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New ‘Double Dragon’ game trailer promises nostalgic beat-em-up thrills
‘Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons’ releases this fall for every major platform, including PC, Xbox consoles, PlayStation 4 and 5 and the Nintendo Switch. This new franchise update features 13 playable characters, two-player local co-op and more.
Double Dragon Trilogy gettin' Bimmy wit it on Steam, GOG
By the dragon! Retro-revivalist DotEmu is bringing Double Dragon Trilogy to Steam, with the beat-em-up triforce penciled in for January 15. The collection of late 80s arcade is also coming to GOG and Amazon on the same day, but there's no word yet on prices. Double Dragon Trilogy stars the titular co-op classic and its two immediate sequels, DD2: The Revenge and DD3: The Rosetta Stone. It's already been raging the streets of iOS and Android for about a year, as well as Ouya since June 2014.
Tomba 2 caps off latest PSOne retro batch from MonkeyPaw
Niche-focused publisher MonkeyPaw Games has revealed a slate of six classic PSOne games set to launch digitally via the PlayStation Network through January and February. The studio's Retro Rush campaign will conclude on February 18 with the PSN re-release of Tomba 2: The Evil Swine Return, a cult-favorite platformer originally released in 1999. MonkeyPaw previously oversaw a PSN reissue of the original Tomba back in 2012. Building up to Tomba 2's return, MonkeyPaw will launch a new PSOne import game weekly, starting with tomorrow's release of Double Dragon. No, it's probably not the Double Dragon that you're thinking of – it's a port of a Neo Geo fighter loosely based on the 1994 film adaptation of Double Dragon, not the original 1987 arcade game. MonkeyPaw will finish out January with PSN releases for Toshiba EMI's beat-'em-up Lucifer Ring and Human's firefighting sim The Firemen 2: Pete and Danny. February will see the release of Nichibutsu's arcade revamp Hyper Crazy Climber and Data East's horizontally scrolling shoot-'em-up Wolf Fang before Tomba 2 hits on February 18.
Double Dragon Trilogy is a throwback to addictively frustrating gameplay and early in-app purchases
The Double Dragon series is incredibly important to video game history. As one of the pioneering titles in the "beat-em-up" genre, it introduced millions of quarter-pumping arcade junkies to street brawls augmented with throwing knives and whips. The first time I remember swearing in front of my parents was while playing Double Dragon, which made asking for another quarter to keep playing incredibly awkward. Over the years, I've probably spent several hundred dollars playing Double Dragon I, II and III, so it was a no-brainer to plunk down US$2.99 of my own money for the chance to have these classic titles on my iPhone. This mobile update brings with it a few new tricks and one glaringly harsh reality; you will probably never beat Double Dragon with "one quarter." Double Dragon Trilogy is a faithful port of all three arcade versions of Billy and Jimmy's adventures. There are a few new gameplay modes which mostly consist of scaling the difficulty from the original arcade game's "swearing in front of your mother for the first time" level to a less frustrating mobile difficulty, which will still probably have you swearing under your breath. For the truly masochistic, there is an expert level. Every Double Dragon game is hard. They're throwbacks to an era where a game's difficulty was just as much about profit as it was fun. If you think Candy Crush asking you to wait 30 minutes or pay a dollar to keep playing is obnoxious, you would have committed ritual suicide in an '80s arcade. In keeping with tradition Double Dragon Trilogy is a frustratingly difficult game. The learning curve of this title is already steep, but when you factor in the virtual controls of the iPhone, it sort of becomes like learning to ride a bike again. Its controls are responsive, but it takes a bit of time to make the transition from joystick to virtual thumb pad. Just stick with it; you have a girlfriend to rescue/avenge! Once you get the hang of the controls and stop