Double Dragon II: The Revenge

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Double Dragon II: The Revenge

Promotional flyer for the North American arcade version. The same illustration was used as a cover art for most of the home versions released.
Developer(s) Technos Japan Corp.
Publisher(s) Arcade version:
Technos Japan Corp. {Japan}
American Technos Inc. (North America, distributed by Romstar)
NES version:
Technos Japan Corp. (Japan)
Acclaim Entertainment (North America)
Game Boy version:
Acclaim Entertainment (North America)
Mega Drive version:
Pal Soft (Japan)
PC Engine version:
Naxat Soft
Computer ports:
Virgin Mastertronic
Designer(s) Arcade version:
Yoshihisa Kishimoto (director)
NES version:
Hiroyuki Sekimoto (director)
Series Double Dragon
Platform(s) Arcade, NES, Sega Mega-Drive, PC Engine Super CD-ROM, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, MSX, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST
Release date Arcade version:
NA January 1989
NES version:
JP December 22, 1989
NA January 1990
Game Boy version:
NA November 1991
Mega Drive version:
JP December 20, 1991
PC Engine version:
JP March 12, 1993
Genre(s) Beat 'em up
Mode(s) Single player, Cooperative
Input methods 8-way joystick, 3 buttons
Cabinet Upright

Double Dragon II: The Revenge (ダブルドラゴンⅡ ザ・リベンジ Daburu Doragon Tsū Za Ribenji?) is the second game in Technos Japan's Double Dragon series of side-scrolling beat-em-ups, produced for the arcades in 1988.

Technos Japan developed a home version of the game for the Famicom/NES in 1989, which was drastically different from the arcade version. Other home versions were released for the Mega Drive and PC Engine.

Contents

[edit] Arcade version

The arcade version of Double Dragon II is essentially a reworked version of the original Double Dragon, using the same engine and redrawing most of the game's graphics. The main change in the game was the replacement of the original game's punch and kick configuration in favor of a two-way attacking system (Left Attack and Right Attack) similar to one of Technos' previous beat-em-ups Renegade. Pressing the attack button of the direction the player is facing will perform the standard left/right punch combo, whereas pressing the opposite attack button will make the character perform a rear kick. Double Dragon II also marked the debut of the Hurricane Kick (also known as the Cyclone Spin Kick), which would become the series' trademark special technique.

The game begins with Marion, the damsel in distress from the first game, being shot to death by Willy, the leader of the Black Warriors. Thus, the objective of the game is to avenge Marion's death instead of rescuing her. Like in the first game, there are a total of four stages, which consists of a heliport, a lumber storehouse, a cornfield and the gang's hideout. All of the enemy characters from the first game are back, with some of them (namely Williams, Roper and Linda, as well as Abobo and his new head swap counterpart Oharra) given makeovers such as different hairstyles or physical features, as well as new attacks such as Williams' ability to run and do cartwheels. There are also three new boss characters: Burnov, an obese wrestler with the ability to make himself disappear; Abore, a sunglass-wearing giant with a powerful shoulder tackle; and Chin Taimei, an Asian martial artist who wields twin kali sticks.

After defeating Willy at the game's final stage, the player must confront an evil clone of their own character who has the same skills, as well as the ability to throw energy beams and possess the main character's body to drain energy. After defeating the evil clone, the game ends with a photograph of Billy and Jimmy with Marion, who sheds a single tear which forms the words "The End". Unlike the first arcade game, there are no ending credits.

[edit] Home versions

[edit] NES

The NES version retained the 2-Player co-op feature that was missing in the first NES game.
The NES version retained the 2-Player co-op feature that was missing in the first NES game.

Technos Japan's Famicom/NES version of Double Dragon II, much like the NES version of the first game, was more of an adaptation of the game than a direct port. The English-language version of the game was published by Acclaim Entertainment in North America and Europe.

The NES version is notable for featuring cut-scenes (static images and on-screen text) that serve to narrate the progress of the game's plot. The revenge premise remains the same, although the plot was altered. Willy is no longer the main antagonist and does not appear in the game at all. Instead, a rival martial artist referred only as the "Mysterious Warrior" (謎の格闘家 Nazo no Kakutōka?), serves as the final boss after the doppelgängers are defeated that is available only in the game's hardest difficulty setting (Supreme Master). According to the Japanese version's instruction manual, he is the master of a martial art style known as "Gensatsuken" (幻殺拳? literally "Phantom Murder Fist"), a counterpart of Billy and Jimmy's "Sōsetsuken" style. The ending is also completely different, in which Marian is restored to life after the Mysterious Warrior is defeated.

In contrast to the first NES game, all of the player's techniques are available from the start and the two-player cooperative gameplay has been kept this time, with an alternative mode that has the friendly fire option turned on (in contrast, the one-on-one Vs. Mode introduced in the first NES game was not included in this sequel). Two new special techniques are added to the player's repertoire in addition to the Whirlwind Kick; the Hyper Uppercut and the Flying Knee Kick. The NES version's stage layout is composed of nine missions. While none of the stages are direct reproductions from the arcade game's stages, they share many of the same elements, including background music. Many of these stages don't have actual bosses, but traps which the player must overcome to clear the stage.

Enemy characters from the arcade game include Williams, Roper, Linda, Burnov, Abobo (renamed Bolo in the NES version), Abore (whose design was changed to resemble Oharra), Chin Taimei and the Doppelgängers. Only Oharra, Jeff and Willy are omitted. Two new enemy characters are introduced in addition to the final boss; "Migiude" (the "Right-hand Man") and the "Ninja". The Right-hand Man is a standard thug enemy who relies on hand-to-hand and kick techniques. The Ninja is a sub-boss who relies on tricky attacks and speed. The Ropers now carry incendiary bombs and boomerangs as weapons; the latter is a weapon that cannot be carried by the player.

