As a kid who grew up in the 80s, arcades were a central part of my life, and the classic beat-em-up was always one of my favorite genres to spend my quarters on. The siren call of the quarter-pumper was hard to resist, especially when you could convince yourself that with just one more credit you’d get over that big boss battle hump. While they’d pop up periodically over the years, it wasn’t really until this generation that they once again emerged with some new energy, taking the form of both new franchises and some revitalized ones as well.

Arriving a bit late to the party, but sporting some good old-fashioned bloody violence (though dialed back in the North American release), Night Slashers is a bit of a legend for those who played it. Mixing the genre with some over-the-top horror flavor was absolutely a smart move, and the thrill of curb-stomping some vampires, werewolves, and more was hard to deny. With beat-em-up redux titles doing well on the Switch, giving the upconversion treatment to this classic also makes quite a lot of sense… at least I’m sure it did on paper.

The problem is that this conversion isn’t what I’d consider a very successful one. While wanting to update the game’s original look with some modern flair is understandable, the art style they’ve opted for in this case feels more like a liability than an asset. If nothing else the somewhat sterile character art doesn’t fit terribly well with the bloody action to begin with, but there’s also something off in how the game feels in terms of its responsiveness. Whether or not that can be blamed on the graphical look could be debated, but there’s just a hint of sluggishness in the action as it responds to the controls and that’s never a positive thing. 

It’s a bit of a shame in the end, as in theory this remake had a lot on its side that could have helped make it a success. What had been a liability in Western arcades back in the day would now be a selling point, the more bloody and violent the better. The problem is that in execution it’s hard not to walk away from the experience feeling like it just ended up as a pretty odd bird overall. There’s still some cool play to be had here, but if you were expecting it to be another outstanding update of a classic you may find this to be a mixed bag.