swearing, you'll notice the unsung hero of Double Dragon Trilogy -- the wonderfully remixed music. These games have always had wonderfully epic, slightly cheesy soundtracks, and the remix job by Developer DotEmu sounds massive even on your tiny iPhone speakers. Double Dragon II in particular shines in the sound design department. Each punch crunches and I'm regularly finding myself humming its tunes in the shower. Multiplayer is possible via local Bluetooth support, so be prepared to have your partner sitting close to you if you want to fullly experience the double in Double Dragon. Over Bluetooth, the game runs smoothly with no hiccups or lag that might lead to your player taking a random cheap punch. People have spent 26 years playing two-player Double Dragon shoulder to shoulder with a friend. While the lack of online multiplayer is a disappointment, at least we get a two-player mode. The collection's one major weakness however is Double Dragon III, which is ironically crippled due to the original title's in-game purchases. Yes, even in 1990, games were being ruined by in-game purchases. Double Dragon III features weapons shops where gamers could buy new moves, characters, weapons and power ups for a quarter. You'll notice I said "could." DotEmu has unfortunately not included the ability to simulate feeding DD3 quarters, meaning you can go into the shops you'll find throughout the game only to be mocked with the reality that you can't fully experience the title. While I respect DotEmu for not seizing the opportunity to add in-app purchases for their $2.99 title, it's frustrating to not be able to play as any of the other playable characters. Hopefully they'll update the title at some point to include the full game. Still it isn't the greatest loss. While Double Dragon III is an interesting part of the series' history, it was originally rushed into development to meet the release of a movie that ended up not coming out in 1990. Accordingly the gameplay doesn't feel as smooth as that found in its siblings, meaning you'll probably find yourself spending most of your time with the first two games. How much enjoyment you get out of Double Dragon Trilogy will depend entirely on your tolerance of the title's incredible difficulty. Old-school gamers throw around the phrase "Nintendo hard" a lot these days, but dear lord NES had nothing on arcade games. Once you get used to the virtual controls, and ignore that a big part of Double Dragon III is unplayable, you're left with a wonderful burst of classic arcade action. For such a seemingly simple series, Double Dragon always had an extra layer of depth for people who took the time to learn the secret special moves and tactics of the enemies. On a bright day in 1987, you probably would have spent $3 playing Double Dragon without getting to the end of the game. It's nice to know that 27 years later, for the cost of one afternoon at the arcade, you can have an infinite number of chances to save Billy's and Jimmy's significant others. Maybe with enough practice I'll finally make it to the end of the game this time.
Double Dragon Trilogy takes the fight to iOS, Android
Mobile retrogaming specialist DotEmu has released its arcade beat-'em-up compilation Double Dragon Trilogy for iOS and Android devices, following up on its previous mobile ports of R-Type and Out of This World. The collection includes the original arcade version of Double Dragon, along with its coin-op sequels Double Dragon 2: The Revenge and Double Dragon 3: The Rosetta Stone. All games offer optional remixed soundtracks, Bluetooth-enabled co-op and controller support, and a new "mobile" difficulty mode that tones down the quarter-munching challenge of the arcade originals. Bear in mind that the arcade version of Double Dragon 3 is completely different from the widely hated NES version, but it's arguably just as bad; among other things, it served as an early progenitor of paid DLC, requiring players to insert additional quarters for weapons and other in-game bonuses. Fortunately, the mobile version lets you feed its virtual arcade machine with as many credits as you want, making the game a breeze.
