Charlie Murder

The newest game from the creators of Vampire Smile is a "punk-rock" action brawler that has a lot of interesting ideas, but soon becomes quite repetitive due to its weak fighting system.

This is a nice beat 'em up title with four player co-op support, but it isn't really special. Most frustrating is the bad save system, like it was 20 years ago.

All told though, once you get past the initial baptism of fire Charlie Murder still has lots to recommend it. With the addition of two further playthroughs of increasing difficulty available once you complete it, there’s plenty of longevity in the game. Whether you’ll want to do it solo is another matter though. Grab some friends and turn the dial up to eleven - it will make for a far better experience.

A punk-apocalyptical action game with an intense rock&roll atmosphere. Charlie Murder is a real treat for fans of old school "beat 'em up" games, although the gameplay suffers from stacking too many underdeveloped ideas into the same package.

Charlie Murder relives the good old days when games like Double Dragon and Streets of Rage reigned supreme. As fun as that may be, Charlie Murder also forgets to get with its time. This beat ‘m up offers a sizable amount of fun, with some antique concepts.

Dull minigames don’t do the Charlie crew any favors, but the RPG elements give us something to fight for.

With all of the positives, then, its just a shame that infuriating checkpoints and shoddy bosses hold back what is otherwise a really enjoyable trip down memory lane. Charlie Murder never breaks new ground in terms of gameplay, but with a couple of fellow safety-pin pariahs by your side, there’s no doubting that this can be a hell of a ride.

It's hard to tell where the punk lifestyle ends in Charlie Murder, whether in the game or with Ska Studios itself, and the game's insane, patchwork gameplay is a thrill.

Unless you’re really, really into brawler games and have a few like-minded friends on hand, you can safely take a pass on this year’s second Summer of Arcade title. Despite novel graphics and a silly story, it feels kinda bland.