Double Dragon IV

Double Dragon IV (Japanese: ダブルドラゴン IV, Hepburn: Daburu Doragon IV)[2] is a beat 'em up video game developed and published by Arc System Works for PlayStation 4, Windows, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox One. It is part of the Double Dragon series.

For the fourth game in the series, see Super Double Dragon.

Double Dragon IV
Developer(s)Arc System Works
Publisher(s)Arc System Works
Director(s)Yoshihisa Kishimoto
Producer(s)Takaomi Kaneko
Programmer(s)Kei Oyama
Artist(s)Koji Ogata
Composer(s)Kazunaka Yamane
SeriesDouble Dragon
EngineUnity
Platform(s)PlayStation 4
Windows
Nintendo Switch
Android
iOS
Xbox One
ReleasePlayStation 4
  • WW: January 29, 2017
  • JP: February 8, 2017
Windows
  • WW: January 30, 2017
[1] Nintendo Switch
  • WW: September 7, 2017
Xbox One
  • WW: April 23, 2020
Genre(s)Beat 'em up
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Gameplay
The game is heavily influenced by Double Dragon II and features the return of protagonists Jimmy and Billy Lee, as well as enemies such as Abobo.

In addition to a story mode, the game includes a two-player duel mode and a tower battle mode.[3][4] Enemies and bosses as well as hidden characters can be unlocked for Story and Duel modes through Tower Mode.

Plot

After the defeat of the Black Warriors in Double Dragon II, Billy and Jimmy Lee look to spread their Sōsetsuken martial art by establishing dojos around the country. However, they soon face a new threat in a gang called the Renegades, who have teamed up with the Black Warriors to put an end to Billy and Jimmy once and for all.

Development

Unlike earlier games in the series, this sequel is developed by Arc System Works, who bought the series rights in 2015 after acquiring the original publisher Technōs Japan. Several series developers continued to the project, including the original director, character designer, and composer with production led by Arc System Works designer Takaomi Kaneko.[5][6] The game was announced in late December 2016 via a gameplay trailer. GameSpot had expected a graphical update, similar to Double Dragon Neon, but the new sequel's gameplay and graphics are more akin to the ports made for the Nintendo Entertainment System, with several character sprites taken directly from those titles,[3] rather than the arcade original.[7]

Producer Takaomi Kaneko said the team made the decision use Double Dragon II for the NES as a template because the game sported the same visuals in Japan and the rest of the world. Composer Kazunaka Yamane based the soundtrack on the original NES Double Dragon games he had worked on in the past, although at first he could not find his original compositions for the past games. His new music was subsequently converted to a retro 8-bit style soundtrack that is available as an option in the game. Similarly, character designer Koji Ogata, who had also worked on Double Dragon II: The Revenge also tried to preserve the classic graphics from the older game, while adding new animations and backgrounds. The game's development team had only five members, a smaller team than the ones that worked on the NES titles.[8]

The game was released digitally on January 30, 2017, for PlayStation 4 and January 31 for Windows.[9] A version for Nintendo Switch was released digitally on September 7.[10] The game received a limited physical release on the PlayStation 4 on December 8 the same year, and on 2022 on Nintendo Switch by Limited Run Games.

Reception

According to video game review aggregator Metacritic, the PS4 has a score of 49, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews", while the PC version has a score of 50, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[11][12] Destructoid gave it a 6/10, praising the retro aesthetic.[13] IGN awarded it a score of 3.5/10.[17]

References
  1. "Double Dragon IV Available Today on Playstation®Network for the PlayStation®4 and Steam (PC)". Anime News Network. February 2, 2017. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  2. "『ダブルドラゴン IV』(PlayStation4ダウンロード専用ソフト/STEAM) 配信決定！！" (in Japanese). Arc System Works. Retrieved December 27, 2016.
  3. Haywald, Justin (December 26, 2016). "Double Dragon 4's Gameplay Looks Unbelievably Old School". Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  4. Wesley Yin-Poole (January 27, 2017). "Double Dragon 4 looks like a proper good Double Dragon sequel". Eurogamer. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
  5. O'Kane, Sean (December 26, 2016). "Double Dragon IV is coming January 30th, 2017". The Verge. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  6. Good, Owen S. (December 26, 2016). "Double Dragon coming back in 2017". Polygon. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  7. "Double Dragon IV Coming to PlayStation®4 and Steam (PC) in January". Anime News Network. January 2, 2017. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  8. "Double Dragon IV: Official interviews". Arc System Works. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  9. Salamanca, Gail. "Double Dragon IV Coming to PlayStation4 and Steam (PC) in January". Arc System Works Universe. Arc System Works. Archived from the original on December 30, 2016. Retrieved December 30, 2016.
  10. "Double Dragon IV". Arc System Works. Retrieved August 28, 2017.
  11. "Double Dragon IV for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  12. "Double Dragon IV for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  13. Carter, Chris (January 31, 2017). "Review: Double Dragon IV". Destructoid. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
  14. Carsillo, Ray (February 7, 2017). "Double Dragon IV review". Electronic Gaming Monthly. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
  15. Tack, Daniel (January 29, 2017). "Nostalgia Is Not Enough - Double Dragon IV - PlayStation 4". Game Informer. Retrieved January 29, 2017.
  16. D'Aprile, Jason (February 9, 2017). "Double Dragon IV Review". GameSpot. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
  17. Ingenito, Vince (February 1, 2017). "Double Dragon IV Review". IGN. Retrieved February 1, 2017.
  18. Musgrave, Shaun (January 9, 2018). "'Double Dragon 4' Review – A Pass From the Past". TouchArcade. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
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