Sunsoft just revived the 1990 PC Engine City Hunter game

Sunsoft and Clouded Leopard Entertainment have released a remastered version of the 1990 PC Engine game City Hunter for the Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, Xbox, PlayStation 5, and Steam. The $24.99 release arrives just in time to miss the game's 35th anniversary. Red Art Games co-developed this modern port, which finally brings the side-scrolling action title to a worldwide audience.

The timing is perfect on this because I just bought a japanese version of the PCE game on eBay. Will I ever play that version now?!

I love Sunsoft. I think they created some of the best NES, PC Engine, and Sega Genesis games on the market. Their audio engineers constantly pushed the limits of early console sound chips. Most importantly, the songs just slapped! Seeing the company actively dig into its 8-bit and 16-bit back catalog over the last few years gives me hope for more obscure revivals. They have a massive library of licensed and original properties that deserve to escape their original hardware.

The original City Hunter launched on March 2, 1990. It is based on Tsukasa Hojo's manga that ran in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1985 to 1991. The franchise has maintained a steady cultural footprint over the decades. It spawned multiple anime series, animated films, and live-action adaptations. Protagonist Ryo Saeba even appeared as a playable character in the 2019 crossover fighting game Jump Force alongside characters from Dragon Ball and One Piece.

The PC Engine (known as the TurboGrafx-16 in North America) had a massive library of anime-licensed games that never left Japan. Importing them was the only option for Western fans. Players usually had to stumble through text-heavy cutscenes with a translation guide or just guess where to go next.

Nine languages and a French alter ego

This release adds subtitle options in English, German, Italian, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, Traditional Chinese, and Simplified Chinese. It also includes French. The French localization specifically uses the "Nicky Larson" branding. The anime adaptation was broadcast in France under that name in the early 1990s and became a massive television hit. Red Art Games is based in France, which likely helped ensure this specific regional quirk made it into the final product.

The developers also secured the rights to "Get Wild" by TM NETWORK. This track was the anime's ending theme and remains a massive pop culture staple in Japan. Licensing real-world music for retro re-releases often sinks these kinds of projects. Getting the original song cleared for a worldwide digital release is a rare win for game preservation. Music rights are usually the first hurdle that prevents licensed games from getting a second chance.

19 achievements and a physical edition

The Steam version includes 19 achievements and standard modern quality-of-life additions. According to a September 2025 announcement from Clouded Leopard Entertainment, a physical Collector's Edition is in the works.

This is also one of the earlier retro ports to explicitly list the Nintendo Switch 2 as a launch platform. Nintendo officially revealed the new hardware in January 2025. Most publishers are still navigating the cross-generation transition, but Sunsoft opted to support both the original Switch and its successor out of the gate.

It is a straightforward action platformer from an era when licensed games were notoriously difficult. At least you can finally understand the dialogue before taking a hit from an off-screen enemy.