# Double Dragon
**Double Dragon** (双截龍) is a side-scrolling beat-'em-up arcade game released in 1987, developed by Technos Japan and licensed to Taito for manufacture and distribution in America and Europe, with Technos distributing the game itself in Japan.[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon) Martial arts masters Billy and Jimmy Lee, also called Hammer and Spike, fight through the street gang known as the Black Warriors to rescue Billy's girlfriend, Marian.[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon) The game established the fundamentals of the belt-scroll beat-'em-up genre for decades to come and became one of the most-ported arcade games of its era.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/double-dragon-and-kunio-kun-creator-yoshihisa-kishimoto-dies-at-64/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | 1987 arcade game; developed by Technos Japan, licensed to Taito for the West[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon) |
| Creator | Yoshihisa Kishimoto (岸本 良久), building on his 1986 Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun (Renegade)[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/double-dragon-and-kunio-kun-creator-yoshihisa-kishimoto-dies-at-64/) |
| Players | 2 simultaneous, 8-way joystick and 3 buttons (Punch, Kick, Jump) per player[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon) |
| Structure | Four stages: street, factory, jungle/forest, castle[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon) |
| US performance | Out-earned every arcade video game in America in 1988; Taito America moved more than 10,000 units domestically and 40,000 worldwide[3](https://retrocean.com/arcade/double-dragon/) |
| Hardware | Two 6809 CPUs and one 6309, Yamaha YM2151 sound; raster display at 256x240[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon) • [4](https://www.arcade-museum.com/tech-center/machine/ddragon) |
| Franchise | Sequels through Double Dragon IV (2017) and Double Dragon Revive (2025), both under Arc System Works[5](https://www.arcsystemworks.jp/dd4sw/) • [6](https://www.arcsystemworks.jp/ddrev/en/) |
## Origin and design
Yoshihisa Kishimoto began his career in the early 1980s on [LaserDisc](https://www.edgepedia.org/laserdisc) games at [Data East](https://www.edgepedia.org/data-east), including Cobra Command and Road Blaster, before being headhunted by Technos Japan.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/double-dragon-and-kunio-kun-creator-yoshihisa-kishimoto-dies-at-64/) His 1986 game Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun, renamed Renegade in the West, helped establish the beat-'em-up genre with a brawler structure of screen-by-screen gang fights.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/double-dragon-and-kunio-kun-creator-yoshihisa-kishimoto-dies-at-64/)
**From Kunio-kun to Double Dragon.** In a 2017 Famitsu interview, Kishimoto explained that Double Dragon was born on the base of Kunio-kun: the idea was to transform that design into a game with a scrolling screen and simultaneous two-player cooperation, on the commercial logic of twice the players and twice the coins.[7](https://as.com/meristation/noticias/yoshihisa-kishimoto-muere-a-los-64-anos-adios-al-creador-de-double-dragon-kunio-kun-y-renegade-f202604-n/) In its early phase the project still sat inside the Kunio-kun universe, and Kishimoto imagined construction workers fighting at a work site; only later did the setting shift to an American scenario to make the game more exportable.[7](https://as.com/meristation/noticias/yoshihisa-kishimoto-muere-a-los-64-anos-adios-al-creador-de-double-dragon-kunio-kun-y-renegade-f202604-n/) Kishimoto later called Double Dragon his masterpiece on PlayStation Blog Japan, saying it brought one-against-many combat to the world.[7](https://as.com/meristation/noticias/yoshihisa-kishimoto-muere-a-los-64-anos-adios-al-creador-de-double-dragon-kunio-kun-y-renegade-f202604-n/)
## Gameplay
Players advance through four stages, starting in a street, moving into a factory, then through a jungle/forest, and ending in a castle.[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon) The move set includes back-kicks, elbows, head-butts, uppercuts, knees, and throws. Players can steal weapons from enemies, including knives, clubs, whips, and dynamite, and can also throw oil drums, crates, and big rocks.[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon)
**Two-player structure.** In two-player mode both players fight enemies throughout the game, but they can also hurt each other; when both reach the end, a one-on-one fight decides who wins Marian.[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon) Enemy types include the generic punk Williams, the rock-throwing Lopar, the whip-carrying Linda, the strongman Bolo, the bosses Abobo and Jeff (a mirror of the player character), and the final boss Willy, armed with a machine gun.[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon)
## Story versions
The original Japanese version by Technos Japan uses a different, more developed storyline than the international version Taito used.[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon) The Japanese story is set in 19XX after a nuclear war has ravaged half the world: Billy and Jimmy, trained in the Sousetsuken martial art, face the Black Warriors, who have kidnapped Marian, a dojo instructor and Billy's lover.[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon) The international version drops this backstory and uses the Spike and Hammer aliases; most home versions used the Japanese storyline, while the Sega Master System version combines both.[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon) Most characters in Double Dragon were named after characters from [Bruce Lee](https://www.edgepedia.org/bruce-lee)'s film [Enter the Dragon](https://www.edgepedia.org/enter-the-dragon).[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon)
