Double Dragon (video game)

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For other uses, see Double Dragon (disambiguation).
 It has been suggested that Double Dragon Advance be merged into this article or section. (Discuss)
Double Dragon

American promotional flyer for the arcade release by Taito. In this flyer, the main characters Billy and Jimmy Lee are identified as "Hammer" and "Spike".
Developer(s) Technos Japan Corporation
Publisher(s) Taito Corporation
Designer(s) Yoshihisa Kishimoto
Series Double Dragon
Platform(s) Arcade, Amiga, Atari ST, Amstrad CPC, Atari 2600, Atari 7800, Atari Lynx, Cellular Phones, Commodore 64, Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, Game Gear, NES, PC, Sega Mega Drive, Sega Master System, ZX Spectrum, Mobile, Xbox Live Arcade, Virtual Console
Release date 1987, 1988, 1991, 2005
Genre(s) Beat 'em up
Mode(s) Up to 2 players, simultaneous
Input methods 8-way Joystick; 3 buttons
Cabinet Upright
Display Raster, standard resolution (Horizontal)

Double Dragon is a 1987 beat-em-up developed by Technos Japan Corporation and distributed in North America and Europe by Taito. The game is a spiritual and technological successor to Technos' earlier beat-em-up, Renegade (released in Japan as Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun, the first game in the Kunio-kun series),[citation needed] but introduced several additions such as two-player cooperative gameplay (hence the title) and the ability to arm oneself with an enemy's weapon after disarming them. Double Dragon is considered to be one of the first successful examples of the genre, resulting in the creation of two arcade sequels and several spinoffs.

Home versions of the game were released for the Nintendo Entertainment System, Sega Master System, Atari 2600, Atari 7800, Game Boy, Genesis/Mega Drive and Atari Lynx, among other platforms during the series' height of popularity. An enhanced remake titled Double Dragon Advance was released for the Game Boy Advance in 2004. It was re-released for the Wii's Virtual Console in North America on April 28, 2008 at a cost of 500 Wii Points. [1]

The kanji characters in the game's title literally reads Sōsetsuryū (双截龍?), which roughly means "Twin Intercepting Dragons", a reference to the game's title as well as a reference to "Sōsetsuken", the fictional martial art style used by the Lee brothers. However, both the game and series are known as "Double Dragon" even in Japan.

Contents

[edit] Storyline

The story of Double Dragon is set in a post-apocalyptic version of New York City, five years after a nuclear war, where gangs and criminal organizations have taken control of the city. The protagonists are Billy and Jimmy Lee, the titular duo and the successors of a fictional martial arts style known as Sōsetsuken (loosely based on Jeet Kune Do). One day, Billy's girlfriend, Marian, is kidnapped off the street and the Lee brothers receive a message from her captors, the Black Warriors, demanding to know the secrets of Sōsetsuken in exchange for her safety. The Black Warriors are the largest criminal organization in the city, led by machine gun-toting crime boss Willy Mackey. In the NES version of the plot, Willy is apparently only a figurehead, while Jimmy is the true leader, the Shadow Boss.

This is the basic premise of the first game as originally established by Technos Japan, although certain details of the plot change between versions of the game and publishers. The actual game has no in-game plot and the opening merely depicts Marian being knocked unconscious and carried off by the Black Warriors, with Billy and Jimmy emerging from the garage in the background shortly afterwards.

[edit] Arcade version

Billy and Jimmy face off against Abobo at the end of the first stage.
Billy and Jimmy face off against Abobo at the end of the first stage.

The arcade version's control configuration is composed of two attack buttons, punch and kick, as well a jump button to fight against enemies or overcome obstacles. The player has access to a repertoire of techniques by pushing these buttons individually or in combination. The most notable of these techniques is the Elbow Punch, which the player can use to knock down enemies coming from behind. Because of its effectiveness (the move leaves the player temporarily invulnerable to attack during its animation), the Elbow Punch was easily abused by players to complete the game and its effectiveness was reduced in later games in the series. Pressing jump and kick makes the player perform a jumping backward kick, which wasn't as effective as the elbow. After the player has punched or kicked an enemy two or three times, the enemy is left in a stunned position, allowing him vulnerable for an uppercut, roundhouse kick or a hair grab. While in a hair grab, the player can knee the enemy repeatedly in the face or perform an over-the-shoulder throw. Linda, Abobo and Bolo cannot be grabbed; Linda falls without a "stun" period, while Abobo and Bolo are far too large for the player to manhandle in such a fashion.

