Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time Re-Shelled

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time Re-Shelled is a modern rebirth of the classic side-scrolling beat-'em-up Turtles in Time from the nineties, rebuilt in three-dimensional graphics and released digitally on the consoles of that generation. The core concept stays true to the original: the four turtle brothers work through a series of levels full of Kraang and Shredder goons, smashing them with special attacks and combos, with a boss fight waiting at the end of every level, ideally with several players at once.

On Xbox 360 the game was released as a title available through Xbox Live Arcade, meaning a digitally downloadable game with no boxed release, which at the time also shaped expectations about scope and price — it was a shorter, compact experience meant more for repeated play with a group than for a single long playthrough. This version uses four-player online co-op via Xbox Live alongside local multiplayer, so even players without a friend nearby could experience the game the way it was primarily intended — as a group. The reworked three-dimensional cel-shaded graphics evoking hand-drawn art try to preserve the visual identity of the original game while using more modern technology, and the soundtrack and attack sounds draw from the nineties original, making this more of a faithful remake in a new coat than a fundamental overhaul of the content. Console-bound achievements also give players a reason to replay individual levels repeatedly and hunt for hidden bonuses, something that made no sense for the original arcade game.

Why play it: Re-Shelled on Xbox 360 will appeal to players who want to experience the classic turtle beat-'em-up in a more modern graphical form with four-player online co-op, ideally with a group of friends looking for undemanding fun over a few evenings.