I wish Streets of Rage 4’s new custom survival mode had been around when I was a kid

I’ve been obsessed with the Mr. X Nightmare DLC for Streets of Rage 4 ever since it was released. Not only did the DLC add three new characters to the game (including my personal favorite, the ultra-buff Estel Aguirre), but it added a brand-new gameplay mode: Survival.

Survival mode is a simulation that takes you through randomized levels. Everything, from the arena you play in to the enemies you fight, is randomly selected. When you clear a level, you can choose a perk for your character. These power-ups can increase your damage output, boost your speed, give you a super-powered weapon, or even summon a virtual buddy to fight by your side.

Playing in survival mode offered a near-perfect single-player experience, but it was slightly disappointing in co-op. In the standard version of survival, only one player gets perks, so the other player has to pass on power-ups. Getting a great perk, like the stat-boosting Ground Level power-up, is less fun when you can’t share it with your Player 2.

I’ve almost always tackled Survival Mode on my own, but that might change with the new Streets of Rage 4 update. In addition to new co-op moves and a ton of improvements for the main game, the update added a new custom survival mode for the Mr. X Nightmare DLC. This mode lets you create your ideal survival experience. You can turn off hazards, add extra perks, and, most importantly, you can enable perks for all players.

Growing up with siblings meant that I almost never played beat-em-ups by myself. Whether I was facing off against Super Shredder in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time or breaking into Mr. X’s hideout in Streets of Rage 2, there was always a second player by my side. These days, it can be harder to find a Player 2, but I still think co-op is the ideal way to play beat-em-ups.

If I’d had something like the Streets of Rage 4 custom survival mode when I was a kid, I’m not sure my siblings and I would have played anything else. I can just imagine us tearing through level after ever collecting an endless string of perks. We’d be running an army of virtual buddies, laughing as we beat up enemies with our giant gold halberds.

I’ve had fun with survival mode in Streets of Rage 4, but I’m going to enjoy it even more now that I can tweak its co-op settings. I’m done fighting virtual enemies alone. The next time I take on AI-version of The Syndicate, I’ll have some powered-up friends by my side.