[edit] Game Boy

In 1991, Acclaim released a Game Boy game titled Double Dragon II, unrelated to either the arcade or NES game. It was actually a localization of the Kunio-kun game Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun: Bangai Ranto Hen, but with the graphics and music changed to reflect a more serious tone. The plot featured Billy and Jimmy joining a martial arts school known as the Scorpions, only to be framed for the murder of a fellow student by a jealous rival named Anderson (a premise similar to the film The Warriors).

Gameplay is considerably simplistic in comparison to the console titles, with simple level designs and a very basic repertoire of techniques. Instead of jumping, pressing the A and B buttons simultaneously will make the player kneel, setting up for either, a flying uppercut or a jump kick. The player can also jump and stomp over fallen enemies. Weapons cannot be picked up, even though certain enemies carry weapons baseball bats, chains, knives and firearms.

There are ten stages in the game, although the majority of the game takes place in the same subway level. The bosses are a boxer, a chainsaw-wielding Jason Voorhees-lookalike, a ninja, a fat man with a club and Anderson himself. Unlike the first Game Boy game, two-player co-op is possible.

[edit] Mega Drive

In 1991, PalSoft released a Sega Mega Drive/Genesis version of Double Dragon II ported from the arcade game. All of the enemies are included (except for Jeff) and most of the techniques are kept as well. A few corners were cut to shorten certain missions and enemies were less detailed than the arcade, but mission 2 was modified to include some platforming elements expanding the map and making it more like an NES game. The ending of the game was also expanded somewhat. The game was panned by Japanese game critics due to its sub-par graphics and noticeable slowdowns during gameplay.[citation needed] It was never released outside Japan. Its release predates the Genesis versions of the first and third game released in the West (all three games were ported and published by different developers).

[edit] PC Engine

In 1993, Naxat Soft published a PC Engine Super CD-ROM version of Double Dragon II, developed by the same team which formed KID. The game is a remixed version of the original Famicom game. The cut-scenes are now animated and feature full voice acting rather than text. The voices of Billy, Jimmy and Marian are provided by Ryo Horikawa (as Makoto Horikawa), Nobutoshi Kanna (as Nobutoshi Hayashi) and Hiroko Emori respectively.

The game switches the order of Mission 4 and 5 and some of the stages are rearranged and expanded. The game also reintroduces elements from the arcade version, such as the return of the steel ball and the shovel. Willy, a character missing from the NES version is present in the game and like in the arcade game, he's the last opponent before the doppelgängers (the Mysterious Warrior is still confronted after them).

The Right-hand Man and the Ninja are the only enemies not included from the NES version (although their sprites were programmed into the game). Bolo appears listed in the manual, but it is Oharra who appears in his place in the actual game.

The game's soundtrack is composed mostly of original music, although a remix of the final boss' theme from the NES version is featured as well as the main Double Dragon theme.

There are also three possible endings, based on the difficulty setting the player finished the game on (with the best ending occurring on Hard).

[edit] Computer platforms

Virgin Mastertronic released ports of the arcade version for the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, IBM PC, Commodore Amiga, Amstrad CPC and Atari ST in 1989. The computer ports were developed by Binary Design, the same outfit that handled the computer ports of the first game.[1]


[edit] Soundtrack

A soundtrack, simply titled Double Dragon II: The Revenge, was published in Japan by Meldac and released on March 10, 1990. The soundtrack features arranged versions of the music from the NES version composed by Kazuhiro Hara and Nobuhito Tanahashi. The soundtrack also features a vocal J-Pop rendition of the Double Dragon opening theme performed by Manami Morozumi titled "Dead or Alive". Its catalog number is MECG-28001.

  1. Dead or Alive (Opening Theme) -Female Vocal Version
  2. "Awakening the Vengeful Ogre" (Mission 1) (動き出した復讐鬼（ミッション1） Ugokidashita Fukushū Oni?)
  3. "Silent Pursuit" (Mission 2) (静かなる追跡（ミッション2） Shizukanaru Tsuiseki?)
  4. "Night Sky of Tension" (Mission 3) (緊迫の夜空（ミッション3） Kinpaku no Yozora?)
  5. "A Pleasant Advance to the Morning Glow" (Mission 4) (朝焼けの快進撃（ミッション4） Asayake no Kaishingeki?)
  6. "Escape to the Forest" (Mission 5) (森を抜けて（ミッション5） Mori o Nukete?)
  7. "Wicked God" (Mission 6) (邪神（ミッション6） Yamigami?)
  8. "Breaking the Barrier" (Mission 7) (難関突破（ミッション7） Nankan Toppa?)
  9. "Proceeding to the Enemy's Base (Mission 8) (敵基地を行く（ミッション8） Teki Kichi o Iku?)
  10. "Roar of the Twin Dragons" (Fight of Fate) (双龍の雄叫び（宿命の対決） Sōryū no Osakebi (Unmei no Taiketsu)?)
  11. "Miracle of the Twin Dragons" (After the Battle) (双龍の奇跡（戦いを終えて） Sōryū no Kiseki (Tatakai o Oete)?)
  12. "Sweet Memories" (Ending Theme) (懐かしき思い出（エンディング・テーマ） Natsukashiki Omoide?)
  13. Dead or Alive (Edit Version)

[edit] References

  1. ^ Double Dragon II: The Revenge at World of Spectrum

[edit] External links

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