Double Dragon: Neon

1. Bhurak

   Sep 17, 2012

   10

   A surprisingly excellent game. This game should not be seen as some cheap port or a quick cash grab for nostalgia. This is not the failureA surprisingly excellent game. This game should not be seen as some cheap port or a quick cash grab for nostalgia. This is not the failure of the TMNT remake from a few years ago. Instead, it is a lovingly produced game with many references to Double Dragon and many other classic video games, and comedic (and sometimes just silly) use of the 80's setting. It takes many cues from classic beat-em-ups but adds a nice upgrade mechanic and a number of selectable special attacks. This adds enough depth to motivate you to play all the way though as you enjoy the scenes, over-the-top story, and amazing music. Don't be put off by some of the screenshots or gameplay videos, it plays great. Cheap, deep enough, and super fun! Enjoy!… Expand

   • 6 of 9 users found this helpful
2. DKR

   Jan 22, 2016

   10

   TLDR: This is the most underrated game in years. You need to buy it NOW.
   
   Everyone has a precious, childhood game that made manyTLDR: This is the most underrated game in years. You need to buy it NOW.
   
   Everyone has a precious, childhood game that made many life-shaping, cherish-able memories for them. Mine was Double Dragon 2 on NES. I nearly burnt out that old cartridge. The music was unforgettable, the gameplay: classic, the difficulty merciless and punishing, the graphics and level design were priceless, and coop to round off the joy. It was an embodiment of all the trends in the 80s-90s with masculine dudes roughing up gangsters and hooligans on the streets, which gave it a special appeal to me: a 90s kid and 80s nerd. I might even crown it THE greatest game ever made, however, the series didn't age well including many a black sheep entries and passed into history.
   
   FF to 2015. I briefly hear about a reboot of the series and shudder. Reboots don't exactly have glamorous reputations; more like reputations of butchering classics and ignoring source material in the name of $_$. DDN did NOT look charming at first. I was especially turned off by the "fanservice" and Billy's possessed-zombie visage, but all the reviews for the game seemed harsh, and I finally gave into my inner dragon's urge.
   
   The rockin' 80s style remix of the theme roused my hope. After head bangin' for a few min, I started the game. It felt a little slow, but that didn't bother me. They introduced the grunt of the baddies as "Cartwheeling Fodder: Williams" and I was hooked. Here I not only saw how the game didn't take a pixel of itself seriously, but it was also true to the source material; a refined blend of old and new. The plot, characters, and cheesy lines are corny, silly, and one big love letter to my favorite 2 decades, all full of references to pop culture of the time and surfer-dude talk (bro, tubular, bodacious, ect). Every mission even ends with the bros AIR GUITARING!
   
   The gameplay is punishing and brutally difficult at first. The secret to mastering it is Sosisetsu (magic), Stances (passive buffs, both illustrated as your "mixtapes", my favorite being Spin Kick and Desperation), upgrading them wisely with $ and boss-loot mythril, and use of crouch-dodge. If you dodge correctly, you will "gleam"; doubling your damage and increasing your battery power regen (mana). It's overwhelming at first, but when you get into the rhythm of gleaming, then counterattacking with a mix of your magic, and the killer soundtrack is kickin, followed by a cheesy line from the bros, it all creates a silly, clean, and wonderfully entertaining experience (pistol whipping and shouting I HUCKED A LUGER!)...sadly, I have no one to play the coop with, yet it looks hella fun, but very easy. You can high5 your bro for on-demand gleam, which seems game breaking, but fun.
   
   Speaking of the soundtrack, I'd be p**d if I played a DD game w/o phenomenal music and Jake "virt" Kaufman blew me away. I'm so addicted to DDN's OST, that I can't go a day w/o Billy and the Breakers Firebird. It takes me back to that inspirational music the 80's classics had, when we had a positive definition of "to be a man".
   
   It does have cons. Hit detection can be a little finicky, stunning an enemy causes players animation to freeze; leaving you open to attack unfairly, but most of all is the excess fanservice. Nearly every female in the game is half-nude, and Linda is the worst. Every line from her is tacky innuendo, and her outfit is ridiculous. I'm all for sex appeal, but we gotta curb this. It's getting out of control. My brothers are married men, and its offensive to their marriages for a toon to be so over-sexualized, so they refuse to play it. We're in an age of evolving games, right, so where is the option to curb some of these more "adult" themes? What if I like Bulletstorm, but can't stand the saturation of lewd remarks? Where's the middle ground between Counting w/ Hello Kitty and Lollipop Chainsaw?
   
   I also want to address the unfair criticism this game gets like "dated gameplay that we have progressed past". What progression are we talking about; $120 updates to failure/skill-free console shooters with 0 replay value to their copy/paste, gimmick-ridden campaigns and toxic communities, or 16yr olds on twitch with 3 viewers; riding on delusions of grandeur? DDN takes us back to a time when games were actually difficult and had skill based mechanics you had to learn and practice. Now, kids throw DS's away after dying once on Mario 3, and demand a mobile game. They aren't used to enduring blood/sweat/tears of failure as you slowly got better at a difficult game. I had my @* kicked about 4x ON THE 1ST MISSION. Now, I can breeze through Very Hard mode with no deaths. The process was rough, but I can't express how rewarding the feeling is of conquering your fears and obstacles.
   
