The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have come in many forms across their 35+ year history. Yet the most beloved form has to be their 1987 Cartoon version. It was the peak of their popularity and made the Shinobis of the Sewers a household name. They could be found in cinemas, cereal boxes, and on video game consoles.

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DotEmu and Tribute Games’ TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge is a gorgeous look back at that era. It brought back the cartoon’s characters, settings, voice cast, and more to make the old Millennials feel like kids again, and the newer generation see the appeal the original show had. But it has some references only the most tubular of Turtles fans would catch.

5 Fighting Game Fun

TMNT: Shredder's Revenge- April R.Mika Move

First off, while the Turtles aren’t well known for their tournament fighters, they have a lot of classic fighting game moves. Splinter’s spinning kick resembles that of Billy Lee’s in Double Dragon. Yet it’s most likely a reference to Ryu & Ken’s Hurricane Kick. Why? Because there are many other Street Fighter moves in the game! Here are just a few of them.

April O’Neil’s rising kicks resemble Chun Li’s Tenshou Kyaku, while her rush punches look a lot like Karin’s combos from Street Fighter Alpha 3. Donatello’s super kick even resembles Chun Li’s Marvel Vs Capcom flying kick super. Not that Capcom’s premier punchfest was their only source of inspiration. Michelangelo has a bicycle kick rather similar to Liu Kang’s in Mortal Kombat. Donatello’s stick-spinning super is almost the same as Billy Kane’s in King of Fighters, and Raphael’s rising uppercut animates more like Sol Badguy’s Volcanic Viper from Guilty Gear than the Shoryuken.

4 NEStled Away

Shredder's Revenge- NES Shredder TV Screen

But people don’t need to be TMNT fans to tell their Street Fighters from their Mortal Kombatants. What will really separate the men from the boys are the references to the classic Turtles’ games. Quite literally, as these games come from nearly 30 years ago now.

For example, the TV screen in the ‘A Few Screws Loose’ episode shows Shredder pointing menacingly at the viewer. Just like he did in the intro to the NES Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game. Likewise, if April O’Neil heals her co-up partner, she says “You have my support”, which was the same phrase she uttered constantly after each hint she gave in that game. Luckily, there are no impossible jumps to make or underwater bombs to defuse.

3 Back To Beat ‘Em Up!

Shredder's Revenge- Chuck At the Screen Footsoldier

The most fondly remembered TMNT games are Konami’s sidescrollers like The Manhattan Project and Turtles in Time. As such, there are a bundle of callbacks to them. The level screens with the boss silhouettes resemble those from Turtles in Time, as does the game’s first episode. The older game’s first level was called ‘Big Apple 3am’, so Shredder’s Revenge starts at ‘Big Apple 3pm’. The final level even features a clock stuck at the same time.

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Likewise, characters can also throw Foot soldiers off into the screen. That’s if they don’t fall into the open manholes first. They’ll make quips from the pit too. Michelangelo’s win pose at the end of the levels is the same as in Turtles in Time too. Which is fair enough as it may take place in the same continuity. During the Rat King boss fight, players can see a wrecked Foot-Ski vehicle in the background, which the Rat King used to toast the Turtles in the previous game.

2 They Made a Funny!

Shredder's Revenge- Tokka and Rahzar Tempestra Boss Fight

Before Michael Bay’s production company put the Turtles back in cinemas, the cast were brought to life in live action through the power of the Jim Henson Production Company. Three films were made, with the first two becoming cult classics. Classic enough for Tribute Games to give fans some classic winks. If Michelangelo gets knocked out, he’ll cry “I love being a turtle!” on revival, matching what he said after a similar near-death encounter in the first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film.

During the Tempestra boss fight, she can summon recreations of Tokka and Rahzar, the monsters from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Secret of the Ooze. If players select Raphael and Casey Jones, and one heals the other, they’ll get the ‘Finally Getting Along’ trophy/achievement. This refers to their meeting in the first film, where they fought each other to a standstill. While another trophy, ‘Who Needs a Dock?’, gained from beating Shredder without getting hit, alludes to Secret of the Ooze’s ending where a dock collapsed on him.

1 Cartoon Capers

Shredder's Revenge- Cartoon Cameo Burne Thompson Casey Jones

Finally, the cartoon series is the biggest influence on the game. So, the Easter eggs here are perhaps a little more obvious. Players can find April’s Channel 6 news colleagues, the Punk Frogs, and the Neutrinos hidden in the levels to gain side activities. While the Turtles’ taunts and win poses, like Michelangelo’s foot shuffle, Leonardo’s sword point, and Raphael’s menacing way of holding a pizza, match their poses from the cartoon’s intro. But there are a few, more subtle references.

The arcade stage has a poster for ‘Tempestra’s Revenge’, the arcade game from the villainess’ debut episode. While Stage 10 features the Weird Pizza Store, the Turtles’ favorite pizza place. The deepest dive might be a reference to one line from the show’s first episode. If the Turtles pick up a Sushi Box, they’ll remark “Raw fish?! Blegh!”, which is how Donatello countered April when she reprimanded the Turtles for preferring pizza to Splinter’s sushi.

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