Welcome to Another Edition of Playing With Power. The review article that looks at all things Nintendo Entertainment System. Last week, Playing With Power covered Double Dragon, a beloved arcade game turned into an equally, if not more beloved NES classic. So, with that mindset in place, it’s only obvious that we touch on the sequel to Double Dragon. But is this revenge well served, or was it a failed mission? Let’s find out as we cover “Double Dragon II: The Revenge”
YEAR OF RELEASE: 1990
PUBLISHER: Acclaim
GENRE: Beat-Em-Up
Double Dragon was a massive hit in both the arcades, and the multiple consoles that it would be ported to. So, it was obvious that a sequel wouldn’t be too far behind. Once again Technos Japan would helm the project, but this time around, Acclaim would take Tradewest’s spot as official licenser of the franchise.
Double Dragon II: The Revenge was ported once again to plenty of consoles including the Atari ST, Sega Mega Drive, PC Engine, Turbografix CD, and of course, the NES, where it would once again be a high seller for the console. In fact, I’ve honestly seen more copies of Double Dragon II than I have of the original. But that may just be my own luck.
The game also earned solid praise from critics, and while it hasn’t earned the infamy of it’s predecessor, it still remains one of the most popular games to come out of the NES. But is that popularity as justified? Does it fix the issues that the original had? Let’s find out.
COVER STORY
Another excellent cover for the series. The designs of the characters are wonderfully done, and it just feels so full of action. I especially like Billy holding Marian in one hand, while grabbing the whip from Linda with the other. Just bad ass. This art was actually used for promotional material for the arcade game, and it was nice to see it be used for this as well. My only complaint is it does feel a bit too busy, but that honestly can be forgiven. It’s a definite eye pleaser, and another of my personal fave box arts on the NES.
STORY
In the apocalyptic year of 19xx, nuclear war has stricken the world. Not to mention the rise in terrorist and gang activity. Specifically that of the Black Shadow Warriors. They’ve run rampant throughout the world, and have set their sights on their old enemies, Billy and Jimmy Lee (who I guess put the whole “fighting each other” at the end of Double Dragon I under the bridge). But this time they’ve gone too far, as the Black Shadow Warriors shoot and kill Billy’s girlfriend Marian. With revenge in their minds, the Double Dragons hit the streets once more to take down the Black Shadow Warriors once and for all, and find a way to bring Marian to life.
GAMEPLAY
Double Dragon II: The Revenge is a 1-2 player action platformer. You control either Billy or Jimmy Lee as you brave through 9 missions to defeat the Black Shadow Warriors to avenge the death of Billy’s girlfriend Marian. You move in all eight directions with the D-Pad, attack left with the B button, right with the A button, and can jump with both A & B pressed.
While the core gameplay is similar to the previous Double Dragon, controls have been given a massive overhaul. Now the direction you strike is mapped to a particular button, and not just what direction you face. By that, I mean if you are facing right, and press B, you will do a behind kick. If you face left and press B, you will do a punch. It takes a little getting used to, but it also works in your favor, since back kicking can earn you a tiny bit more space from enemy attack instead of a standard punch.
Another big change from the previous Double Dragon is the removal of the levelling system. No longer do you have to wait until you get a specific heart to earn a new trick, you have them all at your disposal. These include classics from the first Double Dragon such as the grapple throw, as well as new moves like the legendary hurricane jump kick, and the uppercut.
The only issue I have is the hurricane kick, which is done by jumping, and pressing an attack button to execute a spin kick that can knock down enemies. The problem I have is getting perfect timing, as sometimes it feels like it’s extremely finnicky when it wants to execute just right. But with practice, it can be done.
Another important addition to Double Dragon II is that finally Co-Op mode has been put into the NES port. The most infamously missing piece of the previous game is here, and it works great. Now one player doesn’t have to wait for the other to die before they can start playing. There are two game modes for 2-players. A mode is your straightforward version where there is no possibility of friendly fire. B mode however does give you the option to wail on your friend. Like Battletoads or TMNT III, this addition seems really stupid, but you can use this to your advantage in a one player game as well (I’ll get to that shortly).
