Top rated 'Anarchy Reigns' readies for international impact

Crazy, charismatic brawler Anarchy Reigns is finally coming to North America on January 8 and European regions on January 11.

The-Baron-punches-out-in-Anarchy-Reigns-Photo-AFP

Crazy, charismatic brawler Anarchy Reigns is finally coming to North America on January 8 and European regions on January 11.

The Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 game is also targeting a bit of a bargain price band, which should appeal to a hard-up public recovering from holiday excesses, or punters weighing up whether to take a chance on a Japanese gem.

In some ways it's a bit of an outlier -- neither part of an established franchise nor a well-known genre, with its arena beat 'em up probably closest to League of Legends, Dota 2, Awesomenauts, or Happy Wars, and a bonkers storyline that's even more gloriously farfetched than video game anime Asura's Wrath.

But for all the enthusiasm with which it's been received, it may as well be Streets of Rage 2: 3D Face Punch Edition, a new Power Stone, or the (il)logical conclusion of Sega's Virtua Fighter vision.

Japanese mag Famitsu gave it a hearty approval, a 9/9/9/9 from its four reviewers, commanding international outlets to take note.

Eurogamer and Metro's GameCentral followed with a rapturous 9/10 apiece, and while it should be said that Edge, Gamespot and NowGamer were a little more reserved -- in part due to bugs and glitches that have, one would hope, now been squashed -- Sega is sweetening the international deal with a surprise mid-price tag of $29 / €29 / £20.

Since Anarchy Reigns, developer Platinum Games has been hard at work on a new spin on the Metal Gear espionage series, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, an unapologetically action-oriented approach to a franchise that previously traded on complex narrative, smart humor, engrossing stealth and deftly presented anti-war sentiment.