Description of Knuckle Bash

Knuckle Bash is a peculiar little game. Think of Final Fight with better graphics, crazier characters and more entertaining gameplay, with the plot being yet another variation on the classic beat’em-up theme: three wrestlers set out to stop a criminal gang calling themselves the ‘Mad Bulls’.

The controls are pretty much the same as in any other beat-em-up of the time as well: an 8-way joystick and two buttons; button one for attack and button two for jump; press jump and attack buttons in a succession for joystick-directed jump-attack; press both simultaneously to perform a super attack, which is super effective but drains your HPs.

Aside from the initial three available characters, Dice, Clash and Devo, two others, Mr. Hayate and the Captain, can be unlocked by completing the two sets of stages presented in the game, before eventually engaging the final stage.

Now, Knuckle Bash may not be all that much innovative at all, I’ll give you that. It does excel in two things, however: character design and superb hand drawn sprites. Really, the graphics are just sweet. From the Miami themed marina stage all the way to the Chinatown level, Knuckle Bash offers one of the best visuals I’ve ever seen in the world of 2D arcade video games. And the character design, well—what is the last time you could play as a wrestler who’s also an Elvis impersonator? And what is the last time you’ve challenged a queer mime gangster boss?

As Nick Zverloff put it: Knuckle Bash doesn’t take itself too seriously. And it is just this goofiness and the refreshing color palette used in the artwork of the game, that makes it such an enjoyable experience. And Although Knuckle Bash lacks any kind of pick-ups whatsoever, it’s still definitely one of those better beat-em-ups out there. Maybe not as good as Capcom’s AvP, but definitely better than many others. And believe me, a tremendeous heap of such games comes to my mind immediately.