Super Double Dragon / Return of Double Dragon: "Sleeping Dragon" has Awoken / リターン・オブ・双截龍ダブルドラゴン 👊

Super Double Dragon, released in Japan as Return of Double Dragon: "Sleeping Dragon" has Awoken (リターン・オブ・双截龍ダブルドラゴン, Ritān Obu Daburu Doragon), is a side-scrolling beat-'em-up released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1992. It was published by Tradewest in North America and the PAL region and by Technōs Japan in Japan. Super Double Dragon is the fourth console game in the Double Dragon series developed by Technōs Japan, following Double Dragon III: The Sacred Stones for the NES. The game did not have an arcade release and was made specifically for the home market.

In 2018, a slightly enhanced Japanese version, Return of Double Dragon, was re-released by Tommo in Japan and under its Retroism brand in North America. Despite being officially licensed, this release is only guaranteed to work on third-party hardware.

Gameplay

Gameplay of Super Double Dragon.
As with previous installments of the series, the player takes control of martial artists Billy and Jimmy in their fight against the Shadow Warriors gang. The objective is to proceed through each stage and defeat all enemies, including a boss.

In addition to the punch, kick, and jump buttons, the player now has a guard button for blocking attacks. If the player times the guard button right, their character can not only defend against an enemy's punch, they can also put certain enemies in an arm grab, leaving the enemy vulnerable to successive attacks. The arm grab only works on Williams, Roper, Steve, Jackson and the Chin brothers.

Super Double Dragon is one of the few games in the series where the protagonists of Billy and Jimmy Lee were differentiated, not just in their in-game character designs (where the brothers were given different hair styles), but also in their fighting abilities. Particularly, the two characters have different basic punches (in Return of Double Dragon, Jimmy's roundhouse kick is also different).

Characters
Billy Lee (ビリー・リー, Birī Rī) - player 1's character. A master of Southern So-Setsu-Ken (南派双截拳, Nanha Sōsetsuken), which specializes in agility and flexibility. Billy retains his basic design from the NES versions of the previous games (red hair and blue outfit).

Jimmy Lee (ジミー・リー, Jimī Rī) - player 2's character. A master of Northern So-Setsu-Ken (北派双截拳, Hokuha Sōsetsuken), which prioritizes strength. Jimmy now has a blond flat top hairstyle to distinguish him from Billy (in previous games, Jimmy was only depicted differently in cut-scenes and promotional art).

Williams (ウィリアムス, Wiriamusu) and Roper (ローパー, Rōpā) - the two common enemy types in the game. Williams has wild blond hair and wears a yellow vest with camouflage pants, while Roper has black hair with a bandanna tied around his head and wears a white vest and pants. Sometimes they come armed with all sorts of weapons, which can be used by the player.

Baker (ベイカー, Beikā) - another common enemy type who is always armed with twin dao blades. His attacks include single-sword slashes and helicopter-like spins. Unlike other enemies, he cannot be disarmed when knocked down. Also, unlike other weapons, the swords are unobtainable.

Jeff (ジェフ, Jefu) - a recurring sub-boss who appears in the early stages. He's a palette swap of Billy Lee with darker skin and green clothing, and thus has most of the same techniques (including the hurricane kick).

Steve (スティーブ, Sutību) - the boss of Mission 1. A suit-wearing martial arts master who specializes in kicks. Reappears as a sub-boss in subsequent stages.
Jackson (ジャクソン, Jakuson) - the boss of Mission 2. A former heavyweight boxing champion. Reappears as a sub-boss in subsequent stages.

Chin Ron Foo (チェン・ロン・フー, Chen Ron Fū) and Chin Ron Pyo (チェン・ロン・ピョウ, Chen Ron Pyou) - the bosses of Mission 3. Twin martial arts masters who operate a Kenpo gym in Chinatown. They have the ability to grab the player's kicks and twist his leg. Ron Foo (in the yellow vest) specializes in kicks, while Ron Pyo (in the red vest) specializes in punches. Ron Foo claims that he and his brother are the real Double Dragons.

McGuire (マックガイア, Makkugaia) - the boss of Mission 5. A clown-like fat man who can block attacks with his stomach.

Carlem (カーレム, Kāremu) - the boss of Mission 6. The giant gatekeeper of the enemy's hideout. His special technique is a middle kick feared by his comrades as "Death Leg".

Duke (デューク, Dyūku) - the final boss, who uses a flashy martial arts style.

Developer(s) Technōs Japan
Publisher(s)
JP: Technōs Japan
NA/EU: Tradewest
Director(s) Muneki Ebinuma
Atsuyuki Nishizawa
Programmer(s) Teruhiro Maeda
Genei Fukuhara
Naritaka Nishimura
Composer(s) Kazunaka Yamane
Series Double Dragon
Platform(s) Super NES
Release Super Double Dragon
NA: October 8, 1992
EU: September 30, 1993
Return of Double Dragon
JP: October 16, 1992
NA: August 21, 2018
Genre(s) Beat'em up
Mode(s) Single-player
Cooperative

#super double dragon #tradewest #snes