Dangerous Streets
| Industry | Video game development |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1993 |
| Headquarters | Italy |
Dangerous Streets is a fighting game released in 1993, created by the Italian developer Micromania and published by Flair Software for the Amiga, Amiga CD32, and MS-DOS platforms. Included as part of The Dangerous Streets Pack with the CD32 console, the title received overwhelmingly negative feedback from reviewers.
Gameplay
The game offers several modes including head-to-head two-player combat, solo matches against AI opponents, and a tournament-style competition. Players select from eight distinct fighters and control them via joystick or keyboard, performing punches and kicks at three intensity levels: light, medium, and heavy. Damage sustained by each character is visually represented through portraits displayed beneath the main fighting area.
Characters
- Sgiosacapeli: An Italian DJ who transitioned into a martial artist skilled in Shotokan Street Fighting.
- Pinen: A Swiss truck driver recognized for his formidable reputation in local taverns.
- Tony: A playboy fighter blending meditation and dark mystical abilities with street combat techniques.
- Luisa: A French physical education instructor whose athletic prowess conceals her formidable fighting capabilities.
- Macalosh: A Sioux spiritual figure trained in indigenous combat arts alongside woodland creatures.
- Ombra: An American palmist wielding occult powers developed under the guidance of a Pennsylvania alchemist.
- Keo: A German monk equipped with spring-loaded footwear that enhances agility and allows transformation into the Moat Monster.
- Lola: A British karate champion from Osaka who balances her modeling career with dedication to martial excellence.
Reception
Critical response to Dangerous Streets was predominantly unfavorable. Stuart Campbell of Amiga Power assigned the game a 3% score, labeling it the worst title available on the CD32 and one of the poorest games overall. The magazine Amiga CD32 Gamer rated it 2 out of 10, highlighting flaws such as inaccurate anatomy in animations, limited frame counts, excessively rapid movement, and unresponsive controls. The review suggested that bundling the game with the CD32 either showed disdain for consumers or was influenced by Sega.
Among international critiques, French publication Joystick offered a comparatively favorable rating of 65%, whereas German magazine Amiga Joker gave it 20%, acknowledging the quality of graphics and audio but condemning the gameplay mechanics.
In his 2015 book Terrible Old Games You've Probably Never Heard Of, Stuart Ashen discussed the Amiga CD32 edition, noting that despite screenshots depicting well-defined characters and vibrant backgrounds, the animation quality was "beyond laughable." He speculated this might have been a deliberate marketing strategy aimed at impressing reviewers. Ashen also disparaged the gameplay and controls as erratic, jerky, and illogical, with movement hindered by awkward jump animations.
The game was briefly showcased in 2018 by Angry Video Game Nerd during an episode focused on Amiga CD32 titles, where it received similar harsh criticism.