The beat-’em-up renaissance continues with a new Double Dragon

Belt-scrolling beat-’em-ups are back (again!) thanks to a new installment in the Double Dragon series. Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons will bring back Billy and Jimmy Lee for another street-sweeping adventure this summer, adding some roguelite elements to the classic arcade genre.

Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons is developed by Secret Base and published by Modus Games. The new Double Dragon promises something deeper than a re-creation of the series’ arcade days; players choose missions of varying length and difficulty, take on four gangs and their leaders, and earn in-game money as they send it to street thugs. That money can be spent on unlocking additional characters, bonuses between missions, upgrades, and more.

Along with Billy and Jimmy Rise of the Dragons are Marian – Billy’s girlfriend and the damsel in distress from the original Double dragon, who seems fully armed to the teeth here – and Uncle Matin, who is described as a “riot-shield-wielding powerhouse”. Players can get in and out with different characters in two-player local co-op (online co-op is planned after launch, says Modus).

Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons coming to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X sometime this summer.

The most recent game in the Double Dragon franchise was released in 2017 Double Dragon 4, developed by Arc System Works. That game served as legacyquel Double Dragon 2, and received mediocre reviews. Prior to that game, WayForward tried to revive the beat ’em up classic with 2013’s Double Dragon Neon.

Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons is the latest (promising) attempt to keep the beat ’em up genre alive. Recent efforts by publisher DotEmu, in particular Streets of Anger 4 And Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge, thankfully, were excellent. Let’s hope Billy and Jimmy (and Marian and Matin) can keep the combo going.