## Ports and home versions
Quality differed sharply across these ports: on the NES, players could no longer team up at the same time, though a character-growth mechanic was introduced; the [Master System](https://www.edgepedia.org/master-system) version retained its two-player cooperation; and the [Commodore 64](https://www.edgepedia.org/commodore-64) edition, completed in only six weeks, shipped with an apologetic note inside its manual.[3](https://retrocean.com/arcade/double-dragon/) The 8-bit console comparisons note that the NES, Master System, and [Atari 7800](https://www.edgepedia.org/atari-7800) versions were largely competent, while home-computer ports were infamous for being shoddy and rushed.[9](https://doubledragon.kontek.net/features/8bitcomparisons.html) Later notable versions include the 1995 Neo-Geo fighting-game take by Technos[10](https://arcadertfm.com/m/doubledr) and the well-reviewed Double Dragon Advance (2003).[8](https://www.gamespot.com/games/double-dragon/reviews/)
## Franchise and later history
The arcade game spawned a series: Double Dragon II: The Revenge, Double Dragon 3: The [Rosetta Stone](https://www.edgepedia.org/rosetta-stone), and the Neo-Geo Double Dragon, among many spinoffs.[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon) Double Dragon IV was released on September 7, 2017 for the original game's 30th anniversary, directed by Kishimoto.[5](https://www.arcsystemworks.jp/dd4sw/) • [2](https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/double-dragon-and-kunio-kun-creator-yoshihisa-kishimoto-dies-at-64/) Arc System Works, which acquired the series, released the six-game Double Dragon Collection for Switch in 2024 and the modern belt-scroll action game Double Dragon Revive in 2025 for [PlayStation 4](https://www.edgepedia.org/playstation-4)/5, Xbox, Switch, and PC.[11](https://www.arcsystemworks.com/game/double-dragon-collection/) • [6](https://www.arcsystemworks.jp/ddrev/en/)
**Film.** A live-action Double Dragon movie appeared in the early 1990s, with [Scott Wolf](https://www.edgepedia.org/scott-wolf) as Billy Lee and [Mark Dacascos](https://www.edgepedia.org/mark-dacascos) as Jimmy Lee; the arcade game itself appears briefly in the film.[1](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon) The film is set in 2007, after earthquakes have ravaged Los Angeles, and is generally ranked among the weaker video game film adaptations of its era.[12](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/1993-super-mario-bros-movie-is-bad-its-not-only-terrible-video-game-movie-from-era-double-dragon)
**Kishimoto's later career and death.** Kishimoto stayed at Technos for a decade after Double Dragon's success, working on sequels and spinoffs because the franchises made money, and later said this kept him from creating many other original projects.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/double-dragon-and-kunio-kun-creator-yoshihisa-kishimoto-dies-at-64/) He left Technos in the 1990s, worked as a freelance designer and consultant, and his final console/PC credits were as a consultant on [River City Ransom](https://www.edgepedia.org/river-city-ransom): Underground (2014) and director on Double Dragon 4 (2017).[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/double-dragon-and-kunio-kun-creator-yoshihisa-kishimoto-dies-at-64/) He died on 2 April 2026 at the age of 64, as announced by his son Ryūbō.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/double-dragon-and-kunio-kun-creator-yoshihisa-kishimoto-dies-at-64/)
## References
1. [Double Dragon – Videogame by Taito, Museum of the Game / KLOV](https://www.arcade-museum.com/Videogame/double-dragon)
2. [Double Dragon and Kunio-kun creator Yoshihisa Kishimoto dies at 64, PC Gamer](https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/double-dragon-and-kunio-kun-creator-yoshihisa-kishimoto-dies-at-64/)
3. [Double Dragon (Arcade) — History & Gameplay, Retrocean](https://retrocean.com/arcade/double-dragon/)
4. [Double Dragon (World set 1) specs, Museum of the Game Tech Center](https://www.arcade-museum.com/tech-center/machine/ddragon)
5. [DOUBLE DRAGON IV | Arc System Works](https://www.arcsystemworks.jp/dd4sw/)
6. [Double Dragon Revive | Arc System Works](https://www.arcsystemworks.jp/ddrev/en/)
7. [Yoshihisa Kishimoto muere a los 64 años, MeriStation (AS.com)](https://as.com/meristation/noticias/yoshihisa-kishimoto-muere-a-los-64-anos-adios-al-creador-de-double-dragon-kunio-kun-y-renegade-f202604-n/)
8. [Double Dragon Reviews, GameSpot](https://www.gamespot.com/games/double-dragon/reviews/)
9. [Double Dragon Dojo: 8-bit comparisons](https://doubledragon.kontek.net/features/8bitcomparisons.html)
10. [Double Dragon (Neo-Geo), ArcadeRTFM](https://arcadertfm.com/m/doubledr)
11. [Double Dragon Collection – Arc System Works](https://www.arcsystemworks.com/game/double-dragon-collection/)
12. [The 1993 Super Mario Bros. Movie Is Bad... Double Dragon, CinemaBlend](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/1993-super-mario-bros-movie-is-bad-its-not-only-terrible-video-game-movie-from-era-double-dragon)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Video games and digital play › Games and gameplay › Game genres › Action, adventure, and role-playing games › Beat 'em up (brawler) games*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license