Streets of Rage is a beat 'em up featuring aspects of Double Dragon and Final Fight.[2] Players act as Adam, Axel, or Blaze, who save Wood Oak City from being overtaken by a criminal syndicate led by Mr. X.[3] The three traverse eight levels and all have a total of 40 moves, such as headbutts, backslams[clarification needed], and reverse kicks.[4][2] Surrounding the landscape are weapons that can be used to attack enemies, such as knives, glass bottles, pipes, and baseball bats, and food items that increase energy, such as apples and chicken.[5][2]
As in Sega's previous beat 'em up Golden Axe, enemies walk onto the screen from both sides as well as occasionally appearing from other locations. Foes include ninjas, punks, and women in bondage, and up to 12 can appear on a screen.[4][2] The player must defeat each opponent to progress through eight locations, known as rounds. With the exception of round 7, there is a boss battle at the end of every round with a disproportionately large enemy. Unlike its sequels, none of the enemies are named within the game (they are named only in the Japanese version's manual) and only the bosses have a visible life bar.
Players also have a limited number of special attacks that allow them to call the police and summon a police car that fires explosives, damaging all enemies on screen. The player is given one special attack per life or per level and power-ups shaped like police cars supply additional specials.
