Renegade

Renegade brought to the ZX Spectrum a port of a popular Japanese arcade brawler and, with it, gameplay that was then unusually fresh, in which the main hero fights his way through the streets with fists, kicks and improvised weapons against gangs attacking from both sides of the screen. The player moved not only left and right but also up and down across the width of the street, which allowed circling opponents and attacking from the side – a mechanic that later became a standard of the entire beat 'em up genre. Each of the four levels, from a subway through a park to the final confrontation, had its own gang of opponents with a distinct fighting style, so the game demanded constant adaptation of tactics.

The Spectrum version preserved the nimble animations of the fist fights and remained clear despite the black-and-white background and limited colour palette for the characters, keeping fights against multiple enemies at once legible. The one-button-attack controls with directional keys for movement and kicks were easy to learn, but fighting several opponents at once required a feel for dodge timing. The sound was sparse, as was customary on the Spectrum, but the rhythm of blows and falling opponents lent the gameplay a brisk pace.

Renegade was met with an enthusiastic reception on release and is still considered today one of the key titles that defined the side-scrolling beat 'em up genre on home computers even before the arrival of console hits like Streets of Rage. Its emphasis on movement across the playing field and fighting a crowd of enemies influenced a number of later games in the same genre. Today the game will appeal mainly to players interested in the roots of the brawler genre, who will find a still-functioning core of fun in its simplicity and directness. The game was based on a Japanese arcade original by Technos, which was repackaged and renamed Renegade for Western markets, and its success on the Spectrum later brought its own sequel, Target: Renegade, featuring the same main hero.

Why play: For anyone interested in the roots of the beat 'em up genre, who will find a still-functioning core of fun in fighting a crowd of enemies in the street, even before the arrival of console hits like Streets of Rage.