Crime Fighters

Crime Fighters is a 1989 Konami arcade beat 'em up, an early example of the side-scrolling brawler genre that the company would help define. Set in a grimy urban world, it puts one to four players in the shoes of trench-coated cops walking the streets to rescue kidnapped women, throwing punches and kicks at gangs of enemies along the way.

It is often remembered as a stepping stone toward Konami's more polished later brawlers, with a rough, aggressive tone and the studio's signature support for a large number of simultaneous players in the four-player cabinet. The controls and pacing feel primitive next to the genre's mid-90s peak, but as a piece of arcade history it shows Konami working out the ideas it would refine in bigger hits. Worth a look mainly for enthusiasts tracing the evolution of the beat 'em up.