They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery; if that is the case, I’m being very flattered at the moment, given that the content I’m writing for midlifegamergeek.com, of which this article is a part, is being stolen and posted elsewhere by some absolute idiots.

Also, if true, Capcom and Sega should be well and truly flattered by Bitmap Bureau’s 2022 love letter to the side-scrolling, 90s-style urban beat ’em up, which Final Vendetta beautifully captures the style and spirit of.

In Final Vendetta, you choose a fighter from a selection of characters who could easily have stepped out of a Final Fight arcade cabinet, or a Streets of Rage cartridge. Your mission is to rescue the younger sister of Claire Sparks (Claire being one of the playable characters), who’s been kidnapped by the Syndic8 gang.

The Syndic8 gang have been increasing in power and have been taking over the streets of London; it’s up to you and your friends to take them down a peg or two, and rescue Claire’s sister too.

It’s classic side scrolling fare, with gorgeous pixel art, beautiful and varied stages; of course, you get to travel on the tube, just as you get a subway train ride from hell in Capcom’s iconic Final Fight. You also get to visit a nightclub, which gives the already banging soundtrack even more of an excuse to go to 11.

Speaking of which, the music – by Featurecast and 90s ravers Utah Saints – really is phenomenal, and this is another area where it pays great homage to games such as the Streets of Rage series, which had absolute stunners of soundtracks, especially as they were running on cartridges.

In gameplay terms, you won’t struggle too much to get through the game on its easiest level, but rewards await for really pushing yourself with the higher levels of difficulty. It plays beautifully, with that aforementioned, stunning pixel art style and a good array of moves to help you knock out the varied members of Syndic8.

It can be a problem when a game pays homage to others too closely; there’s always a danger that you’ll find yourself wanting to go back and check the originals, rather than playing the tribute act. That’s not the case with Final Vendetta, however, which remains compelling throughout its (admittedly slender) duration.

If you’re a fan of side scrolling beat ’em ups – and, it seems plenty of gamers are, given what a strong renaissance the genre has been going through in the last few years – then getting your hands on Final Vendetta should be a no-brainer.

It’s been designed with so much passion and knowledge for the genre it so lovingly recreates, and it has one of the very best soundtracks ever heard in a beat ’em up, even giving the classic Streets of Rage series a run for its money.

Personally, as someone who seems to eternally adore Final Fight as much as Bitmap Bureau clearly do, I can’t recommend Final Vendetta enough. It’s a fantastic game with perfect presentation, and stunning audiovisual design.

What’s cool is that, in true Bitmap Bureau style, they’ve not just released it on modern platforms, but on retro hardware too. It’s even possible to get hold of Final Vendetta for the Neo Geo, but it carries an eye watering price tag that the platform is famous for.

Hi! I’m Jason, and I write for midlifegamergeek.com, every single day. If you’re interested in supporting original, regularly published, human created content (which has never been plagiarised or otherwise copied from the hard work of other writers), you can donate and help me to keep this site running.

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Any donations are truly appreciated – and I also appreciate you taking the time to read my articles. Remember: this whole article was by Jason Brown, and appeared on midlifegamergeek.com. Take that, Skynet!