This is not the Double Dragon you remember, but it's a Double Dragon you'll never forget!
Since we're discussing classic games and nostalgia, a bit of a history lesson is in order, from my own (admittedly biased) perspective:
I had little interest in the GameBoyAdvance until I got a chance to play this title. It was released "way back" in late 2003, apparently only for a limited time, making it somewhat rare these days.
"Double Dragon Advance" is based directly on the 1987 arcade game, Double Dragon, a classic three button, two player brawler, produced by Taito (liscensed from Technos), that launched the fighting genre as even its predecessor "Renegade" never could. In the days before the one on one "Vs." fighters, this coin-op title was king, and was quickly ported to every platform under the sun, inspiring several mostly lackluster sequels, spinoffs and countless imitations (some of which were quite good, like Final Fight, Vendetta, the Streets of Rage series, Alien Vs. Predator, Cadillacs & Dinosaurs, or the arcade TMNT games).
Featuring great graphics and sound for the time, it had colorful cartoony animation, memorable music, and bone crushing sound effects. The theme was a gritty, fairly realistic (for the time) street fight, with lots of moves to choose from, a variety of weapons, and two player cooperative action. At the close of the game, the two players (if they were both still standing) would face off in a grudge match to the death. While the whole concept made little sense in the real world, it was an extremely fun video game experience. During the game too, players could harm each other, so this presented the potential for competition or cooperating depending on the mood of the players.
A sequel was rushed out the following year in arcades "Double Dragon II: The Revenge" which was mostly a retread/enhanced remake of the first game, with "left and right attack" style controls (like Renegade). The hardware was tweaked for less slowdown and the difficulty was greatly increased. The game was still good, but less well recieved than the original. After this the series took a nosedive in quality. Double Dragon III: the Rosetta Stone featured completely redrawn artwork that was much more generic than the original, the moves repetoire was stripped down and modified, and a lame "shop" feature was introduced where players had to insert more real coins to obtain virtual money to buy extra lives, new moves and lame "backup" characters. The weapons were reduced to two, fairly weak ones, a sword and a pair of nunchucks. The NES version of DD3 was totally different, and became something of a hit with fans, even though it still wasn't a great game. The home console ports of the series had varying quality over the years, with the NES versions being the most popular, but featuring scaled down graphics with small cartoony characters, fewer moves, weapons, and lots of puzzle and platform elements to increase the difficulty and distract from the fighting theme (Battletoads would handle this type of gameplay in a much better fashion some years down the road).
Eventually, a goofy cartoon and comic series were created inspiring an awful one on one fighting game called "Double Dragon V: The Shadow Falls" and a fairly decent Neo Geo one on one fighter would be created based on the awful movie inspired by the game. The Super Famicom/SNES would feature Return of Double Dragon/Super Double Dragon which tried to give a fresh adventure in the spirit of the first two games, but due to strict deadlines, much of the game was cut and it ended up feeling very generic compared to the original game, with small, redrawn characters, generic enemies, and a much smaller repetoire of moves (favoring instead the ability to "charge up" power to increase the strength of your punches and kicks, or block attacks to allow cheap "grapple" counter moves). The weapons in this game were made incredibly rare but incredibly cheap.
The original arcade game simply remained the best of the lot, in terms of graphics and gameplay.
There were some flaws of course. Players discovered that the elbow punch move was actually so powerful that you could win the game using it exclusively and never be hit by an enemy. Veterans learned to play the game for fun and limiting their use of this move. The game was also short, taking about 15 minutes to complete in one sitting (however the replay value was such that one could play it over and over). Finally, due to hardware limitations, there was some slowdown when a lot of characters appeared on the screen. Many of the characters in the game were just the same sprite with a different haircut or different colored clothing/skintone, but it was so short that this didn't become too repetitious.
==History Lesson Over, DDA content begins here!==
Fast forward to the modern era. Double Dragon the series has seen numerous sequels and spin offs, going from bad to worse. Most people remember the original arcade game and probably the popular NES takes on the series (with their inferior graphics, platforming elements, and high level of difficulty).
