Ryu, Ken and Chun-Li are some of the most instantly recognisable characters in the entire beat em up genre so it should come as no surprise that a Street Fighter game should place highly on this list. Street Fighter II is not only the finest entry in this superb franchise but is also one of the greatest beat em up games of all time, being pivotal in establishing the norms weve come to expect in the genre. The game is known to have been stocked in practically every arcade (particularly in Japan) and it isnt difficult to see why. Capcom's legendary beat 'em up is widely praised as the one which first introduced the combo mechanic allowing veteran players to chain together attacks and dominate their opponents. The game also popularised the ability for two players to compete against one-another head-to-head, where previously the genre had been reliant on people just proving their mettle by posting a decent high score. The competitive play which this innovation encouraged established our desire to out-skill our human adversaries, which remains the main motivation to master a beat em up to this day. Combine all these innovations with graphics which miraculously hold up to this day and it should come as no wonder that it is remembered as one of the greats of the genre.
Hailing from South East London, Sam Heard is an aspiring writer and recent graduate from the University of Warwick. Sam's favourite things include energy drinks, late nights spent watching the UFC with his girlfriend and annihilating his friends at FIFA.
