I love me some side-scrolling beat ’em up action, and in the world of mobile we’ve seen quite a few of the classics make their way to the App Store but we haven’t seen as many original takes on the genre. The Zombieville USA series has offered a fun weapon-focused take on beat ’em ups for many years, but if fists are more your thing then my favorites definitely include Fist of Awesome and Beat Street, games I still play frequently. Now Zapling Studios wants to put their own stamp on the genre with their upcoming title Justice Royale. I know, I know, “Battle Royale" is the buzzphrase of the moment in the world of gaming, so seeing Royale in a title is akin to seeing Flappy in a title back in 2014. Don’t let that deter you though, as Justice Royale has a ton going for it. First go ahead and check out this trailer to see the game in action.

Justice Royale is built from the ground up for mobile, so the controls are a mixture of intuitive tap and swipe gestures. Then there’s a fairly extensive RPG-like upgrade system that sees you unlocking a host of new moves and using them to tailor the combat to your specific tastes. You can also do some minor customization of your character, and although Justice Royale uses a stickman-like aesthetic it actually features some great animation and a ton of personality. Zapling is planning on officially launching Justice Royale worldwide on May 30th, but it’s currently in soft launch in the Philippines, New Zealand, and Australia. So if you want to take Justice Royale for an early spin and you have an iTunes account in one of those regions, then hit up the soft-launch link below. Otherwise look forward to the global launch at the end of this month and be sure to check out some discussion in our forums.

Soft Launch App Store Link: Justice Royale, Free (by Zapling Studios, LLC)