The four characters are the towering but slow Ivan, swift and confident Sergei, the feisty Natasha and the foul and insane Boris. Waking up in a putrid underground cell having been infected with a new drug called Nekro, you make your way to whoever is behind this whole ordeal with the assistance of your newfound ‘gifts’ and so the Soviet carnage begins. Set in Russia in 1986, you play as up to four characters that make a living prize-fighting in a traveller’s camp which is raided by a shady corporation. The story is pretty bare bones and comes off like a wonderfully trashy B-movie. Although limited in some aspects by the classic issues of the genre such as some enemies tantalisingly close but yet off-screen and thus just out of reach of a good kicking and the occasional rearing of the head of repetition, Mother Russia Bleeds has enough tricks up its sleeve to keep things feeling fresh for it’s 2 ½ – 3 hour running time and the fun (and yuck) factor definitely gives it replayability. If Streets of Rage 2 is a tale of retribution on the New York streets as directed by Walter Hill, Mother Russia Bleeds would be Gaspar Noe’s take on matters. There’s something about the brawler genre that is close to my heart, from the days of Final Fight and the 90’s titan that is Streets of Rage 2 all the way through to its recent resurgence in games like Streets of Red: Devil’s Dare Deluxe (another awesome co-op title for the punchy-punchy fans out there), all of these games shine in multiplayer and are perfectly suited to the Switch’s sensibilities. One of the dirtiest, grimiest, most miserable and bloody side-scrolling brawlers I’ve ever played… and I love it so.

Mother russia bleeds ivan