Let's Play a Game: "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time" (SNES)

On this episode we'll be playing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 4 (Turtles In Time). I remember renting this game for the first time when I was a kid. It was AWESOME ! It still holds up as a fun game. Cowabunga !

"Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time" is a classic scrolling beat-'em-up video game developed by Konami for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), released in 1992. Serving as a sequel to the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles arcade game, it adapts the popular animated series' art style and characters, featuring the four Turtles—Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael—as they battle through time to stop the villainous Shredder and his minions. The SNES version, retitled from its arcade counterpart to continue the numbering of previous NES Turtles games, introduces players to a time-traveling adventure across various eras, including prehistoric times, medieval Europe, and a futuristic Technodrome, with levels like "Sewer Surfin’" and "Big Apple, 3 AM." The game is praised for its vibrant visuals, faithful cartoon-inspired graphics, and catchy chiptune soundtrack, earning it spots on lists like GamesRadar’s "Best SNES Games of All Time" (ranked #24) and Time Extension’s "Best Beat ‘Em Ups of All Time" (top 25). However, it’s also critiqued for repetitive gameplay and short length, as noted by reviews in The Armchair Empire and Nintendojo, though the latter hailed it as the best Ninja Turtles game ever.
The SNES version differs from the arcade original, adding exclusive content like the "Technodrome: Let’s Kick Shell!" level with an elevator fight sequence, and introducing new bosses such as the Rat King, Slash, and Bebop and Rocksteady, while moving Tokka and Rahzar to the Technodrome level. Unlike the arcade version, "Turtles in Time" was not distributed for arcades in Japan; however, a Japanese SNES release titled ティーンエイジ・ミュータント・ニンジャ・タートルズIV タートルズ・イン・タイム (Tīn'ēji Myūtanto Ninja Tātoruzu IV Tātoruzu in Taimu) was made available, maintaining the same core gameplay but aligning with regional naming conventions (using "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" instead of "Hero Turtles" as in Europe). The game’s SNES port also adjusts enemy designs and adds Super Shredder as the final boss, drawing from "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze." A 2009 remake, "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time Re-Shelled," updated the graphics and sound for modern platforms, but the SNES original remains a beloved classic among retro gaming fans for its tight controls, cooperative multiplayer, and nostalgic appeal on the 16-bit console.