Certain enemies carry melee weapons such as baseball bats and whips, as well as throwing knives and dynamite sticks. They can be disarmed and the player can then pick up the weapon and use it against them. There are also large objects (namely oil drums, cardboard boxes and rocks) that can be used in combat, either by physically hurling them at enemies, or kicking them into oncoming "traffic."

There are a total of four stages, or "Missions" as they're referred within the game: the city slums, a factory, a forest and the hideout of the Black Warriors. The first three stages are actually set in one large area, in which after mission is clear, the player's character will simply walk directly to the next stage during an automatic transition period. It isn't until the fourth stage in which the game switches to a new level. Some of the stages have traps that the player must overcome, typically pitfalls such as a broken bridges, conveyor belts and spiked beds that can kill the player instantly if they fall over. The final stage has more elaborate traps such as moving wall tiles that push the player and minotaur statues that stab the player (as well as enemy characters) with their spears.

There are four "underling" characters the player faces during the course of the game: Williams, a thug who wears jeans and tank tops; Roper, a thug who wears matching-colored pants and vests, as well as spiked shoulder pads; Linda, a female thug who is often armed with a whip; and Bolo, a bald strongman who has the ability to toss the player's character around. There are also three boss characters: Abobo, a head swap of Bolo with a mohawk who moves faster than his counterpart and has a two-hand slap attack; Jeff, a head swap of the player's character who possesses many of the same technique; and Willy, the final boss, who is armed with a machine gun that can kill off the player with a single bullet.

One unique aspect of the game was its ending. Normally, if a single player defeat Willy alone, the rescued Marian will walk over to the character (whether it be Billy or Jimmy) and give him a kiss, followed by the ending credits. However, if the player finishes Willy off with a partner, then the game will force both players to fight each other off. The player who remains alive will win over Marian's affection and get a kiss from her.

[edit] Home versions

[edit] NES

The first fight scene in the NES version of the game.
The first fight scene in the NES version of the game.

Double Dragon was ported to the Famicom/NES by Technos Japan in 1988. The game was published in North America by Tradewest (who was given the license to produce other home versions of the game as well) and by Nintendo in Europe.

The port took many liberties compared to the original Arcade game. The most notable was the omission of 2-Player simultaneous gameplay. Instead, the 2-Player Mode in the main game is done by alternating similar to Super Mario Bros., although both players take control of Billy. The plot was changed slightly, turning Jimmy into the true leader of the Black Warriors, the Shadow Boss (he is seen in the opening intro kidnapping Marian instead of Willy). After the player defeats Willy, Jimmy appears to face the player for the true final battle. This was the first version that portrayed Billy with brown hair (colored red within the game) and his brother Jimmy as blond, the inverse of their arcade counterparts.

Due to the technical limitations of the NES, the game could generate two enemies on-screen to confront the player and both enemies were the same character. Additionally, weapons could not be carried to another fight if the original owner was killed. In addition, an RPG like level-up system was implemented so that players could only perform the most basic techniques at the beginning of the game. All of the more powerful techniques (including jump kicks) could only be earned by gaining experience points (or heart points, as they were called in the game) and increasing in level. The highest level is seven hearts. A Renegade-style sit-on punch was added to the player's techniques.

The stages were arranged differently, with some stages featuring new areas (most notably the cavern section in Mission 3) that focused more on platform jumping than actual fighting. All of the enemies from the arcade game also appear, with the exception of Bolo and Jeff, the two head swap characters from the arcade game. A new villain named Chin Taimei appears in this version was the second stage boss.

A one-on-one Versus Mode was added in which player could select between the Lee Brothers or five of the game's enemies. The Versus Mode features larger sprites for all characters than in the main game (except Abobo, who is drawn the same proportion as in the main game), but only allows for mirror matches. In single player versus matches, the matches are handicapped in favor of the CPU, while two player versus matches features weapons thrown into the middle of the field while controlling Williams, Roper or Chin.

[edit] Master System

The Master System version.
The Master System version.

