Luigi Mario

Double Dragon Advance

Developer: Million   Publisher: Atlus

Introduction:

So the year 2003 wasn't that long ago. But this game is basically a remake of the classic 1987 arcade game...but with bonus features! This was also the first game that Technos released since it's revival under the new name Million. The storyline basically follows the events (or in a way, it remakes them) of the first and second games in the series, meaning that it's set in New York instead of LA (like DDNG and SDD) and Big Boss Willy is the main villian. It goes like this; Billy and Jimmy Lee, two twins that are masters of the art of Sou-Settsu-Ken go out on an ass kicking spree to take down the leader of the Shadow Warriors, a big dude with a machine gun named Willy...who kidnapped Billy's girlfriend, Marian, in exchange for the book that holds the secrets to the sou-settsu-ken art. So is this the best Double Dragon game yet?

Reviewed By: Legend

Graphics: A+  

The graphics are absolutely amazong! Evem for a GBA game! Billy and Jimmy, along with the enemies from earlier DD titles, hae been given an updated look to fit in with the modern times...as opposed to the 1980's look of the first couple games. Actually, Billy & Jimmy's new sprites are those that resemble the look of the popular anime, Fist of the North Star! So they have this new anime look to them...which is pretty cool although I still personally prefer their portrayals in Return of Double Dragon (even if they did have mullets). The backgrounds are more smoother than those in the arcade...although they're not as colorful. But that isn't a problem, because overall they look much better thanks to the GBA's 32-bit capabilities! Also, another cool feature is the inclusion of beautiful and well detailed cutscenes that help tell the plot of the game througout. It's a welcome addition and kind of helps the players who are already confused about the storyline. The enemy sprites are basically idnetical to the older version's except they come an a much bigger variety in palettes! Although the characters don't move as fluid as those in SDD (nor do they have as much of animation of SDD), they are very well detailed in each animation they do. Billy & Jimmy even have different poses than those of the arcade!

If I only had one gripe, it would be that the GBA screen is pretty small. So therefore it might be allitle hard to see what's going on in the upper area until you climb up there. So I recommend playing this on the GBA Player on your GameCube. But other than that, this title definitley pushes the GBA to the limits by having excellent graphics!

Sound: A+      

The music in DDA is another strong point! It pushes the GBA's sound capabilities to the max and it shows! It's the same dramatic type of music that was in SDD...though it's just a notch below it. It's basically every song from the arcade but remixed somewhat! Hardcore fans will smile right away when they first hear the City Slum theme and the main Double Dragon theme! Another cool thing about the music is that some of the levels feature some of the cool songs directly from Double Dragon II...only it's composed better to fit in with the modern times! Mission 3 features the classic "Escape from the Forest" theme from DDII while mission 4 features the excellent "Advancing Towards Sunset" theme! You have to hear it for yourself to believe how unbelievable it sounds! Sometimes, I'd forget I was playing a GBA game! The sound effects sound surprsingly realistic too! The weapons actually sound like they're being used in combat, and the punches and kicks sound like they're really connnecting to someone's face! Billy & Jimmy have their trademark generic "hyaahh!" yell whenever they do a devestating move, and the enemies still have their "bluehh!" sound whenever they're killed. Overall, the sound in DDA is truly superb and I wouldn't expect more from the little GBA system! Excellent job there Million!

Control: A      

It's a beatemup...so don't expect it to be flawless like Super Mario Bros. But it's great for what it is! The commands respond right on time and very quickly! Also, don't expect button mashing like the TMNT or other Konami beatemups. The moves require that you time them perfectly to execute them on your opponent. If you even so much as attempt to button mash...then bye bye! So to sum it up, the moves are very easy to execute, but don't expect it to be a button masher.

