From a pure gameplay perspective, Tokyo Beat Down is quite the let down and would have been hard to recommend even back during the golden age of arcade style beat-em-ups; genre classics like Final Fight and Battletoads offer more interesting combat and better overall design. If you absolutely must have a new brawler, then this game is perfectly functional, but it falls short in overall quality.
Nestlekwik writes, "...Success tried its hand at the genre as it was in the 1990’s, developing Yajuu Keiji for the Japanese Nintendo DS. Not a publisher to let a fresh, quirky game left unreleased to U.S. gamers, Atlus has stepped in to serve stateside gamers a helping of mass ass kicking, domesticating the title under the name of Tokyo Beat Down - indeed fitting as players are able to rock the face of nearly everyone they encounter in the game."
GamingTrend writes: "When I got Tokyo Beat Down, I was really hoping for a great beat-'em-up experience translated into the third dimension, similar to how adventure games and one-on-one fighting games have transitioned into 3D. Unfortunately Tokyo Beat Down falls short of that, and if I want a beat-'em-up I'm better off putting my GBA copy of Final Fight One into my Nintendo DS".
Gaming Age writes: "Do not buy Tokyo Beat Down (TBD). I wanted to make sure that you got the point in case you didn't finish the entire review. Now that that is out of the way, feel free to do something else instead of playing this game. You could watch paint dry or twiddle your thumbs or watch paint dry. Just don't waste your money on this game. I would say don't waste your time but the game is so short you wouldn't really be wasting it. TBD (not to be confused with To Be Determined because I already determined that this game sucks) is a useless waste of the plastic and circuitry that is the cartridge."