Double Dragon trilogy comes to iOS
For anyone who spent a good deal of time in the '80s and early '90s playing Nintendo or visiting arcades, there are a few video game titles that automatically conjure up feelings of nostalgia: Street Fighter II, NBA Jam, Bad Dudes, Off Road and, of course, Double Dragon (note that this list is by no means exhaustive). If you spent your fair share of time (or quarters for that matter) beating up bad guys as a pair of ass-kicking twins, you'll be glad to know that the Double Dragon Trilogy is now available for iOS. The app will set you back US$3 and includes the following titles: Double Dragon, Double Dragon 2: The Revenge and Double Dragon 3: The Rosetta Stone. Thankfully, the app does not also come with the atrocious Double Dragon live-action movie, considered by many to be one of the worst video game-to-big screen adaptations in history! In any event, some of the app's features include: Two game modes: "Arcade" (play the game from beginning to end and go for the high score) and "Story" (unlock new stages and achievements while playing through the game) Customizable controls Three difficulty levels: "mobile" (specially balanced for mobile games), "original" (similar to the arcade version) and "expert" (a real challenge!) Achievements & leaderboards via Game Center and Google Play Game Service Choose between the original 8-bit soundtrack and a brand-new remastered one! Co-op mode (two players) via bluetooth The game will also be compatible with third-party iOS controllers once they start hitting store shelves. You can download the game here on iTunes.
Double Dragon Trilogy brings classic arcade brawling to iOS, Android
Retrogaming emulation specialist DotEmu revealed that it will bring the classic arcade beat-'em-ups Double Dragon, Double Dragon 2: The Revenge, and Double Dragon 3: The Rosetta Stone to iOS and Android devices in the upcoming mobile compilation Double Dragon Trilogy. The package will include faithful ports of all three games in their original quarter-munching glory, along with a new "Story" mode that awards bonus unlockables and achievements as players progress through the trilogy. A new mobile-specific difficult mode tones down the brutality for players who struggle with touchscreen controls, while Original and Expert difficulty modes are also available for series veterans. Other bonus features include gamepad support, optional remixed soundtracks, and Bluetooth co-op play. Double Dragon Trilogy is set to launch via the iTunes App Store and Google Play by the end of the year.
WayForward adds a dose of Neon to Double Dragon for XBLA and PSN
Somehow, when we weren't looking, Majesco got hold of the Double Dragon franchise, and then turned it over to its Bloodrayne Betrayal partner WayForward Technologies. The result is Double Dragon: Neon, a side-scrolling brawler in a totally '80s setting.This time, twins Billy and Jimmy Lee are fighting to save Marian from "Skullmageddon," who, judging from concept art, has an army of wizards, cyborg police, and Linda. It's scheduled for release on PSN (for PS3) and XBLA this July. Is "downloadable, high-definition 2D franchise revival from WayForward and Majesco" going to become an annual summer tradition? We'd be okay with that.
NintendoWare Weekly: Nintendo Videos for sale, Double Dragon
Do you like the short clips available on Nintendo Video, but wish they wouldn't randomly disappear from your system when new ones come along? Starting today, Nintendo is offering a selection of previous Nintendo Video shows from DreamWorks, downloadable from the eShop for $2 each. It's sort of like buying an episode of your favorite TV show on iTunes, we suppose, if that episode was five minutes long and only viewable on a 3DS. Kind of weird, but at least it's an additional option. In other news, Double Dragon! The ... Game Boy version!%Gallery-137124%
Double Dragon iPhone update adds compatibility with older iOS versions
We know what you're thinking: "I sure do love Double Dragon on my iPhone, but I wish the lights in Stage 5 were slightly higher, and the hit-box on this whip a bit longer." A beautiful dream, right? Wrong. A beautiful reality. Brizo Interactive has peered into the minds of Dragons everywhere and released an update for its remake of yesteryear's classic beat-em-up, based on your wants and needs. In addition to moving the lights in Stage 5 "slightly higher," Brizo has also added support for iOS versions older than 4.0, "adjusted CPU and memory consumption," and added a transparency option for the game's touch controls, among other adjustments. Sometimes dreams really do come true.
Double Dragon punches iOS in the gut
Beat-'em-ups are woefully under-represented on the App Store, but one of the genre's earliest classics has arrived to help fill the void. Enter the ... Double Dragon. Aksys Games has released Taito's seminal scrapper in updated form, compliments of developer Brizo Interactive, for an "introductory price" of $3.99 -- steep, yes, but set to increase to $7.99 at an unspecified point. App Store reviews of the game -- which is ported from the Zeebo platform -- are mixed so far, with most complaints focused on the unnecessarily large (and opaque) "control panel." Still, it's said to be faithful to the original's gameplay and features multiple unlockable characters. See Billy and Jimmy get their clobber on after the break.
