Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time Re-Shelled

The popular TMNT arcade game gets an overhaul in this remake for XBLA.

There are a couple of things you should immediately know about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. First, Leonardo leads and Donatello does machines. Also, Raphael is cool but rude, and Michelangelo is a party dude. With that out of the way, all of the turtles are back in this remake of the classic arcade game, Turtles in Time, and it's not just a retro port with some HD filters. The game has received a full-on 3D overhaul, so all of the environments, turtles, enemies, and bosses are rendered in slick 3D splendor, and the two levels we saw (Alley Cat Blues and Skull and Crossbones) looked great.

But this move into three dimensions has also brought some slight changes to the gameplay. In fact, the most noticeable difference between Turtles in Time Re-Shelled and the original, aside from the graphics, is that the turtles' (and the enemies') ability to execute attacks in a three-dimensional plane is now more pronounced. In the original game, all of the characters had sort of a contact bubble around them, so you didn't have to be on the same line as an enemy to attack him, but in Re-Shelled, this bubble doesn't exist (or it isn't necessary), so if you're standing directly below a foot soldier, you can still hit it by pressing up on the controller. It's a little difficult to explain, but fans of the original game will notice the difference.

As far as the rest of the gameplay goes, Re-Shelled has everything from the original. Leonardo and the rest of the crew still have standard attacks, one special attack, the shoulder block, and the ability to slam enemies on the ground and throw them into the screen. It's worth mentioning that we couldn't quite get the screen throw to work as easily as it does in the Super Nintendo version of the game, but that's probably because Re-Shelled is based on the arcade version.

Some of the bosses are different from those in the Super Nintendo version, and there's also one level in the Super Nintendo version that didn't appear in the arcade version (it took place inside the Technodrome). Also of note, it has yet to be determined what's going to happen with the music, whether it will be stripped from the original or remixed. At any rate, we're excited that Turtles in Time is getting revamped, and we can't wait to see how the Neon Night Riders level looks and to try out the four-player cooperative mode. Look for the game to hit Xbox Live Arcade on July 22.

88 Comments

  • chinchillables2

    Posted Aug 23, 2009 5:50 pm PT

    Will be fun reliving old times... for a couple hours or so, if it's cheap anyways. I think it's just another poor attempt to capitalize off an existing franchise they plan to do nothing else with. Same game, better graphics, but nothing exciting to use the power of the system? Gee, I wonder how cheap that was, lol. Game looks cool, but I doubt seriously if it'll ever be in my library... at least not until it reaches about 10.00 or less.

  • mad_krips

    Posted Aug 7, 2009 6:31 am PT

    So how long before this reaches PSN?

  • chappy_man

    Posted Aug 5, 2009 7:15 pm PT

    looks like a good plan

  • RavenXavier

    Posted Aug 4, 2009 7:09 pm PT

    Awesome!!! The first time I played the Original arcade game I was 11 years old (I'm 31 now). I love the updated graphics but I'm not too sure about how they changed how some of the characters look. I wanna say the boss of the first stage is Metal-Head (the robotic turtle) and from the one second of this video that you can see the turtles fighting him they definitely changed how he looks which is a shame. Still this game brings back a lot of memories. I hope they re-lease it for the PC as my 360 drive is full with stuff I can't afford to lose right now. Looks killer though.

  • bleedgreen2-1-5

    Posted Jul 20, 2009 6:00 am PT

    man i cant wait! the good old days when turtle games were fun, i wish they would add the snes leveles too, i wanna see beebop and rocksteady, slash and the Ratking

    man this makes me remember my childhood, when the turtles rocked, before they ruined it with the crappy anime, poorly drawn insult that it is now.
    man this game looks good, tho but for $15? i mean, i got the snes version so i could probably play that instead, and it has a little more in it. but none the less ill get this cuz im a 90s kid and a HUGE TMNT fan!

  • bleedgreen2-1-5

    Posted Jul 20, 2009 5:56 am PT

    i think its goin to PSN soon, i heard that somewhere

  • Korrupt_Soul

    Posted Jul 16, 2009 10:08 am PT

    The only game I would buy for the 360 if I had one. It's not worth it to buy the console for this old school game. They should make it available on PSN or Wii Ware.

