Urban Brawl

Urban Brawl: Action DooM 2 is a prequel to Action Doom, originally a total conversion, and it takes place ten years before the events of the first game. Urban Brawl can be played both as a .wad file or stand-alone and it is based on the Windows ZDoom port of the original DOOM source code.

Unlike the first game this title is entirely done in cel shaded graphics. The original game aimed to bring a Contra-style gameplay to a first-person shooter, by only offering ranged weapons. Urban Brawl is exactly the opposite as it centers around melee combat with fists, bats, shurikens, bottles, baseball bats, a taser, a chainsaw or a katana to take on enemies. Especially the brawler Final Fight has heavily inspired the game design. There is also a number of ranged weapons available, but with limited ammo. For almost all weapons there is a basic and an advanced attack. Weapons wear out or can be dropped at any time to exchange them for a new one. Health is replenished through junk food. Health bars for both the player and the enemies are shown near the top of the screen.

The game tells the gritty story of a man whose daughter is kidnapped for reasons not disclosed to him. In between missions the events are further explained through stylish black and white cut-scenes similar to the Sin City art, with a voice-over for the narrator. The story takes the protagonist through urban locales such as gang-infested city, the metro, woods, fields an eventually the building of the organization behind the kidnapping. The graphics as well as the enemies are colorful, the environment is highly interactive and there are many secrets and Easter eggs hidden in the game. Based on certain decisions, two possible endings are available.

The game is available for free, but for $9.99 a physical copy can be purchased directly from the developer. It comes on a disc inside a collectible case and box art, and it contains bonus maps and challenges, a bonus song and the original Action Doom.