TMNT: Tactical Takedown review: The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game you didn’t know you needed

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It’s surprising, even to the game director Xalavier Nelson Jr., that his Strange Scaffold team was given the opportunity to tell this particular story. Strange Scaffold is recognized for some of the top indie action games from recent years. Last year’s release, “I Am Your Beast,” required players to master tricky first-person shooter puzzles. A few years prior, “El Paso, Elsewhere” seemed like a dark, vampire-hunting version of “Max Payne.” As such, it’s not easy to accept that this unconventional studio behind unexpected hits is now developing a “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” game.

Initially, I discovered that the game titled “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tactical Takedown” would be a strategy-based game. This game would delve into the plot of the turtles maturing following the demise of their mentor, Master Splinter, and their longtime adversary, Shredder. This independent team is not only getting an opportunity to collaborate with a well-known franchise, but they are also venturing into an unprecedented narrative direction in visual media, as far as I’m aware. What shape could a “Ninja Turtles” story take without Master Splinter? Without Shredder?

It’s fortunate that Strange Scaffold enabled me to discover on my own. It’s puzzling why someone wouldn’t rely on this remarkable studio to breathe new life into a popular, well-trodden intellectual property, creating something groundbreaking and outshining all expectations. The game Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tactical Takedown is an exceptional blend of thrilling tactical combat, a gripping narrative centered around family, growing up, and dealing with loss, beautifully orchestrated with an outstanding soundtrack. Frankly, I never thought I’d say this about a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game, but it could very well be one of my top picks for the year.

Shell Yeah

To set the record straight, let me confess that I’m an ardent Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) enthusiast. My earliest recollections involve catching those iconic ’90s movies, despite their less-than-stellar ratings on Rotten Tomatoes today. Those memories will remain dear to me forever. I’ve followed various adaptations of the TV show and was thrilled with 2023’s Mutant Mayhem. But what truly captivated me was Dotemu and Tribute Games’ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge, the side-scrolling beat ’em up that dropped in 2022. As a TMNT fan, I’m no stranger to the content being a mixed bag. However, this game surpassed all my expectations and left me utterly amazed.

In the game titled “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tactical Takedown,” the story unfolds as the Foot Clan launches an attack on the turtles’ underground lair. At the time, it’s just Michelangelo at home, as Master Splinter has sadly passed away, causing a rift among the brothers. Raphael has partnered with Casey Jones to establish a detective agency, while Leonardo operates independently as a vigilante, demonstrating his prowess in the world on his own.

Michelangelo manages to escape from the initial attack (and here’s where you join the action), leaving the Foot Clan to ransack their home. Simultaneously, the rest of the turtles encounter adversaries all over the city. Somehow, the Foot has orchestrated simultaneous attacks across the metropolis, which can be attributed to their new leader, Karai.

The tale unfolds into four distinct segments, each featuring multiple chapters detailing the brothers’ efforts to safeguard their city and thwart Karai’s schemes. Having grown apart following the loss of their mentor, they must rediscover unity amidst the turmoil. Notably, Leonardo shoulders excessive burden in assuming leadership responsibilities while Splinter is absent, setting him up for some tough lessons. The story itself may not break new ground, but it offers a fresh perspective on characters we’ve known for a long time. So, how do our beloved Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles navigate their changing lives as they grow out of their teenage years?

As a fellow gaming enthusiast, allow me to assure you that you’re in for a treat if you’re fond of these beloved characters. Strange Scaffold seems to have seamlessly continued their storytelling journey as if they’ve been crafting these characters for eons.

PROS:

  1. Dynamic turn-based tactical battles with shifting maps;
  2. solid story that takes a known franchise in a new direction;
  3. excellent soundtrack.

CONS:

  1. Somewhat limited replayability;
  2. occasionally confusing UI.

Game Night in New York City

In a different perspective, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tactical Takedown appears unique compared to other games I’ve encountered. The fundamental gameplay centers around strategic, turn-based combat. During your turn as one of the turtles, you have a limited number of actions that can be utilized for movement or selecting from a variety of attacks each turtle possesses. Once all actions are depleted, your turn concludes and any remaining enemies advance towards you to attack. This follows the conventional approach for tactical games. However, what sets it apart is its distinctive art style.

In this game, each figure is a miniature figurine instead of a digital sprite. These minis come with round bases for stability on a table, much like real-life miniatures. The figures switch poses and respond when actions are taken or events occur, but they don’t automatically revert to a neutral stance. For example, after performing an ollie, Michelangelo stays mid-ollie on his skateboard until another action is selected. When an enemy is defeated, they stiffly tumble off their base and fall to the ground. The consistent adherence to this distinctive art style, even including the sound effect when new enemies land on the battlefield, gives the game a feel of an intricate board game setup rather than just a video game.

