usually applied to young males. The series originated in arcades, before appearing on the Famicom console. Kunio later became Technōs Japan's main mascot, appearing on the company's logo in several games and television commercials.
Technōs Japan Corp. was a Japanese video game developer, best known for the Double Dragon and Kunio-kun franchises as well as Karate Champ, The Combatribes and Voltage Fighter Gowcaizer. As of June 2015, Arc System Works owns the intellectual properties of Technōs Japan.
Arc System Works Co., Ltd., commonly referred to as ArcSys, is a Japanese video game developer and publisher located in Yokohama. Founded by Minoru Kidooka in 1988, the company is known for arcade 2D fighting game franchises, including Guilty Gear and BlazBlue, as well as other license-based fighting games for Dragon Ball FighterZ, Persona 4 Arena (Ultimax), Granblue Fantasy Versus (Rising), and others.
The NES Four Score is a multitap accessory created by Nintendo in 1990 for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Select games can utilize it to enable up to four-player gameplay. The NES Four Score is similar to the previously introduced NES Satellite, a device that allows four players to connect to the NES and extends the range using infrared wireless communication.
Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun, released as Renegade in the West, is a beat 'em up video game developed by Technōs Japan and distributed by Taito for the arcades in 1986. In the original Japanese version Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun, the game revolves around a high-school delinquent named Kunio-kun who must stand up against a series of rival gangs frequently targeting his classmate Hiroshi. In the Western version Renegade, the player controls a street brawler who must face four different gangs in order to rescue his girlfriend being held captive by a mob boss.
Super Dodge Ball is a dodgeball-based sports game produced by Technos Japan Corp. originally released as an arcade game in 1987. In Japan, it was the second game starring Technos Japan's video game character Kunio-kun, following Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun, although the connection between the two games was removed in the western release. Various home versions and sequels of the game have been released for various platforms.
Double Dragon is a 1987 beat 'em up video game developed by Technōs Japan and distributed by Taito for arcades across Asia, North America and Europe. It is the first title in the Double Dragon franchise. The game's development was led by Yoshihisa Kishimoto, and it is a spiritual and technological successor to Technos' earlier beat 'em up, Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun (1986), released outside of Japan by Taito as Renegade; Kishimoto originally envisioned it as a direct sequel and part of the Kunio-kun series, before making it a new game with a different cast and setting.
Nintendo World Cup is a soccer video game for the Family Computer/NES and Game Boy, developed by Technōs Japan and released in 1990. It is a localization of Nekketsu High School Dodgeball Club: Soccer, the fourth Kunio-kun game released for the Family Computer. Ports for the PC Engine and Mega Drive were also released in Japan. A Game Boy version was released in Japan, North America, and Europe.
Crash 'n' the Boys: Street Challenge, released in Japan as Bikkuri Nekketsu Shin Kiroku! Harukanaru Kin Medal is a 1992 sports game for the NES by Technos Japan Corp. A Game Boy version of the game was also released in Japan only. The game featured Olympic style contests without rules or regulations, between five teams. The games included 400 metres hurdles, Hammer throw, Swimming, Roof Top Jumping, and Fighting Scene. It was re-released for the Wii Virtual Console on September 14, 2009 and later for the Nintendo 3DS on November 28, 2013 and for the Wii U on December 11, 2014. The game was included in the "Double Dragon & Kunio-kun: Retro Brawler Bundle" released for the Nintendo Switch on February 20, 2020. It was re-released for Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 in April the same year.
Super Dodgeball Brawlers, originally released in Japan as Chō Nekketsu Kōkō Kunio-kun Dodgeball Bu is a dodgeball-based sports game released for the Nintendo DS.
Shin Nekketsu Kōha: Kunio-tachi no Banka is a beat 'em up video game developed by Almanic Corporation and published by Technos Japan for the Super Famicom in 1994 exclusively in Japan. It was the fourth game in the Kunio-kun series released for the Super Famicom.
Double Dragon II is a side-scrolling beat-em-up released for the Game Boy in 1991 developed by Technōs Japan. Although it is the second Double Dragon game released for the Game Boy, it is unrelated to the arcade and NES game Double Dragon II: The Revenge. The game is a localization of the 1990 Japanese Game Boy game Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun: Bangai Rantō Hen, which was part of Technōs Japan's Kunio-kun series. The graphics, music, and storyline were changed for the English version of the game.
Super Dodge Ball is a sports video game developed and published by Technōs Japan that was for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1989. It is loosely based on the 1987 arcade game of the same name, which was also developed by Technōs. Like its arcade counterpart, it was released in Japan as part of the Kunio-kun series.
Yoshihisa Kishimoto is a Japanese video game developer known primarily for his involvement with Technos Japan Corp. He is best known for his work on beat 'em up games, as the original creator of the Kunio-kun and Double Dragon game franchises, having worked on the original arcade and NES installments in both series. While not the first side-scrolling martial arts action games, they established the general template and conventions used by the beat 'em up genre since the late 1980s. He has thus sometimes been referred to as the grandfather of the beat 'em up genre. He is currently the President and Representative Director of a game company called Plophet.
Arcade Archives is a series of emulated arcade games from the late 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, and Nintendo Switch, published by Hamster Corporation. A sub-series called ACA Neo Geo is focused on re-releasing Neo Geo titles in their original arcade format, unlike many services with attempts to emulate the console versions.
River City: Tokyo Rumble is a beat 'em up in the River City series published by Natsume in the west. It is similar to River City Ransom with RPG-like mechanics and doing jobs to learn new moves. It also features a 4-player arena and dodgeball modes that use download play. Unlike other games in the Kunio-kun series, Tokyo Rumble did not alter its characters and setting upon localization.
River City Girls is a 2019 beat 'em up video game developed by WayForward and published by Arc System Works. A spin-off in the Kunio-kun franchise, the game stars Misako and Kyoko who fight their way through enemies and obstacles to rescue their kidnapped boyfriends, series protagonists Kunio and Riki. The game was released for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One in September 2019, and for Amazon Luna in October 2020. A PlayStation 5 version was released on January 18, 2022.
