double dragon question

[tfrank]

i was playing an emulated version of double dragon and was wondering, was there slowdown in the arcade as iwas playing with slowdown, i dont remember myself playing the arcade and i was just curious

[blue lander]

I've got a Double Dragon arcade board, and there's tons of slowdown. I don't remember it being so slow back in the day, but it's definitely noticable.

[bangtango]

If you want a "faster" running version of Double Dragon, just play the Sega Genesis version which was unlicensed and put out by Accolade. It is probably twice as fast as the arcade version, sometimes it is too fast. That version is pretty much arcade perfect in both graphics and music. You won't find any slowdown.

The sound effects suck and the control is certainly slippery (also was in the arcade version) but the Genesis copy is the best version of the original Double Dragon you'll ever play outside an arcade. Hell of a lot better than the NES, GB or SMS versions, in my humble opinion. Getting it complete with the box and manual isn't cheap but you should be able to find a loose cart easy enough.

[skaar]

Going back and playing it again... DD wasn't really that great a game.

I mean it started the whole beat-em-up genre... didn't it?

[Gapporin]

Yeah, I was playing the original arcade version with a friend awhile back, and after a few minutes we both kind of asked each other, "Is it supposed to be this slow?" We ended up quitting after the first level.


[various port information]

There's also a Game Boy Advance port/remake called Double Dragon Advance, which is pretty solid (But then again, I loved the SMS version). It's also made by the same team who did River City Ransom Advance.

[bangtango]

Going back and playing it again... DD wasn't really that great a game.

I mean it started the whole beat-em-up genre... didn't it?

For some people, Double Dragon may not be "great" compared to Final Fight (1-3), Streets of Rage (1-3), River City Ransom and some other stuff that came along later. They all borrowed something from Double Dragon, though. RCR was most obvious, since that was also done by Technos. Being released in the following years, those games had the luxury of being able to incorporate the best things about a game like Double Dragon while eschewing some of the flaws.

Renegade and Kung Fu (Master) came before Double Dragon, AFAIK. So DD wasn't the first beat-em-up. However, it was one of the best of the genre and as far as I am concerned, it still is.

[blue lander]

Personally I prefer Renegade to Double Dragon 1. The levels might not be as interesting, but I thought the mechanics were more solid. Not as much slowdown, either!

[ssjlance]

After testing out the game on my nearly finished MAME cabinet (I'm so proud of this beast), I can say there is some minor slowdown. Nothing major, mind you, but it's there alright.

[InsaneDavid]

After testing out the game on my nearly finished MAME cabinet (I'm so proud of this beast), I can say there is some minor slowdown. Nothing major, mind you, but it's there alright.

Wait until you get to the area with the stone wall. The game becomes nearly unplayable. If it runs through there smoothly then current MAME is overspec for this game.

[XYXZYZ]

I remember it well, standing at the Double Dragon machine on a Saturday afternoon at the local TILT... the agonizing slowdown at the end, when 40 guys are all on the screen at once helping Willy kill me.

One thing I don't remember about the arcade board vs MAME, is the button response. In MAME, when the game slows to a crawl I can hit the punch button 40 times and nothing happens. (I wind up getting my shit ruined by the guy I'm trying to punch, that's what.) Was that on the real hardware as well?

[FrakAttack]

Elbow Smash FTW.

[thetoxicone]

Personally I prefer Renegade to Double Dragon 1. The levels might not be as interesting, but I thought the mechanics were more solid. Not as much slowdown, either!

And all this time I thought I was the only one.

[j_factor]

If you want a "faster" running version of Double Dragon, just play the Sega Genesis version which was unlicensed and put out by Accolade. It is probably twice as fast as the arcade version, sometimes it is too fast. That version is pretty much arcade perfect in both graphics and music. You won't find any slowdown.

The sound effects suck and the control is certainly slippery (also was in the arcade version) but the Genesis copy is the best version of the original Double Dragon you'll ever play outside an arcade. Hell of a lot better than the NES, GB or SMS versions, in my humble opinion. Getting it complete with the box and manual isn't cheap but you should be able to find a loose cart easy enough.

I dunno, I didn't really like the Genesis version of Double Dragon. The speed and controls kind of ruined it for me. I remember thinking the Lynx version was better at the time, but I'm not 100% sure now.

[bangtango]

I dunno, I didn't really like the Genesis version of Double Dragon. The speed and controls kind of ruined it for me. I remember thinking the Lynx version was better at the time, but I'm not 100% sure now.

The trouble with the controls on the Genesis DD is that you have to wait until a punch or kick is finished before pressing the button again. If you jam/mash them too fast, your character won't do a thing. It doesn't respond to fast button pushing like all the other versions did. I don't think it makes the game unplayable, though. The big problem with the increased speed is that it is tough to pick up weapons. Otherwise it is a pretty good translation to me.

I never played the Lynx version but always thought the screenshots looked great. All I've read about it is that the characters are way too big, meaning that you can hardly see any of the screen.

gamereviewgod did a write up for this site on the Lynx version:

http://www.digitpress.com/reviews/doubledragon_lynx.htm

and the Genesis one:

http://www.digitpress.com/reviews/doubledragongen.htm

[j_factor]

Thanks for the links. I guess there's no definitive home version of the original Double Dragon. Although, I've never played the Amiga version. Maybe that's the holy grail.

[Flack]

Because of this thread I played through the arcade version of Double Dragon last night. I'd forgotten how hard a couple of parts were -- the protruding blocks that kill you in the last level, and the guy with the machine gun. Still did it in 3 credits, not bad I guess.

[bangtango]

Thanks for the links. I guess there's no definitive home version of the original Double Dragon. Although, I've never played the Amiga version. Maybe that's the holy grail.

Since I'm already throwing links all over the place, see for yourself:

http://doubledragon.classicgaming.gamespy.com/games/dd/rddamiga.html

That site is a comprehensive page about the whole Double Dragon series, not just the debut. There are reviews for every single version of the first three games and all of the spinoffs.

[gonzo90017]

Just use the ddragonb rom instead of the original. The slowdown isn't as bad. You can also overclock the game's cpus.