Double Dragon iPhone remake due out in March
We want to be happy about the fact that Aksys Games is publishing a new remake of the classic Double Dragon -- because we like Double Dragon -- but a couple of complications have us a bit worried. First, it's being developed not by Million -- the company built from the original Technos team that made Double Dragon -- but by mobile game developer Brizo Interactive. Second, and most troubling ... it's an iPhone game. Aksys promises an "easy-to-use on-screen controller and combo system," but we're justifiably wary of any kind of beat-em-up port for iPhone -- especially since the "controller" looks a lot like a regular old virtual pad and buttons in the screenshots. Still, we like the Neo Geo-esque visual makeover. We'll find out if this remake Double Dragon is good or Abobo-minable when it comes out in March.%Gallery-116321%
ESRB rates SOE-published 2D brawler 'Revenge of the Wounded Dragons' [update]
Update: An SOE rep has confirmed to Joystiq that more details on the game will be released next Monday. Hold tight! If it weren't strange enough that Sony Online Entertainment is listed as the publisher for recently ESRB rated PlayStation 3 side-scrolling brawler Revenge of the Wounded Dragons, we find it all the stranger that a trademark filing from last September puts Wet developer A2M in the developer's seat. The game's description, aside from pinning it as a PS3 exclusive, tells us that it's a "2D fighting game" where players will "frequently punch, kick, and throw enemies as they 'side-scroll' forward through the platform city environments." We put our top men on deciphering this rating-wary, encrypted message, and they have surmised that the title will likely be some form of a Double Dragon clone. Reading further into the description, we see that the game follows "two brothers attempting to avenge their grandfather's death and rescue their sister from the local mafia boss." A 2D, sidescrolling brawler that follows the tale of two brothers out for revenge? You don't say! We contacted both A2M and Sony Online Entertainment for comment, but have yet to hear back. Source 1 - ESRB Source 2 - USPTO Congratulations to osuiscoolteam2008 on being the first to comment. You've been emailed a free Battlefield: Bad Company 2 beta code. Click here, for more information on this giveaway. Official rules apply.
Tradewest co-founder passes away at 75
After fighting a long battle with illness, Tradewest co-founder and businessman Leland Cook passed away this week at the age of 75. He was known in the game industry for spearheading the American distribution and licensing of Ikari Warriors coin-op machines in 1986, bringing such Tradewest classics as Battletoads and Double Dragon to the US, and for appearing as the military colonel you save at the end of the first Ikari Warriors game ("Colonel Cook"). The Tradewest name was purchased by the now defunct Midway in 1996, though following the publisher's collapse, ex-Midway Europe boss Martin Spiess repurchased the name for use with his own startup. Mr. Cook hadn't been involved in the gaming industry for over 10 years, and instead served as the chairman of the board of Community National Bank of Texas Holding Company. He is survived by his wife of 56 years and his loving family. [Via GoNintendo]
VC Tuesday: Mr. Driller World's world debut
Arc System Works finally brings the classic Double Dragon to Japan's Virtual Console today. In the US, we've been lucky to have the opportunity to be killed by those two Abobos who come out of the cave since April! However, our "victory" in the Double Dragon availability department is eclipsed by the availability of Wallaby!!, a kangaroo-race betting game that will most certainly remain in Japan. Double Dragon (Famicom, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points) Wallaby!! Usagi no Kuni no Kangaroo Race (PC Engine, 1 player, 600 Wii Points) Once again, WiiWare is the real attraction in Japan, with downloadable Mr. Driller and the second installment of Square Enix's Crystal Defenders series. Mr. Driller World (1 player, 800 Wii Points) Crystal Defenders R2 (1 player, 1,000 Wii Points)
The VC Advantage: Double Glitching
