Stay Cool, Kobayashi-san!: A River City Ransom Story is an interesting entry in a genre that is experiencing a revival of sorts on the Switch thanks to the ever-increasing number of re-releases and brand new experiences. Long-time Kunio fans will find this a rewarding and worthy experience, but newcomers – or anyone who wants to jump into this series – should opt for the far superior River City Girls instead. The time we spent with Kobayashi-san was fun, but a bit repetitive; the franchise can do much better than this, but it's a neat little side-story nonetheless.
"Old-school beat 'em up fans will surely have some fun with Stay Cool, Kobayashi-San! but its repetitive and random nature definitely makes it an ultimately tedious and frustrating experience." - A.J. Maciejewski from Video Chums
Heather writes: "I’m so torn. I really, really wanted to love Stay Cool, Kobayashi-San!: A River City Ransom Story. A Kunio-kun spin-off on the heels of River City Girls, I had high hopes for the next installment in the franchise. And while some of those expectations were met (surprisingly), there were quite a few letdowns as well."
WTMG's Leo Faria: "Although I did enjoy Stay Cool, Kobayashi-san! a lot more than expected, I think this game was released in a very inconvenient time. Being released after the fantastic River City Girls just highlights the game’s issues even more. I really like that its short duration was perfect for multiple playthroughs, but its story is nowhere near as engaging as its female-led predecessor, nor is its combat. I still recommend it if you’re into beat ’em ups. This is a very competent game with nice graphics and a neat gameplay loop. Just make sure to know that there are other better River City games out there, one of which was released just a few months ago."
Doesn't look amazing, but still alright I guess.