Let's Play a Game: "Double Dragon" (NES)

On this episode we'll be playing Double Dragon for the NES. This one is a classic that still holds up all these years later.

Double Dragon is a classic beat 'em up video game originally released for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) in 1988 in North America, though its roots trace back to the arcade scene. Developed by Technōs Japan, the game was first an arcade hit in 1987 before being ported to the NES by Tradewest in the West. It follows the story of twin brothers Billy and Jimmy Lee, martial artists who set out to rescue Billy’s girlfriend Marian from the clutches of the Black Warriors gang. The NES version retains this core plot but adapts it with a mix of side-scrolling action and some unique tweaks, like a mode where you can level up your character’s skills through experience points earned from defeating enemies—a feature not as prominent in the arcade original. The game’s iconic two-player co-op mode, where Billy and Jimmy fight side by side, cemented its reputation as a multiplayer staple, though the NES version famously ends with the brothers battling each other over Marian if you play co-op, adding a quirky twist.
The Japanese release of Double Dragon, known as ダブルドラゴン (Daburu Doragon), hit the Famicom on April 8, 1988, a few months before the North American NES version in June. One fascinating difference is that the Japanese ダブルドラゴン version includes a bit more polish in some areas, like additional music tracks and slightly refined sprites, reflecting Technōs Japan’s home-turf attention to detail. However, it also shares the NES limitation of only rendering two enemies on screen at once (plus the players), a downgrade from the arcade’s busier fights due to hardware constraints. The Japanese manual also dives deeper into the Lee brothers’ backstory, framing them as practitioners of a fictional martial art called Sōsetsuken, blending Western and Eastern fighting styles, which adds a layer of cultural flavor not as emphasized in the U.S. release.
Historically, Double Dragon’s development has some intriguing roots. It was directed by Yoshihisa Kishimoto, who drew inspiration from his love of kung fu films, particularly Bruce Lee’s Enter the Dragon. Kishimoto originally pitched a sequel to Technōs’ earlier game Renegade (released as くにおくん or Kunio-kun in Japan), but the concept evolved into a standalone title with a more cinematic feel. The name “Double Dragon” itself nods to the zodiac Year of the Dragon (1988) and the dual protagonists, while the arcade version’s success—selling over 50,000 units in its first year—pushed Technōs to license it widely, including to Tradewest for the NES. An odd bit of trivia: the NES port was programmed by just two people at Technōs, a tiny team for such a massive hit, which might explain some of its quirks like glitchy hit detection.
The game’s legacy is peppered with interesting tidbits. For instance, the NES version’s soundtrack, composed by Kazunaka Yamane, became iconic despite the system’s limited sound chip, with tracks like the opening theme still remixed by fans today. There’s also a wild story about the game’s U.S. marketing: Tradewest ran a contest where players could win a real Double Dragon-themed van, painted with the game’s logo—a prize that’s now a holy grail for retro collectors. Double Dragon spawned sequels, spin-offs, and even a notoriously bad 1994 live-action movie, but the NES release remains a touchstone for its role in popularizing the beat 'em up genre alongside titles like Final Fight. Its mix of gritty urban vibes and martial arts flair made it a cultural artifact of the late '80s gaming boom.