Dave was totally right in his VC Monday Madness video: I enjoy Double Dragon glitches. The best-known glitch -- and the most useful -- is the experience factory found in the second level. It's easy to completely fill up your heart gauge and unlock every move simply by walking over to the pile of girders after the climbing fence, then going back across the fence, and back again. This will cause the Williams enemy who was standing in front of the girders to disappear, and you can punch the crap out of his ghost for as long as your timer allows. Later in the same level you can defeat the boss by running away from him. He disappears and the game counts it as victory. I'm also a fan of the glitch-bat, which occurs when you swing a weapon just as it's supposed to disappear, leaving a weird bar made up of other graphical elements from the game.But my favorite glitch in Double Dragon on the NES is at best useless and actually pretty likely to hurt you. At the end of the first area, you can climb up these -- gutters? Pipes? I don't know what they are. Really, they're just wall decoration. But you can walk straight up that wall. Walk up high enough and you'll come back up to the bottom of the screen. Walk downward and you'll die. Move left and you'll warp back to the ground. Try to jump or attack and you'll fall over. Sometimes one of the Linda enemies will try to follow you up the wall and will just end up in some flickery jiggle maneuver just off the ground.I pretty much can't get to this part of the game without messing with the wall for a while. I can't even explain why it's so amusing. I could only find one video of this glitch in action (at around 2:50), but be warned -- it's one of those YouTube videos with audio of some guy mocking the game as he plays -- the scourge of the retrogaming blogger. The VC Advantage is a weekly look at the secrets inside games -- not just cheat codes, but assorted trivia and oddities. We aim to bring back the feeling of the hint columns from game magazines, except when we do something else.
Game Melody Oratorio Volume Two: More music to our ears
Fresh off his success placing fourth in Neoflash's Spring Coding Competition, homebrew developer Multiple: Option has followed up his Game Melody Oratorio software with a second volume, packing ten songs and new features into the virtual piano update.Here's your chance to learn classic melodies from a diverse set of games: Double Dragon Dr. Mario Duck Tales (a woo woo) Final Fantasy VII Halo Leisure Suit Larry Metal Gear Solid Outrun Streets of Rage 2 Super Castlevania VI Game Melody Oratorio Volume 2's new features include an extra piano key (C3), a new Practice Stage with hidden notes, a new Recital Challenge mode, improved flashcart support, and the ability to preview melodies on the song selection screen. Wow! All that for free![Via DCEmu]
VC Monday Madness video wrap-up 4/28/08
Now that we've finally gotten River City Ransom, Nintendo has saw fit to take a lazy week and only provide us with one new Virtual Console game to download. At least it's a good one though, as Double Dragon on the NES owns. Likely, many of you recall it doing just that as a child. So hit up the video above, then head past the break for more.
VC Monday Madness: Double Dragon
This week sees a lone wolf of a release on the Virtual Console. And, to kill the sense of suspense as to what the game is (unless you like to, uh, read the title of posts), we already knew it was hitting today. That's not to say the game isn't good, though!This week's Virtual Console release is: Double Dragon (NES, 1 - 2 players, 500 Wii Points) As usual, be sure to stop by later for our video wrap-up of this week's releases, complete with commentary and direct-feed game footage. We hope to see you there!
Double Dragon punches its way onto Virtual Console
We can't even pretend that we're really excited about this week's Virtual Console release, Double Dragon, or that we didn't play it a year ago in a sexy high-res remake on XBLA for the exact same price (500 points/$5). We love us some side-scrolling and punching, but even we have limits.But maybe you've never heard of the legend of Billy Lee and his decision to risk his kidnapped girlfriend's safety in order to keep his karate secrets to himself. If so, feel free to buy away, if only to more fully appreciate the roots of the beat-em-up genre.
