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DD II Shrine

Interview with Million:
Creators of Double Dragon Advance

12/1/03

The Double Dragon Dojo stops to chat with the development team behind the new Game Boy Advance game "Double Dragon Advance," to ask a few questions regarding the recent release of the game.  Big thanks to Gail Salamanca over at Atlus USA for directing the questions to the development team.

Dojo: When did development on Double Dragon Advance and River City Ransom EX begin?

Million: It took us about a year for Double Dragon... It's a little longer than other GBA titles in general, but we wanted to spend enough time on game balance.

River City Ransom project started at the same time as Double Dragon, and currently we are on our final stage of development.

Dojo: Both Double Dragon Advance and River City Ransom EX were absent from E3 this year. Were they too early in development to be shown?

Million: Yes. They were in their early stages of development and we would have rather waited until later date to reveal the improved GBA version of these 2 titles.

Dojo: When and how did your relationship with Million/Technos begin?  (Question originally aimed at Atlus but given to Million)

Million: Atlus approached us with a proposal to develop remakes of old Technos Japan titles.

Dojo: Back in 2002 when Evoga decided to make a follow up to the 1995 Neo Geo game their research among players showed that a one-on-one fighter would be preferable to a side-scrolling fighter. A year later you obviously opted to update the traditional side-scrolling original. Did your research really show that the audience would be more receptive to a side-scroller?

Million: Because our staff worked on the original side-scroll version of Double Dragon, we had a strong urge to make the GBA version as a side-scroller. There were many requests for a side-scroller from the gamers as well.

Dojo: The original Double Dragon arcade, not withstanding its ports, is 16 years old. How much of the consumer audience do you expect to be from that original generation?

Million: We tried our best to retain the quality of the first Double Dragon so the fans could reminisce and enjoy. Good games can reach out to players of all generations, and we believe Double Dragon Advance will be accepted by first-time players as well. We don't know how many fans from the first Double Dragon there are, but we hope that many people would buy and enjoy this title.

Dojo: The storyline for Double Dragon Advance appears to follow the more concise story of the Japanese arcade version, unlike the storyline for the American games, which are all over the place. Are you looking to avoid plot holes this time around and keep any possible sequels or prequels sequential?

Million: We do have many ideas, but we cannot reveal them at this point.

Dojo: Was that Bruce Lee's photo that we saw in Mission 3?

Million: We can't mention any names, but if you're talking about kung fu... he's Number 1.

Dojo: Enter the Dragon was a major inspiration for the first game. It looks like DDA also took some ideas from The Matrix and possibly Fist of the North Star. What were some of the inspirations for the new game?

Million: The basics were from the first Double Dragon, and from there we added/changed things to accommodate the current trends. We would rather not push our ideas to the players; it is best for each player to come up with his/her own opinion of what kind of things influenced Double Dragon Advance.

Dojo: What sort of marketing strategies have you employed to promote the game?

Million: We've implemented our typical ad campaign for a GBA title by placing ads in various gaming magazines such as Nintendo Power and EGM as well as having the product placed in various contests. We also launched the official website where users can get exclusive wallpaper and more information about the game.

Dojo: Consumers have reported that stores are carrying very few if any copies of the game. How many units were shipped?

Million: This is confidential information, and unfortunately, we are not able to give you an answer. However, we can tell you that the number of new titles being released around the same time has put restriction as to how many copies of each title that each retail store can carry. For this reason, people see a limited number of Double Dragon in stores. Hopefully, consumer demand for this title will convince retailers to carry more copies in the near future.

Dojo: Can we expect any merchandise such as posters, toys, comics, soundtracks, or apparel?

Million: There are no plans at this time to create any other promotional goods outside of the game itself.

Dojo: The recent console versions of TMNT from Konami received a low score of 5.3 out of 10 from IGN. Other attempts at moving the beat em up genre into 3D have done poorly as well. Do you think Double Dragon can once again set the standard for beat em ups, this time in 3D?

Million: If we decide to work on 3D Double Dragon, we will make sure that its quality surpasses the players' expectations. However, we have no plans of releasing it at this point.

Dojo: Finally, can we expect a Double Dragon Advance 2?

Million: We do have many ideas for the sequel as well, but we cannot reveal them at this point.

The Double Dragon Dojo would like to send out its THANKS to Million for taking the time to answer our questions and to Atlus for assisting in the interview.

The Atlus Interview is a copyright of the Double Dragon Dojo.  Do not reproduce unless prior approval has been granted from the Double Dragon Dojo.