River City Girls 2[a] is a 2022 beat 'em upvideo game developed by WayForward and published by Arc System Works. It is the sequel to the 2019 game River City Girls, itself a spin-off the Kunio-kun franchise. The game was released for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S, in December 2022.[1] A mobile port, published by Crunchyroll Games was released on Android and iOS on November 20, 2024. A spin-off of the Kunio-kun franchise, the game continues the story of friends Kyoko and Misako following the events of the 2019 game as they face a new threat to their community. Together they team up with their boyfriends Kunio and Riki to defeat this threat.
Gameplay
River City Girls 2 is a beat-em-up brawler. The player can initially choose between Kyoko, Misako, Riki, and Kunio, with more characters becoming unlockable as the player progresses through the game.
According to review aggregatorMetacritic, River City Girls 2 received "generally favourable reviews" for all versions. The Nintendo Switch version received a score of 78 out of 100, the PlayStation 5 received a score of 75 out of 100, and the Windows version received a score of 81 out of 100.[6][7][8]
Critics praised the animation and soundtrack. In particular the addition of new playable characters and new areas was well-received. Some criticisms reflected the lack of a mini-map and a largely similar experience to the previous game.
IGN Jarret Green reviewed the game positively, giving the game a 8/10. Green praised the art direction, dense combat and sense of humour, but noted that he had to "spend an awful lot of time backtracking through parts of the city to check boxes to progress the main story", but that the areas "deserves to stand shoulder to shoulder with beautiful retro contemporaries like Streets of Rage 4 and TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge". He also noted that the combat took some time to gain complexity, referring to the early game as "particularly shallow" but "once you get further down the combo rabbit hole the offensive options feel spectacular."[9]
Notes
^Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun Gaiden Ribā Shitī Gāruzu 2 (Japanese: 熱血硬派くにおくん外伝 River City Girls 2) lit. Hot-blooded Tough Guy Kunio Side Story: River City Girls 2
