The Best Beat-em-up Games for Linux

Update : Impractical Spells added at rank #29.
1

Streets of Rage 4 (2020)

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90
Review score
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Android Linux Mac OS PC Windows Xbox One IOS iPhone

Streets of Rage 4 is the long awaited fourth entry into the classic Sega franchise. It features a blend of old and new, with classic characters such as Axel and Adam Hunter returning alongside a new main character, Cherry. All characters have unique playstyles, from Axel's powerful punches to Cherry's speedy strikes. There are tons of unlockables to discover and it has an amazing soundtrack.


What we like:
  • Satisfying combat
  • Incredible music and visuals
  • Tons to unlock
  • Simple yet rewarding combat mechanics
What could be improved:
  • Lack of 4 player online
  • Occasionally too easy to get cornered

  • brawler
  • boss
  • cooperative
  • beat-em-up
  • combo
  • retro
  • classic
  • side-scrolling
  • fight
  • old-school
  • arcade
  • online
  • hand-drawn
  • crime
  • combat

2

BROK the InvestiGator (2022)

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86
Review score
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PC Windows Playstation 5 Playstation 4 Xbox Series X Xbox One Nintendo Switch Linux Mac OS

BROK the InvestiGator is an adventure game set in a futuristic cyberpunk city where humans have been replaced by animals and robots. Join Brok, a former boxer turned private detective, as he attempts to uncover a sinister plot while struggling with parenthood and providing for his deceased wife's son. Experience the fusion of point-and-click adventure and beat 'em up gameplay styles as you explore your surroundings, talk to NPCs and solve puzzles.


What we like:
  • Fully voiced cast
  • Seamless fusion of point-and-click and beat 'em up genres
  • Relatable story with heartfelt moments
  • Sherlock Holmes­-esque interrogation sequences
  • Multiple endings for replayability
What could be improved:
  • Some puzzles are too simple to work out
  • Some sequences drag on too long serving little purpose outside of padding out the runtime

  • point-and-click
  • detective
  • beat-em-up
  • cyberpunk
  • dystopian
  • adventure
  • soundtrack
  • choices
  • investigation
  • futuristic
  • fight
  • mystery
  • cartoony
  • puzzle
  • post-apocalyptic

3

Final Vendetta (2022)

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74
Review score
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Playstation 5 Nintendo Switch Playstation 4 Xbox Series X Xbox One PC Windows Mac OS Linux

Final Vendetta is an arcade-style throwback inspired by the 16 and 32-bit-era of gaming. It features large, gorgeously animated character sprites, true-to-the-era hand-drawn pixel art backgrounds and timeless old school flourishes. Perfectly combining elements from Final Fight and Streets of Rage 2 with generous dashes of NEO GEO style, Final Vendetta is a master class in kicking ass!


What we like:
  • Classic visuals and gameplay
  • Coop play for up to two players
  • Challenging bosses
What could be improved:
  • Limited lives on Easy or Hard mode
  • Some cheap enemy attacks and grabs

  • beat-em-up
  • arcade
  • boss
  • pixel
  • classic
  • brawler
  • old-school
  • soundtrack
  • fight
  • side-scrolling
  • retro
  • combo
  • cooperative
  • scroller
  • arts

4

River City: Rival Showdown (2023)

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72
Review score
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arcade l famicom game boy mega drive x68000 PC Windows-engine super famicom Game Boy Advanced (GBA) ds virtual console ps2 wiiware Nintendo 3DS Playstation 3 Playstation 4 Playstation 5 Xbox Series X/s Nintendo Switch PC Windows Linux Mac OS

River City Ransom is back, rebuilt from the ground up! Rekindle old rivalries and relive past rumbles through a completely revamped story!


  • beat-em-up
  • brawler
  • fight
  • 2d
  • scroller
  • metroidvania
  • 1980s
  • cooperative
  • pixel
  • old-school
  • action-adventure
  • multiplayer
  • remake
  • retro
  • hack-and-slash

5

9 Monkeys of Shaolin (2020)

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78
Review score
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Xbox One Nintendo Switch Linux PC Windows

9 Monkeys of Shaolin is a beat-em-up game with deep combat mechanics and varied level designs. The story follows Daokong, a man who joins a Shaolin order to seek revenge on the Japanese pirates that attacked his village. With generous parries, special attacks, seal moves and skill points to customize your abilities, you will feel like an unstoppable warrior!


What we like:
  • Deep combat mechanics
  • Varied level design
  • Generous parries and special attacks
  • Plenty of voice acting options
What could be improved:
  • Relatively short runtime
  • By-the-numbers plot

  • cooperative
  • beat-em-up
  • martial
  • fight
  • pirates
  • side-scrolling
  • local
  • brawler
  • online
  • ninja
  • arts
  • combat
  • old-school
  • hack-and-slash
  • action

6

Shing! (2020)

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74
Review score
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PC Windows Playstation 5 Xbox Series X Xbox One Nintendo Switch Playstation 4 Linux Mac OS

Experience the most exciting and immersive beat-em-up combat system ever – become a kickass ninja and slice some demons in style!


  • beat-em-up
  • demons
  • cooperative
  • ninja
  • fight
  • rogue-like
  • swordplay
  • hack-and-slash
  • 2.5d
  • spectacle
  • scroller
  • character
  • side-scrolling
  • colourful
  • arcade

7

PixelJunk Scrappers Deluxe (2023)

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74
Review score
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wii u vita ps1 portable Playstation 5 Playstation 4 Playstation 3 PC Windows Mac OS Nintendo Switch Linux google stadia facebook apple arcade

Clean up the streets of Junktown as a team of robot garbage collectors. Trash your opponents with up to 4 players or go it alone in this beat ‘em up that’s also a clean ‘em up!

Buy

  • beat-em-up
  • cyberpunk
  • collectathon
  • local
  • multiplayer
  • truck
  • cooperative
  • robots
  • stylized
  • futuristic
  • fight
  • colourful
  • 2d
  • squad
  • casual

8

Tonight We Riot (2020)

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93
Review score
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Linux Mac OS PC Windows Nintendo Switch

The game follows a player-controlled crowd of workers rather than a single character,[4] each member with their own weapons, to fight against Pinkertons, militias, and police as they move their way through a level. Players can inspire more workers to join the crowd by liberating factories and encouraging more workers to join the fight. The game's difficulty is dynamic as it is tied in part due to the size of the mob, from being extremely difficult as a single worker to challenging or easy as the mob grows in size.[5] The levels end in boss fights ranging from large vehicles operated by the police to the President of the fictional country the game takes place in.[6][7]


  • political
  • beat-em-up
  • crowd
  • politics
  • cooperative

9

Way of the Passive Fist (2018)

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92
Review score
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Linux Mac OS PC Windows Xbox One Playstation 4 Nintendo Switch

Way of the Passive Fist is a unique and colorful arcade brawler. Parry, Dodge and Dash to outwit and outlast your enemies on a desolate planet ruled by raiders, mutants and fanatical sun worshipers. It's a new kind of tactical fighting in the licensed arcade brawler for the 90s cartoon you wish existed.


  • beat-em-up
  • pixel
  • brawler
  • rhythm
  • action
  • fight

10

DYNABLASTER (2023)

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ND
Review score
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Linux Mac OS PC Windows IOS iPhone Android Nintendo Switch Xbox Series X Xbox One

Having been a blockbuster, DYNABLASTER® is a game for the strategic thinker whose smart tactics will instill fear in his competitors – playing online or local against others or against the computer. In this captivating action game, destroy your enemies with cleverly placed bombs.

Buy

  • cartoony
  • 3d
  • wargame
  • beat-em-up
  • hidden-object
  • cooperative
  • strategy
  • isometric
  • pvp
  • survival
  • top-down
  • local
  • colourful
  • action
  • multiplayer

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