DDA goes back to the roots, recreating the entire arcade game, but with redrawn graphics (closer to the style of "Return of Double Dragon" on the SNES), that maintain a faithful, gritty look to them, with "updated" hairstyles that still have a retro look to them (such as the Abobos with the "Afro" hairstyle). So some things are the same as the arcade game, some things different.
So what can DD fans expect?
Many new moves have been added. The elbow punch has been toned down so it's not so powerful as it was before, and the slowdown has been removed. Some things from the arcade are missing, such as Jeff (the character who could do all the player's moves and was a boss in stage 2) and the throwable box/crate.
Many features from the various DD games over the years have been incorporated into this title, forming a rather solid fighting game experience:
Players can now crouch (a move that the enemies in the series could always do but never the player), and do an uppercut or a flying knee (similar to moves from the NES versions of Double Dragon 2 and 3) from the crouch position. The headbutt is still there, but a running move (and dash attacks) have been added, as from Double Dragon III: The Rosetta Stone and "Vs. Mode" of the NES version.
There is a "block" feature, like Super Double Dragon/Return of Double Dragon. This move is hard to implement properly, but if done right, an incoming attack is intercepted and the enemy tossed over the player's shoulder. Not as spectacular as the grab/beat downs of SDD/RODD but a welcome addition for advanced players.
A downed opponent can be "stomped on" much like Double Dragon III (and DD2 for the Gameboy) for extra damage. The players can also "crouch over" a fallen body and repeatedly punch it in the face (much like a similar move in the NES version of DD, which was inspired by another similar move in Renegade).
Players can still kick a large throwable object (oil drum, rock) with their foot, though it's a bit harder to pull off than the arcade version and so less useful.
While all the moves from the first two arcade games appear and then some (though the method to execute some of their moves and their relative strengths have changed), the weapons from these two games are also intact, with the exception of the throwable box/crate, grenade, iron ball, shovel (replaced by the double bladed battle axe), and log. New to the weapons set are the nunchuku (from DD3, the VS. mode of NES DD1, and SDD/RODD), and kali sticks. The sticks are the same type of weapon used by Chin Semei from DD2, but were never available to the player until now. These two new weapons are rather cheap, being able to hit so fast as to trap an enemy in a combo before they can ever react. These two weapons are never used by enemies, but conveniently "fall out of the pocket" of a downed enemy now and then.
Thankfully, an annoying feature of the NES DD games, where weapons were taken away after a very short time when defeating a wave of enemies (rather than at the end of a mission as in the arcade), does not show up here. Weapons can be used over and over again, until the end of a mission or if they are dropped into a bottomless pit (that kills you instantly).
Unlike the rare Sega Genesis port of the first Double Dragon, where large throwable objects (Rock, Oil drum, etc) vanished after a certain number of throws, all the thrown weapons can be used over and over (except the knife, which vanishes, as it always did, after downing one target, and the "firecracker" dynamite stick which obviously is unusable after it explodes).
In DDA, if a player dies holding a weapon, that weapon vanishes with him, so strategically you should drop a weapon when you're about to die, so that you can have something to pick up again when you come back on your next life.
Players no longer fall flat on their faces if they walk off a ledge without first jumping, but weapons can be dropped at any time by pressing the "block" button. This is a first for the series and very useful (previously you had to be hit or fall in order to change weapons).
Another difference from the arcade games is that the chain link fence at the start of Mission 2 cannot be climbed on as it was in the arcade game, and a ladder is missing, removing the ability to fight on a higher level at the start of this area. Also the ability to climb rocks, while still present in Mission 3 is diminished, since you can only climb part way up the cliff until the enemies are defeated, and then the player automatically climbs to the top (and can't climb down again) for the upcoming boss fight.
Baseball bats and axes can be thrown (something only enemies in the series could do before, starting with DD II: The Revenge) as well as swung.
The large masked boss "Burnov" who first appeared in Double Dragon II: The Revenge appears here, and is as cheap as ever. The shovel weapon is converted into a battle axe (it was mislabeled an "axe" in some versions of the DD2, and with the poor graphics of some of these ports, it might well be mistaken for one). Chin Semei, the stick wielding foe from DD2 also makes frequent appearances.
