The "Double Dragon" series has not seen an official fourth entry since "Double Dragon III" released for the NES in 1990. That is all about to change as Arc System Works recently announced they are launching "Double Dragon IV" on Steam and PS4 this coming Jan. 30, 2017.
According to The Verge, the game's launch will coincide with the franchise's 30th anniversary. It is also confirmed that while a different company is working on the game, Arc System Works did bring back the original game's producer, director, composer, character designer and programmer.
Not many details about the game have been released. The trailer showcases the game will return to retro-style graphics that emulate the 8-Bit and 16-Bit era of gaming and the moveset of the playable characters are reminiscent of those from the original three games.
Fans of the original games will also recognize the return of the main "Double Dragon" theme song, which plays prominently throughout the trailer. However, it is a remix of the theme song instead of being a direct port from "Double Dragon" on the NES.
According to Polygon, the game also sports both a story mode and a two-player fighting mode. The former is the standard beat-em-up campaign that the first three games utilized and the latter is a one-on-one fighting mode similar to games like "Street Fighter II" and "Mortal Kombat."
"Double Dragon" originated back in 1987 as an arcade beat-em-up game developed by Technos Japan and distributed by Taito. It was later ported to the NES and other systems where it thrived on the home market and spawned an entire franchise of sequels and spin-offs.
A fourth game, titled "Super Double Dragon,"did release for the SNES but it was poorly received by fans and critics alike. It was followed by "Double Dragon V: The Shadow Falls," which was a fighting game attempting to capitalize on the success of "Street Fighter II" and was developed by Leland Interactive Media instead of Technos Japan.
Technos declared bankruptcy in 1996 and Arc System Works acquired the intellectual properties of the former developer in 2015. Arc System Works not only owns the rights for the "Double Dragon" franchise but also the "Kunio-kun" series, which is known as "River City Ransom" in North America.
The official trailer for "Double Dragon IV" can be viewed below: