Riot Zone (1992). Play online

Summary

Riot Zone drops you into neon‑washed Kowloon, where you punch through thugs in classic side‑scrolling beat ’em‑up style. Choose Hawk, a balanced vigilante, or Tony, a heavyweight with a break‑dancing move, and clear enemies from both sides before each boss.

The game foregoes weapon pickups, offering points and health items only, while a CD‑DA soundtrack gives surprisingly polished audio for the TurboGrafx‑CD. Its flow mirrors Capcom’s Final Fight, yet Riot Zone forces the screen to pause until all foes disappear, adding a tactical rhythm.

A 1991 Westone arcade title, Riot City was rebadged by Hudson Soft for the TurboGrafx‑CD—much like their Wonder Boy conversions. A 2008 Virtual Console release revived it for North American gamers, letting a new audience taste this nostalgic fighter.

Storyline

Riot Zone opens in a gritty New York City where two street‑wise fighters, Hawk Takezaki and Tony Aldus, report to their boss, chief Jim Hyde.
They tell Hyde they have finally cornered the criminal mastermind known as Bossman inside the heavily fortified DragonZone.
Hyde warns Hawk to stay out of the DragonZone and return home, but Hawk ignores the order, determined to smash the zone and rescue a girl named Candy.
Tony volunteers to back Hawk, pledging to fight alongside him on the dangerous mission.