   Epic soundtrack, classic gameplay, coop, great characters, near limitless replay value, and delightful humor FOR TEN BUCKS?! That is a STEAL! Hopefully we'll get a sequel instead of the devs bein so busy with their arab chick...… Expand

   • 1 of 2 users found this helpful
4. Lcvolt

   Jul 16, 2014

   9

   This is a perfect reboot to a dead franchise. Might feel extremely difficult at first, but after some time, it gets pretty easy to understand.This is a perfect reboot to a dead franchise. Might feel extremely difficult at first, but after some time, it gets pretty easy to understand. It has a nice art-style, and the 80s references are awesome. The game is full of puns, but very subtle ones. The soundtrack is one of the best, and you will love it if you are a Double Dragon fan. The length is OK, and the replay value amazing. This is simply a lot of fun, i just didnt expect so much awesome from a downloadable title.… Expand

   • 1 of 1 users found this helpful
5. Vickdalintine

   Dec 25, 2012

   8

   I am only writing this review to counter the apply named "TheBadGamer"s "Review" of DD Neon. It was obvious that they had played for 10 or 30I am only writing this review to counter the apply named "TheBadGamer"s "Review" of DD Neon. It was obvious that they had played for 10 or 30 minutes and hadn't bothered to read instructions included with the download. Firstly the control is smooth and there might be a slight problem with hit detection but if your flailing wildly at the air you shouldn't expect your punches to connect anything but said air. This game can be somewhat difficult but heres where reading the included instructions before writing a blatantly biased review pays off.. the tape system and "tapesmith" located on various stages. The tapes serve to level up stats and increase power of the specials with you can change on the fly. The Tapesmith increases capacity of said tapes using bits you accquired after beating bosses. The whole experience isn't perfect by far... in fact the art style bothers me for one and not to mention the way the dragon twins speak and behave invokes the worst of the 80's. All in all I feel it's a better reboot than the pastel colored turtles in time travesty years ago.… Expand

   • 1 of 2 users found this helpful
6. DunnoDontcare

   Oct 12, 2012

   8

   WayForward Technologies brings us a throw back to 80's/90's beat-'em ups, and a spoof of children's television from the same time. FullWayForward Technologies brings us a throw back to 80's/90's beat-'em ups, and a spoof of children's television from the same time. Full Review:http://vidyabeer.boards.net/index.cgi?board=110&action=display&thread=6
   
   Sorry, it's more than (5000 characters)… Expand

   • 2 of 2 users found this helpful
7. GrumpyReviewer

   Sep 26, 2012

   7

   Fun, challenging and aimed for the masochist audience. It's great to play with a friend and it's torture to play alone. That being said, niceFun, challenging and aimed for the masochist audience. It's great to play with a friend and it's torture to play alone. That being said, nice graphics and an interesting overhaul with a crazy atmosphere that constantly made me scratch my head saying, "wait, what? Was this in the original?". A cool downloadable game and worth its $9,99 price. An old school beat'em up with a current-gen feel.… Expand

   • 1 of 3 users found this helpful
8. TheBadGamer

   Sep 25, 2012

   4

   Imagine, if you will, an 8 year old little boy sitting on the floor of his brown carpeted room surrounded by GI Joes and Ninja Turtles inImagine, if you will, an 8 year old little boy sitting on the floor of his brown carpeted room surrounded by GI Joes and Ninja Turtles in front of a 300 pound, 24 inch television. He inserts his neighbor's copy of "Double Dragon" into his NES and presses the "on" switch. The screen blinks green and black repeatedly. So, he takes the game out of the system, blows on it and puts it back in. He hits the power button and it works!
   
   After getting through the title screen and its kickin rad intro music, he marches his in game sprite to the right, punching and kicking his way through street thugs. Then, he loses a life. Then another. Then another. Then he gets a "game over" screen and has to start over from the beginning.
   
   4 hours later, this 8 year old has had one of the best times of his short life, even though he barely made it past the 2nd stage.
   
   I have a lot of fond memories of wasting away hours playing really hard, really bad videogames. The nostalgia is wonderful and it fills me with joy to remember the innocence of my early days as a gamer.
   
   However, those memories are just that: memories. My gaming palette has evolved. In 2012, I expect a game to have responsive, smooth controls. I expect collision detection to make sense. I expect QA to eliminate game breaking bugs.
   
   Double Dragon Neon fulfills none of these expectations.
   
   2D beat em' ups died sometime around the end of the Super Nintendo's life cycle. Games like Final Fight, Streets of Rage, and Turtles in Time had pretty much evolved the genre as far as it would go. Somehow, this game takes the innovations of the 16-bit era and discarded them entirely and decides to be a neon colored, clunky mess.
   
   Take the controls, for example. While the button layout is pretty natural and fits with the style of the game, the execution of the button presses feel like sludgy trash. This, coupled with the awkward collision detection, make the game a frustrating nightmare. You end up taking a bunch of damage from enemies because of delayed reactions from your character. You miss hitting guys because you are outside of their hit box even when you are right in their faces. You miss hitting guys because they were immune to your swings, even though they didn't give you any kind of visual cue. Even Mike Tyson blinked before he beat you up in "Punchout"! Bad controls are 1988 jank that have no business in a 2012 release.
   
   Even with the control issues, I was able to finish the game in 2 hours. For a 10 dollar price tag, this is entirely too short. They try to encourage multiple playthroughs by adding in powerups, co-op and unlockable difficulty settings, but none of these things make the game not play like hot garbage.
   
   I ran into a few game breaking bugs, including one where an enemy would get stuck on the environment and would not allow me to advance in the level.
   
   To deviate from the original game, they added unlockable power ups and stores to buy things within the levels themselves. I bought a bunch of extra lives. When I continued my save the next day, all of the lives I purchased were gone.
   
   I get that nostalgia is all the rage, but putting out bad titles and slapping familiar names on them is insulting to our intelligence as gamers, and I hope that people will stop encouraging these lazy cash grabs by putting their wallets back in their pockets.… Expand

   • 4 of 20 users found this helpful

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