Shortly after the released of the NES version, Sega acquired the rights to develop its own port of the game for the MarK III in Japan and the Master System in North America and Europe.

This version featured graphics similar to the NES version, with brighter colors and the fact that the game could display up to three different enemies on-screen. The game retained the two-player co-op gameplay and had level designs that were closer to the arcade game than the NES versions were. This version features the character of Jeff, the second stage boss from the arcade version (who was replaced by Chin in the NES version),as well as a black and green palette swaps of the bald Abobo for stage bosses (instead of the mohawk version who appears in the arcade game).

Like many early Sega games (such as Shinobi), the Master System version allows for unlimited continues until the final stage, however if a player performed a certain number of jump kicks at the start of the final stage, they would still have unlimited continues.

[edit] Other platforms

  • During that same year, the arcade version of Double Dragon was also ported by Binary Design and published by Virgin Games/Mastertronic for the following computer platforms: Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Tandy 1000, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and IBM PC. Two different Amstrad CPC versions were produced: one was released for the CPC6128 (128kB RAM) based on the Amiga version, while the other was released for the CPC464 (tape and 64kB RAM) and was ported from the Sinclair version.
  • In 1990, Technos Japan produced a Game Boy version of Double Dragon. This version features similar gameplay to the NES version, but with completely different level design and the learning system removed. The enemies are the same as the NES version, but some of the characters such as Abobo and Chin have been given new techniques. The main game is still single player, although the player does not fight Jimmy after defeating Willy like they do in the NES version. Also, a 2-Player only Versus Mode is included like in the NES version, but the only characters available to play as are the Lee brothers.
  • In 1992, Accolade released a Sega Mega Drive version of the game in North America and Europe under the Ballistic Software label. This version was ported to the Atari Lynx in 1993 by Knight Technologies and published by Telegames.
  • In 1993, a Game Gear version of Double Dragon was released by Virgin Games. However it was an original game unrelated to the arcade version, featuring a sole Billy Lee who has the task of rescuing his brother Jimmy. This game is also known as Double Dragon: The Revenge of Billy Lee.
  • In 2004, a remake of the original arcade game titled Double Dragon Advance was released for the Game Boy Advance. The game features all of the stages and almost all of the characters, but with new stages, techniques and cut-scenes added to mix (most of them based on the later installments). It was developed by Million Corp, the company which currently owns Technos Japan's former intellectual properties, and was published by Atlus.
  • An emulated version of Double Dragon arcade, with enhanced graphics (as an optional mode) and online co-op was released on Xbox Live Arcade for the Xbox 360 on May 9, 2007.

[edit] Reception and legacy

The game was listed at #41 in Electronic Gaming Monthly magazines "200 Greatest Games of their time".[citation needed]

[edit] Soundtrack

A soundtrack titled Original Sound of Double Dragon (オリジナル・サウンド・オブ・ダブルドラゴン Orijinaru Saundo obu Daburu Doragon?) was released in Japan by Apollon on February 21, 1988. The soundtrack features arranged versions of the music from the original arcade version. Its catalog number is BY12-5028.

  1. Opening (Double Dragon) (オープニング（双截龍） Ōpuningu (Daburu Doragon)?)
  2. The City Slums (The Black Warriors Arrive) (スラム街（ブラックウォリアーズ出現） Suramu Machi (Burakku Uoriāzu Shutsugen)?)
  3. The Industrial Area (The Great Fray) (工場地帯（大乱闘） Kōjōchitai (Dairantō)?)
  4. After the Battle (闘いのあとで Tatakai no Atode?)
  5. Setting Off (A New Battle) (旅立ち（新たなる闘い） Tabidachi (Atanaru Tatakai?)
  6. The Woods (森林編 Shinrin Hen?)
  7. The Giant Abobo Appears (大男アボボ登場 Ō Otoko Abobo Tōjō?)
  8. The Hideout (Willy the Nemesis) (大要塞（宿敵ウィリー） Daiyōsai (Shukuteki Uirii)?)
  9. Ending (Reunion with Marian) (エンディング（マリアンとの再会） Endingu (Marian to no Saikai)?)

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Double Dragon Hits Wii Virtual Console". Retrieved on 2008-05-01. 

[edit] External links


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