Gameplay: A  

I almost gave this a perfect score, but there's one thing keeping it back. Say it with me people...it's CHEAPNESS! Sure, beatemups are supposed to be challenging and hard...but that's not it. The enemies, especially in expert mode (or hell, even in easy mode) will swarm you to the point that no matter what move you do to defend yourself, they'll knock you right back down to the ground! Most of them are pretty easy to maul through..except for the damn agents! They look surprisingly like Steve from SDD. But they mostly look like the agents from The Matrix movies. Why do I hate them so much? Becasue once they land a combo on you, there's no escaping them! Ther combos are so damn devestating that they'll actually take a full life from you! The only time they are opened is when they adjust their ties...then you can lay your own smackdown on them! More than half the enemies are from the first DD like Williams, Roper, Linda, Abobo, and Willy. And joingin them are some returning characters from DDII such as Burnov and Chin Taimei...whic is alittle bizrre because there's no story given as to why they're in the game. They're just sort of there! Surpringly, Jeff, from DD and DDII is absent in this game...which kind of sucks! But oh well, he was nothing more than a Bill & Jimmy clone. Also, to note is the boss from the NES version of DDII, the mysterious warrior, returns...only this time his name is Raymond! Of all the cool names they could've chosen, they chose Raymond?? What kind of badass name is that?? You might as well named him Bob! Oh well, this Raymond guy is a sub boss in the game. The rest of the cast is completley new and fits in perfectly with this modern times DD title!

New to this edition of the remake is the ability to block. I rarely used it because half of the time it didn't work, and Billy & Jimmy will rarely grab the enemie's arm. It's also pointless because whenever you do block, the enemy will keep swinging and swinging...and it'll push you back in the process. You can also run and do drop kicks (like the cyclone kick from DDII. But sadly it doesn't hover like it did in that game) now too...although you can't move up and down while you are. Billy & Jimmy also have the new ability to jump on their opponent's chest ala Bruce Lee...or they can just get on top and pummel them to death, which is always cool. You can also croutch now by pressing the A nd B button at the same time. This will give you a choice as to whether you want to do the powerful uppercut or the hyper knee! The hyper knee doesn't reach as nearly as far as the uppercut, but it does send your enemy flying...and it comes in great use to knock them off a platform! Of course, the trademark elbow and headbutt attacks are back and still do alot of damage to enemies who get in the way. Billy and Jimmy also have the ability to throw the baseball bats and axes to kill the enemies who stand in their way. It's very useful and is also a nice addition to this game! New weapons, along with the old school ones, have been added to the game as well! They are the nunchucks and the kali sticks! They become very useful and will fight off large numbers of foes who try to take you down! However, those that are expecting the nunchucks to make you invincible like in SDD will be disappointed. you can still get your ass kicked even whil using them. That's pretty cool in my opinion and actually makes it feel more life-like. You can also do the lagendary head grab whenever a enemy is dazed and knee them or do a shoulder throw...which I always loved! It is very important to note that in this version...there are 8 total missions instead of the 4 in the arcade version! Some of the new levels are loosley based on previous DD entries...such as mission 4..which in turn is based on SDD's semi truck level...except this time you CAN be thrown off the truck (it was also supposed to originally happen in SDD too)! Overall...the AI can still be cheap...but the gameplay itself is just too fun and addicting!

Overall: A+  

I've got to say...at first I wasn't really into this title due to me being spoiled so much by Return of Double Dragon/Super Double Dragon. But after playing this title the second time, I loved it so much and think this is one of the greatest games of all time! It's took the arcade version and did much more with it! There was never a true DD arcade port until now...and fans should eat this one up because of how fun it is! I should point out though, that there are even more modes in this version such as the Double Dragon Dojo survial game and the new 1-player Double Dragon game...in which  you control both Lee brothers! The survival mode is pretty fun, but it can get old very fast because all you do is fight enemies in one room until you die. The 1-player DD game is just pretty much pointless! You HAVE to control both Billy & Jimmy...which is a problem in itself because the computer doesn't control Jimmy! I know for a fact the the GBA was capable of doing AI partners, and why Million didn't add that is just retarded! I mean, if you don't ahve a friend to play the game with you, then this is the only way you can play as Jimmy...which is pretty lame! Speaking of friends, you can do a 2-player game...however it's a ripoff! By that I mean you have to have two copies of DDA, a link cable, and two GBAs (if you don't have a Gameboy Player to hook up to your GameCube)! And since this game had a very limited release...it'll be hard as hell to find it! But if you magaed to some how come up with the money to do all of that, then the 2-player game is very fun! But good luck doing it...espacially in this year since GBA Players are becoming more scarce than ever! Is it better than RoDD? I personally don't think so....but the game is so much fun that it's a sure number 2 as my favorite DD game (it's tied with Double Dragon Neo). It'll sure bring back alot of memories that's for sure! However, I sadly think this was a one shot deal from Million at the franchise since a new DD game hasn't been announced since then :(. So, if you ever see this game, DO NOT pass the chance to pick it up! You won't regret it!