Software:Double Dragon Advance

From HandWiki
Short description: 2003 video game
Double Dragon Advance
In homage to the film Way of the Dragon, the cover depicts Billy and Jimmy in a fighting pose in the same way as the promotional shot of Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris (respectively).
Developer(s)Million
Publisher(s)Atlus
Designer(s)Muneki Ebinuma
SeriesDouble Dragon
Platform(s)Game Boy Advance
Release
  • NA: November 12, 2003[1]
  • JP: March 5, 2004
Genre(s)Beat 'em up
Mode(s)Single-played, multiplayer

Lua error in Module:Lang/utilities at line 332: attempt to call field '_transl' (a nil value). is a 2003 beat 'em up video game developed by Japanese studio Million and published by Atlus for the Game Boy Advance. It is a remake of Technōs Japan's 1987 arcade game Double Dragon and incorporates elements from its sequels and home versions.[2]

It was rereleased on Steam, PS4, Xbox and Nintendo Switch on 8th November 2023.[3]

Gameplay

A screenshot of the 1-Player Double Dragon mode, with the player taking control of Billy.

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 The Revenge), as well as other beat-'em-ups by Technos 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 include 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. 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 led by Raymond (a group of rival martial artists modeled after the final boss from the NES version of Double Dragon II). 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 the big characters in Abobo, and Burnov.

Development and release

Former Technōs employee Muneki Ebinuma designed Double Dragon Advance, having previously worked on both Super Double Dragon and Double Dragon for Neo Geo. Ebinuma conceived Advance as a way to preserve the legacy of the original Double Dragon arcade game while making up for the perceived shortcomings of the games in the series he had worked on before. To this end, the fighting mechanics of Advance largely mirror those of the original arcade game combined with elements from the NES games and Super Double Dragon. Instead of making a second installment titled Double Dragon Advance II: The Revenge, Ebinuma chose to cram all of the sequel's characters and elements into the game, which owes to limitations in both cartridge size and the scope of the project, the development team excised several planned features, including an extended playable prologue sequence and game modes where players could take control of either the enemy character Abobo or Marian.[2]

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 the 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 rebalanced and a few minor bugs were fixed. The Japanese version's instruction manual includes additional character profiles, as well as a list of combos.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores
AggregatorScore
GameRankings75%[4]
Metacritic75/100[5]

Double Dragon Advance garnered generally positive reviews, with a few of the criticisms aimed at the short length of the game. Alex Navarro of GameSpot gave the game a score of 8.3 and wrote "while (the game) may prove to be a bit too fleeting for anyone seeking a long-lasting gameplay experience and the additional gameplay modes are a bit too restrictive in the design for what they're supposed to be, the game is still great fun and is definitely worth playing through long after you've beaten it the first time".[6] Justin Leeper of Game Informer, who gave the game an overall score of 9, wrote: "It's still no 30-hour marathon, but Atlus has added a whole lot to an already-excellent beat ‘em up".[7]

Notes

References

  1. ↑ jkdmedia (2012-05-04). "Atlus Releases Double Dragon Advance" (in en-US). https://www.gamezone.com/news/atlus_releases_double_dragon_advance/. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "ダブルドラゴン アドバンス". Game Kommander. 2003. Archived from the original. Error: If you specify |archiveurl=, you must also specify |archivedate=. https://web.archive.org/web/20100621000000/http://www.ne.jp/asahi/hzk/kommander/dda.html.  Alt URL
  3. ↑ https://store.steampowered.com/app/2086360/Double_Dragon_Advance/
  4. ↑ "Double Dragon Advance for Game Boy Advance". CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 2019-12-09. https://web.archive.org/web/20191209001316/https://www.gamerankings.com/gba/915388-double-dragon-advance/index.html. Retrieved 2020-03-17. 
  5. ↑ "Double Dragon Advance for Game Boy Advance Reviews". CBS Interactive. https://www.metacritic.com/game/double-dragon-advance/critic-reviews/?platform=game-boy-advance. Retrieved 2020-03-17. 
  6. ↑ Navarro, Alex (November 10, 2004). "Double Dragon Advance Review". https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/double-dragon-advance-review/1900-6081705/. Retrieved 9 August 2019. 
  7. ↑ [1]

See also

  • River City Ransom EX
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This lengthy approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
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