Renegade (Arcade)

Renegade
Also known as: Nekketsu Kouha Kunio-kun (JP) Developer: Technos Japan Publishers: Technos Japan (JP), Taito (US) Platform: Arcade (Custom) Released in JP: 1986 Released in US: 1986 This game has debugging material. This game has regional differences.

Whether you play as the most bad-ass highschool boy or a The Warriors knockoff, what you're looking at is pretty much the game that started it all when it comes to popularazing the beat-others-up-in-the-middle-of-the-street genre. Sooo much would come from this game... including succesors, sequels, and spin offs.

Test Mode

In the Japanese version, hold 1P and 2P Start while turning on the machine to activate a test mode. The game will run through several test screens:

• RAM TEST
• ROM TEST
• BACK TEST — Scrolls through the backgrounds of the last stage.
• MIX TEST — Diagonally scrolls a wall of Kunio sprites.
• SOUND TEST — Briefly plays through the music and sound effects.
• FLIP TEST — Flips the screen vertically.
• SW TEST — Displays dip switch settings.

(Source: arcade-museum.com)

Regional Differences

Title Screen

Japan	US

The title screen is completely different, depicting Nekketsu High School in the Japanese version and a spraypainted wall in the US version.

High Score & Attract Mode

Japan	US

The high score screen in the Japanese version shows the score rankings in front of a plain green background, Renegade's is a slightly different version of the background from the title screen. The default scores were also changed to be less low-effort.

Something exclusive to the Japanese version is that when the score rankings are shown during the attract mode's gameplay demos, the stage backgrounds are replaced with the high score ranks are shown in front of the characters.

Stage Intermissions

In the Japanese version, the game shows short cutscenes before the start of each stage which gives context as to why we're beating up everyone, they all show the stages' gangs beating up Kunio's classmate Hiroshi to the ground and Kunio chasing after them. In Renegade the game starts the stages immediately, which makes it seem like it lacks an apparent plot at least until the ending (see below).

Game Over

Japan	US

The Japanese version shows the Game Over screen in front of the same background from the stage intermissions of Nekketsu high school and Renegade shows a variation of the title screen's background with a "The End" graffiti.

Name Entry

Japan	US

The name registration screen in the Japanese version has a rather fancy design, a keyboard-style table to choose what letter to add, the icons of the game's bosses and Kunio as decorations and a timer. The one in Renegade has the same screen seen in the attract mode instead of a screen exclusively dedicated to the name entry like the Japanese's (and due to this there are no decorative icons), the letter typing is a "choose one letter at a time" style, and the time left is not shown.

HUD

The player and stage bosses' life bars in the Japanese version elegantly show what the characters' names are, in the US version this was sacrificed due to there not being enough space for non-Japanese letters in them.

Player

Japan	US

The ass-kicking high school student that we play as in the Japanese version is called Kunio. In Renegade, his name was replaced with two different graphics that indicate what player's turn is it to control the character.

Bosses

Japan	US

The bosses of this game's four levels (Riki, Shinji, Misuzu and Sabu respectively) had their names replaced by their enemy classification.

Characters

To do: Enemies.

Player

Japan	US

The protagonist was changed from a black-haired Japanese high schooler in uniform named Kunio to a brown-haired nameless dude (whom the localization of the NES version would name him Mr. K) with an open vest and baggy pants, look that was inspired by the characters in the 1979 film The Warriors.

Stages

Stage 1

Japan
US

The first stage was completely changed from an outdoor train station to an underground one.

Stage 3

Japan
US

Numerous signs were translated and one particular sign on the top left was removed. Taito was given credit on one of the signs too.

Stage 4

Japan
US

More sign translations, but the graffiti text behind the parked cars was removed. The inside of the boss' building is the same, with all the Japanese elements intact.

Ending

Japan	US

In the Japanese version, Kunio exits Sabu's building to find Hiroshi and other classmates. The two shake hands while their classmates clap for them. In the US version, the player meets a girl (no context is given on who she is though) and they kiss.