This version of DD features many more enemies on screen at a time than any previous version of the game, and without slowdown. Less of the background is visible on screen at a time, due to the smaller screen area. But the characters are still large and colorful.
In the original arcade game, Billy "Hammer" Lee wore blue and had yellow hair. His twin brother Jimmy "Spike" Lee wore red and had brown hair and an identical haircut. In this update, following the tradition begun with the NES DD1, Billy has brown hair, and following Return of/Super DD, Jimmy has a spiked blonde haircut. Both the brothers perform their moves identically and have the same sounds.
As far as modes go, the game has a single player mode where one takes control of Billy to go on his classic quest to save Marion from the Black Warriors (aka the "Shadow Warriors"). In the Japanese version of the original arcade game, the storyline was that New York had been ravaged by a Nuclear War and gangs ruled the city. Billy and his brother had started a martial arts Dojo to teach ordinary people to protect themselves from the evil street gangs. This lead Willy, the leader of the Warriors to have Billy's girlfriend kidnapped to intimidate the brothers and lure them out in the open to be attacked by the gang members. The US version didn't allude to the nuclear war or their role as community activists, but now we see this plot dictated to us via anime style cutscenes, with artwork reminiscent of "Fist of the North Star" an ultra violent Japanese cartoon that inspired a few games of its own. Some things are changed in the story to imply that the boss characters are not killed, but only beaten up until they surrender, but these scenes can be skipped with a few quick button presses.
There is a two character single player mode, in which you can control BOTH Lee brothers, but one at a time (you switch between them by pressing the select button). This is a challenging way to play since the brother you don't select is completely defenseless. It's too bad there wasn't an option to let the computer AI control the other brother. I use this mode when playing solo to play as Jimmy, letting Billy get killed (or beating him up myself for extra points) and playing through as the red clad character. If you complete the game solo, there are a few less lines of dialogue at the end, and no "brother vs. brother" mode (which has been now explained as a friendly martial arts match rather than some kind of death fight... which was explained in the NES version by making Jimmy the secret leader of the Shadow Warriors gang, rather than Willy, who was secretly in love with Marion and wanted to steal her from his brother!).
The third mode will only work for certain players, the 2 player mode. In this mode you either need two GBA's (or Nintendo DS's since the DS can play GBA games) and two copies of the game, plus a link cable. Or you can substitute a GBA for a "Gameboy Player" addon and play the game with two players on your TV screen, using a GameCube console. A third more obscure way is to run two copies of a certain GBA emulator on a PC (or over a LAN with a friend).
I prefer to play the game on the big screen myself, and the graphics look AS GOOD (I wouldn't say better, just different, though perhaps you could argue there's more detail in places) as the 20 year old arcade version.
Finally, there is a one or two player mode that has never appeared in the series before, a "survival" mode, similar to the one featured in Final Fight on the Sega CD. You appear in a dojo-like room (similar to the one you start off in in the NES version of DD3) and endless waves of enemies attack you, in increasingly difficult attacks. There is no way to "win" this mode, as the enemies will keep appearing forever, and your health and the timer prevent you from staying alive forever. This is just meant to test your ability to kill as many enemies as possible before the timer runs out.
Despite the advertisement on the back of the box, there is NO true "Vs. Mode" like the one featured in the NES DD1 (which let you pick any from several characters and fight one on one in a special arena). The only Vs. battle is just like the arcade game, and only present if you beat the game with two players. If you play the 2 character single player, you can take control of one brother to beat the other one up with no resistance.
The controls in DDA are tight and responsive, and thankfully it uses four buttons (punch, kick, jump, and the new 'block/drop weapon' button), making combinations for different moves easier to pull off intentionally.
All in all, this is a solid beat-'em-up with great appeal for retro fans. It isn't exactly like Double Dragon from 1987, but it takes the best elements of the DD series over the years and revamps and remixes the old to create a new, and rather fun game.
Overall the length of the game is somewhat longer than the original arcade, but the game takes only about 20 minutes to beat, another 5 onto the original run through time of DD on average difficulty. The unlockables include a cheat for 10 credits instead of 5 (shared by both players), a sound test, and an expert difficulty option. A few of the levels are new: a truck top fight taken from SDD/RODD, a watery cavern level borrowed from DD2 for the NES (iirc), a "Chinatown" area reminiscent of those seen in DD3, and an extension of the "trap room."
