Overview
How to unlock secret boss fight stages
Introduction
Streets of Rage 4 launched on April 30th, and fans of the series as well as newcomers have been raving about the new arcade-style beat ’em up, which has already received ‘Very Positive’ reviews on Steam.
It adds a new look and feel to the series, using awe-inspiring hand-drawn animations and a new-age soundtrack, as well as introducing some new and existing characters to the roster – not to mention that it’s also the first Streets of Rage game to offer online co-op in the franchises’s near 30-year history, albeit the majority were released before 1994!
Despite the upgrades to make it appealing to new audiences, the game still has that great nostalgia surrounding it, paying tribute to what made the original three games great, and adding tweaks and enhancements here and there to ensure everyone can enjoy it as much as those did in the 90s. Aside from the return of characters like Axel and Blaze, the scrumptious braised chickens and apples that can be consumed for health (which are now customizable), and a familiar setting, the game also pays tribute to its predecessors by including secret boss stages from the original games.
There are specific requirements to unlock these stages, and it’s definitely easy to stroll on past them if you’re not paying attention. Here, we’ve put together a helpful guide on how you can unlock the secret boss battles in Streets of Rage 4.
If you’re on your first playthrough, be sure to keep this guide open with you as you go along – or alternatively, if you’ve completed the required stages, you can hit the Stage Select section on the main menu and follow the guide’s instructions whenever you need it!
Secret boss stage #1
Soon after this, another guard with a taser will appear, and the cell at the top of the screen will open, allowing prisoners to head out and try their luck against you. It’s important that you DO NOT use the taser dropped by the guard to attack anyone.
Once you’ve eliminated all of the enemies, pick up the taser and head to the right. As you head right, you’ll see three rooms – two closed yellow doors – and an open door with an arcade machine inside – these arcade machines are your ticket into the retro boss fight worlds!
Walk up to the arcade machine and hit it with the taser, DO NOT throw the taser at it as this appears to not activate the secret level. Once hit with the taser, the machine will break and you’ll be transported to a retro scene from Streets of Rage 2 where you’ll face the knife-wielding Jack.
There’s also the chance to grab a Star and a retro knife to take back with you from underneath the streets signs on the right hand side of the level.
Secret boss stage #2
Take him out and remember to leave the taser until all enemies are dealt with. Then, head through the door at the top of the screen into the Arcade and walk along to the left hand side of the building until you reach the arcade machine.
Use the taser to zap and it and, hey presto, you’ve been transported to another nostalgic setting – this time, you’re up against the agile long-clawed Zamza from Streets of Rage 2.
Defeat him and a crate will drop from the air with a Star inside.
Secret boss stage #3
Move right towards a pool table in the middle of the map, and you should see a cross on the wall – the arcade machine is located a few metres to the right of it. One big piece of advice here is to not go crazy throwing weapons across the screen as it’s very easy to bust the arcade machine before you’ve even got to it – and that goes for special and those crazy flying kicks, alright?
You should find a taser on the carpet once you’ve destroyed the pool table. Take it and go zap that arcade machine. In this boss stage, you’ll be going toe to toe with hence wrestler Abadede from Streets of Rage 1 & 2. There are two crates close by, one with a braised chicken/whatever custom big meal you’ve chosen, and a Star.
Secret boss stage #4
Here, you’ll head into a room filled with golden braised chickens, delicious, as well as an arcade machine at the far left of the room. Now, this is tricky as you won’t see where the taser is – so what you need to do is head slightly down towards the wooden pallet that’s leaning against a crate (with a braised chicken on top of it) and press the pick up button.
Once you’ve got the taser, go zap the machine and you’ll be taken to a memorable location for anyone whose played the original Streets of Rage – the top level of the Syndicate Headquarters!
After taking out a number of thugs, you’ll go up against retro Shiva – who has a pretty similar move set in his modern form which you also face in a different section of Streets of Rage 4.
Once you’ve defeated Shiva, it’s time for the big guy!
Mr X will rise from his chair, tommy gun in hand, and attempt to take you down, as well as a few more thugs entering the fray. Once he’s defeated, a crate will drop from the ceiling and you’ll be able to claim another much-needed Star for upcoming battles.
Unlock All Characters
There are 13 characters to unlock in Streets of Rage 4.
Some of them are duplicates of characters such as Axel Stone and Blaze Fielding but since they are different sprites from different Streets of Rage games, they count as separate entities.
How do you unlock the characters in the game?
To unlock specific characters, you will need to accumulate many points in the game and continually increase your score.
By playing through different modes, you will earn points for life.
This counter fills up as you defeat the bad guys.
If you chain attacks together and eliminate more enemies by increasing your multiplier, you will earn more points.
You can also earn points by completing levels with new characters, progressing through higher difficulty levels, and achieving a high letter rank for the stages to beat.
The stages to beat are based on how much HP you have left, how long it took you to complete a level, and how many stars you have left at the end of a stage.
Reaching specific hit point counter marks will unlock new characters to choose from on the Character Selection screen.
There is one character that cannot be unlocked in this way, more about this below, but the other 12 can be unlocked.
Complete list of characters that can be unlocked from Streets of Rage 4
• Adam Hunter – Beat chapter four of the campaign
• Streets of Rage 1 Axel Stone – Collect 200,000 lifetime points
• Streets of Rage 1 Adam Hunter – Reach 250,000 lifetime points
• Streets of Rage 1 Blaze Fielding – Hit 310,000 lifetime points
• Streets of Rage 2 Max Thunder – Get 390,000 lifetime points
• Streets of Rage 2 Axel Stone – Accumulate 480,000 lifetime points
• Streets of Rage 2 Blaze Fielding – Reach 570,000 lifetime points
• Streets of Rage 2 Skate Hunter – Hit 650,000 lifetime points
• Streets of Rage 3 Axel Stone – Accumulate 730,000 lifetime points
• Streets of Rage 3 Blaze Fielding – Hit 840, 000 lifetime points
• Streets of Rage 3 Skate Hunter – Get 940,000 lifetime points
• Streets of Rage 3 Dr Gilbert Zan – Collect 1,050,000 lifetime points
• Streets of Rage 3 Shiva – Reach 1,150,000 lifetime points