TMNT: Shredder's Revenge Has Sold Over 1 Million Copies
With just under one month on the market, Shredder's Revenge has shown that the demand for arcade-style beat-em-ups is not to be dismissed.
Publisher Dotemu has confirmed via Twitter, on July 13th, 2022, that pixel-art arcade-inspired brawler, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge has surpassed 1 million copies sold. The game was released on all platforms on June 16th, to near-universal acclaim, and this level of success in such a short span of time lends credence to the argument that it has more to give than just nostalgia.
The video game history of these iconic turtles dates all the way back to 1989 when the first game dropped on arcades. Since then, the series has received numerous iterations and sequels, most of which found their way onto home consoles. Though there have been spinoffs and variations throughout, TMNT games are known for their classic side-scrolling beat-em-up co-op gameplay, where you and up to 4 friends can move up and down the playable terrain and beat down on baddies.
Much later, in 2022, Shredder’s Revenge sports a similar style of gameplay, albeit with new moves and modern quality-of-life improvements, such as not having to spend all your saved-up lunch money because you can’t get past a boss. One of the game’s many praised aspects is that it decided to stick close to the series’ origin, not just in gameplay but in visuals, opting for an old-school pixel art style, now smoother and slicker than ever.
The title was developed by Tribute Games; a Montreal-based studio with a particular focus on side-scrolling titles. Many in the team had previously formed part of Ubisoft where they worked on Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game, another beat-em-up with an old-school visual style.
Upon release, TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge was received with open arms and wide acclaim. The large majority of its reviews were positive, including right here on DualShockers. However, reviews are one thing, and commercial success is another. For a game that is quite far from Triple-A, meaning in terms of budget, of course, 1 million sales in under a month is a massive success.
This shows that multiplayer brawler titles such as this one have their merit beyond just nostalgia bait. After all, a significant portion of the current gaming market has little to no memory of playing arcade games in the late 80s to early 90s. This game has many wonderful aspects to it that aren’t seen much, even in the indie space, such as its same-screen 4-player co-op, and the simple yet satisfying brawler fun of beating up baddies (when in the easier difficulties, of course). Its pixel art is also stellar, though that has been getting a strong resurge in the indie market, and many now realize it can be just as beautiful as expensive 3D graphics.
Jose Garcia
Jose is an experienced video game analyst and reviewer, who earned his chops producing long-form video essays about the industry, those getting him his first bit of online recognition. His thousands of hours into Smash and Pokemon earn him the well-deserved title of “Nintendo Nerd” (he likes to say expert), but at heart, he, like many of us, is someone who appreciates the art of games in all its forms.
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