The game is also broken into three difficulties. Practice, Warrior, and Supreme Master. These not only affect the difficulty of the game, but also the ability to face the final boss. It’s one of those games that only rewards you with the real ending of the game if you play at the top difficulty. Which I always felt made adding the other game modes a little pointless. Just make the whole adventure one set difficulty instead. But that’s just how I think of it.
You’ll once again face familiar foes. The Chintai, Williams, and Linda enemies will be the main fodder. Abobo returns (now sporting some ugly long locks), as well as a new enemy that suspiciously looks like a certain muscled Austrian movie star. That had to be intentional.
Once again, the difficulty in this game is high, even on the easier settings. This mostly has to do with the platforming elements of the game. You have to do a lot more jumping with the A+B combo, while braving conveyor belts, disappearing platforms, and bottomless pits. The jumping feels terrible in these portions, and almost always leads to my death.
And again, this game has no continues, and only a set number of lives. And other than some control issues, and minor hit detection issues (sometimes it feels like the A.I can corner you if you screw up just once), there really isn’t any other major issues to report. Things feel a lot more well handled than the original, but there are still some frustrating elements.
POWER TIP
Want extra lives to help you on your quest? If going solo in this game, start in Mode B of two player mode, and start wailing on the other player. Each time you defeat him, you take the life he had. Do this until he gets game over to start with extra lives.
Also, while you get no official continue screen, you do have the ability to continue, or select the level you’re on via this cheat. When you get game over, quickly press one of these button combinations to continue in a certain area.
Level 1-3: Up, Right, Down, Left, A
Level 4-6: Up, Down, Left, Right, B, A, A
Level 7-9: A, A, B, B, Down, Up, Right, Left
These can also be used as level select cheats as well that are done the same way from the title screen
GRAPHICS
The game looks far better than the previous game did. Backgrounds and areas have far more detail put into them. The sprites also have some new polish to them, giving them a far cooler look. It’s very colorful, using the NES palette to its full potential, instead of the dull greens and browns that most games stuck with. There’s also cut scenes, that while minor to the game, still look very well done, with excellent 8-bit designs for the characters. All leads to a solid looking package.
MUSIC
Another hit soundtrack for the Double Dragon series. And honestly, I find this one to be the best of the NES trilogy. Every tune sounds far more epic in scope and really puts you in the mood to brave the oncoming enemies as you go from streets to caves, to the evil temple of the main boss of the game. I also prefer this version of the title screen music as well, as it really feels like the buildup to the big fight. It’s a big fight feel soundtrack, and it doesn’t disappoint.
TUNE OF THE GAME
The tune of the game easily goes to Mission 2. While the entire game has a wonderful soundtrack, one that is hard to really choose a best track for, in the end the one that sticks me the most is Mission 2. Mainly because it sounds a lot like the song “Easy Lover” by Phil Collins and Philip Bailey.
OVERALL THOUGHTS
Double Dragon II is a far better Double Dragon experience from its predecessor. It has better control, graphics, sound, and gameplay. Mainly because 2-player Co-Op has been finally implemented, and the lack of it really sticks out in the first Double Dragon in a bad way. It really comes out as the finest in the franchise, and is one of the best early beat-em-ups in the genre, honestly holding its own with the likes of Streets of Rage 2, and Final Fight as great early fighters that shaped the genre. I’d say take the revenge on head first. If you can find this classic double dragon duelling epic, give it a play.
RATING: Thumbs Up
Now, while Double Dragon 1 and 2 really made the franchise epic, what about the 3rd? There’s no way this trilogy would end on a bad note? Could it? Find out next week when we wrap up the Double Dragon trilogy with Double Dragon III: The Sacred Stones.