Battletoads (2020) Review

Back in 1991, Rare rocked players’ worlds with the original Battletoads on the Nintendo Entertainment System. Battletoads combined original designs, challenging gameplay, and a truly bizarre sense of humor.

As great as the game was, subsequent titles provided diminishing returns. Sequels like Battletoads in Battlemaniacs and Battletoads & Double Dragons (both from 1993) were pale shadows of the original title. And the 1994 Battletoads Arcade Game was bloody fun (literally), but it failed to make a splash with audiences.

Now, 26 years since its last installment, the toads are back in an all-new adventure. Available on PC and Xbox One, Battletoads (2020) has some big shoes to fill and a major reputation to live up to. And for the most part, the new game succeeds on both counts.

Battletoads’ new design

In some ways, the most divisive thing about the new Battletoads game is the new designs. While the earlier games made the toads look like an edgy variant of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new game gives them a highly stylized and cartoonish look.

That look is divisive among fans. While the animation is very crisp (like Cuphead with a light filter of grain), the “take control of a cartoon” aesthetic isn’t for everyone.

I was one of the players initially turned off by the new designs. They eventually won me over, but that may be a side effect of the fun gameplay rather than the art design.

Different toads, different styles

Battletoads has had multiplayer gaming in its DNA from the very beginning. But in those early games, the toads typically played exactly the same. And only a few cosmetic differences let you tell who is who.

In this new game, the differences are more than skin deep. Each toad has a different fighting style and different sets of crazy animations for their attacks.

These different styles are still balanced, though. Pimple may hit the hardest, for example, but he moves the slowest. And it will be up to each player to find the toad best suited to their style.