Well, today is chock full of surprises. Chances are nobody predicted that we'd get the announcement of a sequel to SEGA's classic beat-em-up series from the Mega Drive era. Simply based on how long it has been since the last game. Well, thanks to the creators of Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap - we now have Streets of Rage 4 to look forward to.

The trailer showcases the same high-quality hand-drawn animation seen in Wonder Boy, which spills over into the small slice of gameplay at around the half-way point.

Publisher Dotemu (Wonder Boy, Windjammers 1/2) and developers Lizardcube (Wonder Boy) and Guard Crush Games today revealed Streets of Rage 4, an all-new continuation of SEGA’s iconic arcade brawler series known for its radical fights, jammin’ ‘90s beats and dashing sparring gloves and bandanas. Streets of Rage 4 builds upon the classic trilogy’s gameplay with new mechanics, a fresh story and a gauntlet of dangerous stages with a serious crime problem.

Now, one of the most enduring aspects of the original trilogy - outside of the solid beat-em-up action - is without a doubt the soundtrack from Yuzo Koshiro. Who we hope is tapped to provide the music here, because the man was able to perform miracles with the Sega Mega Drive's sound hardware - as seen below with the opening track from Streets of Rage 2.