Instead of each battle happening in a fixed location, the terrain changes dynamically as you progress through the mission, creating a sense of constantly evolving environments that resemble building blocks being added or removed. The game provides a warning when an area is about to disappear, allowing you to move to safety or trap enemies within it, effectively eliminating them at the end of the turn. Most turtles have abilities to push, pull, or stick opponents, and I found myself knocking 75% of my enemies off the edge or into danger, rather than directly depleting their health bars.

As I dive into the pulsating heart of Tactical Takedown’s battlefields, I find myself engrossed in a world where small, nimble zones are constantly evolving. It might seem like these tweaks could disrupt my immersion, but somehow it feels intentional. This game isn’t striving for realism – instead, it proudly wears its ‘game’ label on its sleeve.

The story is captivating, no doubt, but the true joy lies in employing every trick up my sleeve to fell an entire room of adversaries, even if it means sending them tumbling off a tabletop. It’s a reminder that I’m playing a game, and it’s one I appreciate.

Turtle Tactics

Without a doubt, I’d be remiss not to delve deeper into the strategic aspects of the gameplay. At the onset of each mission, you can select any location on the map to drop in. Each turtle comes equipped with a variety of attack and maneuvering capabilities. Given the game’s propensity for allowing you to push enemies off the edge of the battlefield, all turtles possess some mechanism to push enemies back a step or two. As you progress through missions, you accumulate a currency that enables you to unlock new moves, which you can swap out based on your preference. Although it’s tempting to quickly move on to the next mission, I urge you to pause occasionally and investigate the additional options that become accessible (at least between every few missions).

The four turtles play in a way that makes transitioning between them effortless, yet each maintains its unique identity, much like their individual characters. Michelangelo specializes in maneuverability, leaping over adversaries and performing an “ollie” rather than the usual jump. Raphael is characterized by his close-combat prowess, featuring moves that allow him to charge headlong into conflict and occasionally sacrifice health for increased damage and mobility. Donatello employs gadgets and his long bo staff to manipulate the battlefield, restraining enemies or retaliating against movement. Lastly, Leonardo showcases a blend of melee and ranged attacks, while also providing himself with buffs to inflict extra damage and dodge assaults.

Each mission offers a myriad of exciting prospects and hurdles. It’s incredibly satisfying when you reach a state of flow, visualizing your strategies, and executing them flawlessly against a group of adversaries using all your tactical skills. One of the missions I particularly enjoyed involved Donatello safeguarding an area while his technology worked on a formula to forecast the Foot Clan’s next action. The battlefield filled with enemies as the countdown of turns dwindled. Donatello possesses a move that generates electric fields on multiple squares, causing any enemy within those areas to take damage. Given it was set in the sewers, enemies standing in water would also suffer poison damage. I successfully constructed a defensive stronghold at one corner of the map using poison water and electricity, employing Donatello’s kunai to keep enemies trapped and taking more damage from both sources. Surprisingly, even though the game primarily revolves around swift movement across a dynamic battlefield, they skillfully made a stationary combat experience enjoyable as well.

Final Thoughts

The video game titled “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tactical Takedown” offers a compact yet engaging playthrough. I managed to finish it in roughly five and a half hours, but was encouraged to replay due to hidden techniques to unlock and challenging scores to achieve on each mission. On one hand, I appreciate its concise duration and the way it’s meticulously designed for a satisfying experience; however, I found myself yearning for more of this game. Five hours feels both adequately long and frustratingly short at the same time.

As a gamer, let me say that Tactical Takedown is an incredible game to play from start to finish. However, once I wrapped up the story, I found it tough to motivate myself to replay missions for better scores. Now, this isn’t a deal-breaker because the game is already fantastic as a one-time playthrough. But if you’re looking for replayability, it seems like the developers wanted to include it too. Maybe it would have been even better for some players if they had approached it differently.

One thing I noticed during my experience was that while the UI looks great with its stylish and vibrant design, navigating through it can be a bit tricky, especially when trying to switch loadouts. It took me some time to figure out how to do it, but nothing major in the end.

Lastly, I’d like to give a shout-out to the composer of Tactical Takedown, RJ Lake, who also created the soundtrack for I Am Your Beast. The main menu track really sets the tone for the game. There’s one part of that song that makes me feel like I’m in the lobby of an incredible laser tag arena. The vibrant neon colors, the recurring pizza motif, and perhaps the strong nostalgia of growing up with those characters all contribute to this atmosphere. Tactical Takedown almost feels tailored just for me.

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2025-05-22 16:03