Double Dragon Advance (ダブルドラゴンアドバンス,Daburu Doragon Adobansu?) is a 2003 side-scrolling beat-em-up video game released for the Game Boy Advance. It was published by Atlus and developed by Million Inc., S-NEO and Paon. It is a remake/expansion of the 1987 arcade game Double Dragon and incorporates elements from its sequels and home versions. The game is slated for a re-release on PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and PC (via Steam) on November 9, 2023.
Like in the original arcade game, the player takes control of martial arts masters Billy Lee, or his brother Jimmy, as they fight their way against the members of the Shadow Warriors in order to rescue Billy's girlfriend Marian. Double Dragon Advance can be played alone or with another player via a Game Link Cable. A third game mode allows a single player to play the game as both Lee brothers, with one character being controlled by the player while the other stands idle until the player switches character. There is also a Survival Mode in which the player must defeat as many adversaries possible in a single life.
All of the player's techniques from the original arcade game are featured, as well as several new ones based on later arcade and console versions (such as the Hyper Uppercut and the Hyper Knee from the NES version of Double Dragon II: The Revenge), as well as other beat-'em-ups by Technōs such as Renegade and The Combatribes (like the sit-on-punch and the jump stomp respectively). New weapons are also added as well, including nunchakus and double kali sticks.
Four new stages were added as well, all taking place between the original stages from the arcade version. These includes a Chinatown stage, a fight atop a moving truck (both inspired by Super Double Dragon), a cavern stage (similar to the one from the first NES game), and a fortress before the final stage (inspired by the final stage of Double Dragon II: The Revenge and including a final boss named Raymond, who is based on the Mysterious Warrior). Most of the enemy characters from the first two arcade games are featured, along with a few new ones introduced in this version such as the Twin Tigers Hong and Huang, Kikucho, and the Five Emperors. Moves that could not be performed on certain enemies in the original arcade games can now be performed against them in this version such as the hair-pull on Abobo.
Updated Japanese release[]
The Japanese version of Double Dragon Advance, released four months after the initial North American version, features a few slight changes. The Sound Test on the Option Mode is available by default and does not require a code, and a Gallery is made available on the main menu after completing the game on the Expert setting. The Special Thanks on the end credits now mentions Bruce Lee, as well as Yoshihisa Kishimoto, the director of the Double Dragon arcade game. The game's difficulty has been re-balanced and a few minor bugs were fixed. The Japanese version's instruction manual includes additional character profiles, as well as a list of combos.
QA: Matthew Flynn, Tomm Hulett, James Kuroki, Mai Namba, and Yu Namba
Reception[]
Double Dragon Advance garnered a positive reception from the gaming press. On October 2003, Justin Leeper of Game Informer rewarded the game an overall score of 9 points out of 10, calling it an "epic brawler well worth a purchase". Jeremy Zoss gave a second opinion within the same article, praising the detailed, colorful graphics, new cutscenes, and similar controls to the arcade. While he criticized how easy it was to fall into pits, Zoss considered Game Boy Advance the best version of the game.[1]
On November 10, Alex Navarro from Gamespot rated Double Dragon Advance 8.3 out of 10, stating that the sprite animation, excellent audio, and graphical style made up for its lack in depth.[2] A day later, Craig Harris from IGN scored with a 7 rating out of 10. He commended the updated controls, new moves, and audio quality while finding fault with the game's short length and missing save RAM. In his final verdict, he concluded, "It's great that the game retains an old-school feel in an updated version on the Game Boy Advance, and as excellent fun as this brawler is on the GBA...it's over before it gets going. And it's not because I'm experienced in the ways of Double Dragon, either, since there's a lot of new gameplay elements that require trial and error to figure out. You'll get your butt thrashed the first or second time through, but it'll only take another one or two times to get to the end. After that, well...there's not much else to it. It's great while it lasts, though."[3]
For his November 17 review, Gamespy's Benjamin Turner gave the game 4 stars out of 5, commending the evolved fighting system, fast pace action, and redrawn artstyle. Nevertheless, he found the lack of extras and story wouldn't hold the attention for those who find brawlers to be "too simple-minded". For his conclusion, Turner wrote, "if you can appreciate a good electronic street fight, then Double Dragon Advance is the best you'll find on the GBA. It's got more style, depth, history, and plain old gameplay than meager competition like Final Fight One. If you're looking for some portable, side-scrolling fisticuffs, you can currently do no better. I recommend it to all fans of Double Dragon, and those who think they might be."[4] One week later, Ty Shughart of Nintendo World Report applauded the title for its nicely drawn sprites, remixed soundtrack, challenging gameplay, and easy to perform moves. Shughart did, however, express disappointment with the small length, little bonus features, and an unspectacular boss at the end. Giving an overall 8 out of 10, he stated, "It's no ten-thousand-hour item-finding level-gaining marathon, just an honest arcade-style game. Beat it, and you're done. I can't speak for everyone, but it was worth 30 dollars to me, even for only like 10 hours of play. It's a great game, and I'll probably keep playing it."[5]
Videos[]
DOUBLE DRAGON ADVANCE Launch Announcement Trailer
Trivia[]
Left: Promotional shot of Way of the Dragon. Right: Key artwork from Double Dragon Advance.
