This review was originally published on Gaming Horizon, GameBump's predecessor. Its format does not match our own but we support its content. It was written by Brian Mohr.

Movies converted to videogames is a very risky proposition as more often than not it seems that the companies spend more money on acquiring the franchise than the game’s actual production. Rockstar, on the other hand, has taken a completely different route with the cult film, The Warriors.

By getting rights to a cult film, the developers obviously had a vested interest in sticking close to the film’s origin and appeal. The game puts you in the role of the rough and tumble gang, The Warriors, but goes much further than retelling the movie and instead delves deeper into the characters. You start the game just like the movie by seeing Cyrus get murdered at a citywide meeting of all the gangs. This results in The Warriors being blamed for the crime and it is up to you to get the gang back to Coney Island alive. Before delving into that story though, the game mostly takes place in parts that weren’t in the movie by putting you three months before the meeting to show the rise of The Warriors in the gang world.

There is so much that is good about this game and it arguably is the best movie game of the year by far. Of course being a brawler, the most important thing to any game like this is the combat engine. Thankfully Rockstar pulled out all the stops to make this great. Many fighters have a problem with locking onto a target, but in The Warriors you don’t have to worry about that as you just change the direction you’re looking in and keep going.

The fighting scenes are very vast, as many times you’ll have at least 10-15 players on-screen battling it out and impressively there are tag moves with your teammates. Most of the fighting takes place with the X and square buttons and then you can grapple with circle. Combos are very easy to pull off just by pushing two or three buttons in a row and that causes you to throw enemies, smash their heads into walls and plenty more. There are also weapons available including wood panels, knives, pipes, Molotov cocktails and more that are easy to pick up and use. One last note is that there are sneak attacks also available, and though it’s not normally necessary for the majority of the game it’s nice that they’re there. Overall the combat system is very simple, but works surprisingly well and is at the same time very deep.

Another wonderful quality in the game is the audio and sound. The voiceacting is brilliant and many of the actual voices from the 1979 film reprise their roles, giving the game an authentic feel. Beyond that the game features a solid soundtrack and a wonderful 1970’s score. If that’s not enough the dialogue is deep and while you’re causing a ruckus in the streets you’ll hear people talking, dogs barking and sirens all in the background.

The missions and gameplay in The Warriors are deep and varied. The fighting avoids getting repetitive as there are other missions to accomplish besides just beating up gangs. You’ll have to tag rival gang’s streets, rob stores, mug citizens and steal car radios among other things. You’ll also be able to go back home and work-out to improve your strength and stamina. There are also nice side missions that enable players to go back in time through all the different members of The Warriors and see how they joined the group.

The game also provides a very deep co-op mode that allows you to play the entire game with two players, although the camera splits horizontally if you’re apart and comes together if you’re close, but it can get slightly out of hand at times. There is also a nice rumble mode which gives players the opportunity to create your own gang and then battle it out against another player or the computer; both modes offer a lot more to do than just the wonderful single-player experience.

Finally, the graphics are solid as well. Rockstar went back and created buildings that fit the 1970’s environment and overall the city looks gritty and drab just like it should. There isn’t a lot of color, but this is inner-city New York so it certainly fits the environment perfectly. Each of The Warriors is modeled wonderfully and features a lot of detail. Fighting is very smooth and even goes into slow-motion when you stab or hit an enemy a certain way, which is very impressive. Your opposing gang members also stand out and look completely different from each other; however, they all fight with the same style.

The biggest physical problem with The Warriors concerns the camera angles. While playing they can get out of hand and you can loose control of them. This can often cause you to get caught from behind by rival gang members or police. Sometimes they’ll even get stuck behind walls or other objects causing a much disrupted view.

Beyond that there isn’t much more wrong with The Warriors except that the movie isn’t very well known, which will make the game a hard sell as most players won’t know what they’re getting themselves into. For those who haven’t seen the movie, the game quickly gets you up to speed.

The only other problem is the lack of online play. With the ability of two-player rumble mode and co-op in the story mode, it would have been a wonderful addition to allow people to do these games online, but Rockstar hasn’t jumped into the online realm yet.

The Warriors may be the best example of a movie being transferred to a game, ever. You can tell by the entire production including the audio, graphics, controls and gameplay that Rockstar cared about the film’s origins. This not only is a great movie to game translation, but also one of the best brawlers in a long time. The only problems with the game are the occasional kooky camera and the fact that few people know the original source material. Overall The Warriors is wonderful as it puts you right in the film and makes you feel like you’re apart of the gang. By the end of the game you’ll feel that you’ve accomplished something and survived.

Intense fighting action with complex but intuitive controls.

The characters look good and the environments are appropriately drab and gritty.

The voiceacting is spot-on and the music and effects are wonderful.

A beat’em up has never been this much fun.

There are plenty of unlockables and the entire game is available in co-op mode.