Publisher: SNK
Developer: SNK
Size: 1 CD
Memory Usage: Yes
No. of players: 2
Known in Japan as: Quadruple Dragon(kidding)
Got it for: $15, at The West Exit.
I have *no* idea what's going on. Apparently, everyone is after this guy named Duke, and his boss Shuko, for some reason or another. Doesn't really matter, I doubt anyone would care too much about the story anyway. I will say that as far as I can tell, this game has *nothing* to do with the movie, aside from having some Sega CD-grainy video clip in the “game demo” section and a few static shots that are shown in the background of Marian’s stage....thank God. I haven't even seen the movie, and just the thought of it scares me shitless...
What's it all about?
It's a really fast paced, one-on-one arcade fighter. Prime features include air blocking, dashing, double jumps, fast gameplay and super attacks. Ten characters are immediately playable, with two more(the two boss characters) available via a code. During matches, a "super meter" can built up by attacking, blocking, taking hits, etc. Once charged this will allow your character to perform one of their two super attacks, and Billy/Jimmy can even power themselves up for the rest of the match on top of that...
Graphics - Excellent. The characters are a good size, and though they're not quite as animated as most Neo fighters, they certainly aren't stiff. Backgrounds are all very interesting, and colorful with quite a few things going on in them and such. They also feature Samurai Shodown-like scaling that really helps to lengthen the playing field. All stages allow for a character-exclusive intro, most even have some changes between rounds(time of day, structural changes, scenery, etc) and almost every stage has some sort of interactive element in the form of stuff you can knock over, break, etc.
Sound - The hilarious announcer will just crack you up, not only with her voice but the quick pronunciation of some of the character's names(the way she says "Abobo" is the best). Past that, the in-game sound effects, including hit noises, grunts, special move-screams, etc. all sound great, and crystal-clear. As per usual, the Neo does another great job of maximizing the stereo effect by using the two speakers in relation to what's going on during the fight. Finally, the soundtrack is excellent...and completely redone from the cart version; it even features a jazz-like rendition of the DD theme song. I know that sounds kinda weird, but believe me, it works.
Control - Ultra-smooth and friendly. Attacking is setup with quick, light, slow and hard attack buttons. Though for some characters that will give you two punches and two kicks, it’s not necessarily that way for everyone(some characters have three punches or three kicks and one punch/kick, etc). Though that sounds odd, this makes it so that special moves can be done with *any* button, which, in turn, makes the control even friendlier than it already is. Due to this setup, combos just seem to come off so smoothly, with very little error. Super moves are just as easy, with the whole two-buttons-at-the-same-time Darkstalker-ish style thing going on(just perform the motion, but use two buttons instead of one...and that's it).
AI - The AI is pretty cheap most times, of course, being that this is a Neo Geo fighter you come to expect it. I will say this though: Unlike most Neo games that have final bosses that are next to impossible, DD breaks this up a bit by giving you a sub-boss that’s near impossible....then following it up with the mandatory final boss that's also near impossible. Yay...
Replay value - High. It's not only a fighter, but it's a good fighter. It's fast, it's really arcade-like, and most importantly, it's fun. Hell, even the load time won't bog you down, or have you cringing in any way. You'll be coming back to this one for quite a while.
Load Times - Excellent!! The loads on this game just zoom by, they really don't seem like the 10 to 12 seconds most take. After choosing your character, you are matched up against an opponent, the game performs the short load, then one of you wins the match, you see the winning quote, then back to the match up screen for the next opponent, and the process starts over again. There is no load after using a continue if you use the same character, and even if you decide to change it's only an 8 second load rather than the normal length. All in all, this is how a CD based game should be...
Please note that this set of load times was based on using Billy while playing through the entire game.
Initial Load: 28 seconds
First Fight: 12 seconds
Vs Dulton: 11 seconds
Vs Cheng Fu: 10 seconds
Vs Marian: 10 seconds
Vs Same Character: 2 seconds
Vs Burnov: 12 seconds
Vs Eddie: 12 seconds
Vs Abobo: 14 seconds
Vs Jimmy: 4 seconds
Vs Rebecca: 10 seconds
Vs Amon: 12 seconds
Vs Duke: 11 seconds
Vs Shuko: 15 seconds
Character Ending: 7 seconds
Choosing new character after continue: 8 seconds
Loads are timed when the "Now Loading..." screen appears, not just when the bar starts moving(as this can be one to three seconds after the screen initially appears). I don't use a stopwatch or anything fancy, just the internal clock on my iBook to time it. It could be a second or two off...
Tips for better gaming experiences:
Two really well done FAQ's were written for the game, my best advice to you would be to take a look over both:

Double Dragon FAQ by Mark O'Neill
Double Dragon Boss FAQ by Kitsune Sniper and Mark O'Neill
My rating: 88(out of 100) - Though it’s not exactly what I was hoping for, it’s not disappointing in the least, and I'm actually surprised at how very good it is. The control is just beyond smooth, the graphics are big and beefy, the sound rocks...it's just everything you want in a fighter....and it's all right here in this one.
GamePro gave it: 2.5(graphics), 2.5(sound), 4.0(control), 2.5(funfactor) (out of 5. Note: This score was originally for the AES version)

Double Feline's Thoughts: Really easy to play, and a lot of fun for those who aren't fighter experts. I wish we could have had what we were all expecting, a beat'em up, but this isn't bad at all. Plus, we get Marian in Daisy-Dukes...though I miss her constant panty shots...meeeeeeee-ow!
Now *that's* a dragon punch!
Um....wow...that's a *high* kick...
Busting Abobo's ass...
Rebecca is about the ignite Jimmy.
Mandatory bits of hilarity brought to you by the ever-wonderful SNK US-translation crew:
As per the game's official side-description, it is boasted as: Real Battle Action Game

You know, for *once*, there's absolutely nothing to make fun of that SNK did....it's just the ultra-crappy DD-movie video at the beginning and the screenshots in Marian's stage. Ugh...gag me with a 2X4...