The first new aspect of the game that we got to see was all five of the playable characters. There are five characters total, each with their own fight style and special moves. Raven is a street punk who is the most well rounded fighter of the bunch. His moves are mostly basic punches and kicks. Aaron is a kung fu expert who just happens to be the love child of Zanetti, the head of the drug cartel that has double crossed our heroes.
That guy in the green is really leaving himself open.
The other warriors include Gina, the ass kicking showgirl. Like Raven, she is another well rounded character, only sexier. Jason G is the standard "big guy" that all beat-'em-ups must contain. His moves are much like wrestling moves; full of grapples and throws. Lola is the final character. She is a professionally trained assassin who fights with the dance-like Capoeira technique (think Eddy from Tekken).
Where Everybody Knows Your Name
We were also introduced to your characters' home base, a seedy bar called "The Hole." You can return to The Hole at any time to gather information from the regulars and accept new missions from the bartender and underground informants. This is also where you'll go to change your outfits, with aside from being good fashion sense, allow you to maintain a low profile and stay under the radar of enemies on the lookout for you.
In fact, the whole "disguise" aspect of the game is even more extensive than before. In addition to buying new clothes at shops with the money you shake down from thugs, you can also pop into the hospital for a bit of reconstructive surgery. It'll be harder for your rivals (and the cops) to recognize you with a new face. You can also stop by the hospital to heal up the bumps and bruises that you're bound to earn on your adventure. Of course, you can also "heal" yourself by popping into The Hole for a stiff drink.
Your Crew
When you fight enemies, you're given the opportunity to recruit them into your posse. Although you can only have two of them helping you out at any given time (they're controlled by the computer), you can build a posse of up to 100 different fighters. Swapping the characters out is as easy as making a quick call on your cell phone. If you do everything right, you can even recruit the other four main characters onto your team. No doubt the method for doing that will be somewhat complicated.