  • Earth_Krish

    Posted Jul 13, 2009 8:20 am PT

    Kinda worries me.. I'd be glad for a nice re-release of this game... but its not a re-release... they made it 3D and I don't understand why you have to do that. This game had an awesome look and feel for its time, great art that was in place of graphics that weren't possible at the time on the platform... I don't wanna see the same game with some lame 3D graphics.. cause then its just a lame game made in the year 2009 :/ I've bought alot of "Classics" collections on the PS2, and was greatly dissapointed... like when in Golden Axe they replaced those awesome art sequences for spells with the lamest looking crappy-first-days-of-ps1-3D sequences and was like "WTF!!!??" You don't need to 3Derize everything!!! If they had changed the gameplay entirely, like to match the YEAR 2009, just based on the old adventure, then I'd understand, throw in customization and leveling system, w/e, okay..
    But the same side-scroller and you made everything 3D wtf... it was awesome the way it was... the graphics on this looks alright but it was awesome with the art graphics...what i think anyway...

  • goron14

    Posted Jul 12, 2009 11:17 pm PT

    This is going to b awsome!!!

  • beak1313

    Posted Jul 10, 2009 10:53 pm PT

    Yes!!! If I could pre order XBLA games I would pre order it. I know they cant run out but still!! This is sweet!

  • alexkn64

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 8:15 pm PT

    This may very well be the first game I've ever purchased off of XBLA. I just never found a reason for most of the games found on there, but when this gets released...I think I'll definitely have to pick it up.

  • burnout_toreach

    Posted Jul 8, 2009 2:40 am PT

    My Favorite game on the SNES, I remember playing a Sega Genesis version of it and that was a little different

    I Swear i was on a site and say one of theses screen shots before E3 but during that time one of the game announced for the Wii (which i don't give a .... about) but no mentioned of this

    none of the TMNT games have ever been any good and it's really sad how bad they treat this franchise now, but i hope its on the upswing with this game!

  • im-a-roustabout

    Posted Jul 7, 2009 1:25 pm PT

    If only the new turtle games rocked like these ones. I'm personally hoping for a Hyperstone Heist remake as well though the two adventures kinda mirrior eachother quite a bit. JUst look at how cool those turtles look! Why don't they just go back to this old formula?? I miss these games and will be the first to download!!!! OMG I pray they have online multiplayer! That would be sawwweeeeetttttt

  • CybermasterX

    Posted Jul 7, 2009 12:12 am PT

    Pizza POWER! Kowabunga! I don't personally have a 360, but I do have a friend who does. I also wonder if there's an possibility of this getting a Steam release, much like Geometry Wars: RE did. I still like the arcade version the best, but it's a good game on SNES too. I can't wait to kick some shell again!

  • DrunkenGoon

    Posted Jul 6, 2009 11:25 am PT

    Awesome! I love the Turtles and I loved this game when it was released on Super Nintendo.. I'll wait and see how much this one is gonna cost but I'm definitely looking forward to it since they revamped it..

  • drugsrgood06

    Posted Jul 3, 2009 9:36 am PT

    WOO HOO THIS IS THE BEST THING EVER!!

  • Bioshockraptor

    Posted Jun 24, 2009 2:33 am PT

    I wish I had a 360 right about now.

  • danielnault333

    Posted Jun 22, 2009 8:54 pm PT

    I'll buy it for sure !! one of the best super nes game ever, and i'm really not fan of nintendo games, but super nes was aewsome, and specially that game !! i was sad to spend money for the first TMT arcade game, cause it was bad and borring, i was hopping to play one just like that one ! but thank microsoft to bring back one of the best old classic videogames !! that will be my best arcade games, with bomberman live, arkanoid live, contra, mortal konbat 3 ultimate, sonic 2, and street of rage etc. but i think i put on the second position after bomberman, i think is hard to beat for an arcade game. finally im f**king happy to know thats comming soon !! thank microsoft

  • dr_satan69

    Posted Jun 19, 2009 11:12 am PT

    i used to play this game all the time on super nes. i might actually buy this game...

  • FartMonkey65

    Posted Jun 19, 2009 9:52 am PT

    I hope it's only 5 bucks like the last TMNT arcade game. Though either way I'd buy it

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