Some new enemies have been added to the usual gang members seen in the first two games (note: only two of the bosses from DD2 are here, the rest are all straight from the first arcade game). The new characters include Burnov and Chin Semie (sp?) from DD2, plus there's a samurai character with a sword (that you sadly can't use), a cartwheel kicking martial artist reminiscent of the final boss from DD2 NES (and the TurboGrafx CD version of DD2), and a variant that uses a "shadow trick" reminiscent of the incredibly cheap "doppelganger" enemies from the end of DD2. The most annoying addition to the gang are the "Steve" enemies that wear dark sunglasses and business suits like Matrix Agents. These men are predictably cheap, with hyperfast combos. Once they hit you, you're toast. Thankfully after a flurry of attacks, these guys adjust their ties, allowing you a chance to hit them finally. While amusing, these gents look rather out of place in a gang of otherwise colorfully dressed punks, buff bruisers and martial arts scrappers. It's as if somebody's limo was late and they decided to join in on the action (in a post apocalyptic world?). When the thugs are better dressed than the final boss, something is wrong!
This is very much a game in the style of classic arcade brawlers, so you won't find spectacular endings, thousand hit combos or fireballs here. All attempts have been made to foster a certain level of realism in the moves (even the famous Hurricane Kick from DD2 here doesn't have the "floating effect" it did in the 1988 arcade sequel where it first appeared). The game is short, and somewhat more repetitive than the arcade game since it's longer and has more enemies (with more varied color pallets for their alternate clothing, skin tones). Some might be annoyed that they'll face waves of green, gold, and silver skinned Abobos (the arcade game featured ONE green skinned boss, and DD2 in the arcade featured two gray skinned Burnovs).
I've rambled enough, but hopefully this information will prove useful for old school fans, fans of arcade brawlers and die hard Double Dragon fans who might be a bit skeptical about this release. It's very much "retro" in a good way, and probably the best "2-D" scrolling fighter game to come out in the 21st century. It won't replace the original arcade game in this DD fan's heart, but it is regarded as a great game and worthy addition to the series in its own right.
A worthwhile cart to own even if you're not a fan of the GBA (there's always the Gameboy player on the GC)!
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Reviews with images
Remake that does justice to NES classic
I loved playing Double Dragon at the arcade back in the days. Then it came out for the NES in 1988 and was a smash hit. So when I heard that Atlus was bringing out a remake of Double Dragon for the Game Boy Advance, I was excited and made sure I got my hands on it. It was a move I did not regret.Double Dragon Advance was released in 2001 and is a remake of the popular NES game of the same name based on the arcade hit. You take control of Billy (or Jimmy Lee) and hit the streets to beat up bad guys and take back Billy's kidnapped girlfriend. At your arsenal, you can perform lots of moves to dish out the punishment as well as pick up weapons that are scattered throughout the game and/or from the enemies you confront. There isn't much of a story but for any beat 'em up game, who cares. This game has several 1 player and 2 player co op story modes as well as a survival mode where you defeat as many enemies as you can before you're defeated.The PROS: Double Dragon was an awesome game because of its graphics, easy to use controls and 2 player co op support. The remake makes it 100 times better because of how Atlas went to update a classic game: taking the arcade graphics, music & sound effects and updating them, including all the fighting moves, weapons and stages from the arcade version plus adding new weapons, new enemies and bosses & new stages on top of remixing the music.The CONS: Some people will get turned off by the difficulty of this game. While playing in easy mode is no problem, the challenge rises quickly in normal and hard modes. It's not much of a knock against it but more or less whether or not you like to play hard games.Overall, Double Dragon Advance is a great way to update a classic game while keeping its roots firmly intact. It's the same beat 'em up game you played as a kid and Atlus breathed some fresh air into it with new stages, new enemies, new weapons and remixed music. No matter how you get it, it's a game worth searching for and perfect for playing it wherever you are. *****HIGHLY RECOMMENDED*****
Top reviews from other countries
Mr. A. Singh
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Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 28, 2013