Double Dragon 3: The Arcade Game
Version 1.02
Completed:12/12/02
Last Updated:04/25/03
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I: Overview
II: Your Moves
III: Shop and Coin Explanation
IV: Key Game-play explanation
V: Stage 1: USA
VI: Stage 2: AFRICA
VII: Stage 3: JAPAN
VIII: Stage 4: ITALY
IX: Stage 5: EGYPT
X: Any other Stuff
I: Overview
--------------
Double Dragon 3, the third game in the Double Dragon franchise, was awful.
There is no way around it. The reason for this was that company that developed
the first two, Technos, did not develop the third. However, Technos did
develop the NES version, an original Double Dragon game loosely based on the
DD3. There was also a port of the Arcade version for the Sega Genesis/Mega
Drive, on top of a few others. And finally, Double Dragon 3 made its way onto
the GameBoy.
The GameBoy, despite only being capable of producing 256 shades of gray,
happens to have (in my opinion at least) THE BEST version of THE WORST Double
Dragon game. Ironic isn't it?
So anyway... DD3 was developed by The Curve Sales Ltd. (of whom I know
nothing), besides feeling and looking rushed, the game is still extremely fun,
and EXCEPTIONALLY difficult... unless you know what you are doing. So, here I
am to help those who are need with a Walkthrough/Strategy Guide.
However, my goal for this Strategy Guide is keep things simple and short to
insure that this guide is easy to read. If I have failed... please e-mail me
II: Moves
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Basic Moves:
Punch: A Button
- Three hits to Knockdown. Near useless, do not bother.
Kick: B button
- Two hits to Knockdown. Use regularly.
Jump: Tap A & B Simultaneously
- You become a moving target...
Jump Kick: Tap and Hold A & B simultaneously
- One hit to Knockdown. Your best move!
Kick-Jump Kick Combo: Tap B, then without letting go of B, hold A & B
simultaneously
- A kick, then jump kick
- Most likely a glitch... but who cares!
Jump Kick off Wall: Jump Kick into a wall
- One hit to Knockdown. Interesting maneuver, rarely useful.
Special Attacks (requires purchase of "TRICK"):
Note: You lose them when you die or upon completetion of a stage
Hurricane Kick: Jump Kick button motion
- Spinning jump kick.
- Unlike other Double Dragon games, you do not float momentarily
HELP ME: If you know of any other "TRICK"s please contact me!
Weapons: (requires purchase of "WEAPON"):
Note: You lose them when you die
Sword: A button
- Two hits to Knockdown. You tap enemies on the skull (hey Billy! TRY
SWINGING IT!)
- Only available on Stages 1 and 3
Nunchaku: A Button
- One hit to Knockdown.
- Only available on Stage 2
- This move has the most frames of animation! COOL!
III: Shop and Coin Explanation
__________
Shops only appear in stages 1,2, and 3. Making purchases require coins.
Every time you complete a section (not an entire Stage) you earn a coin. You
begin the game with 2 coins and eventually get a total sum of 7 coins!
The KEY TO WINNING is knowing which items to buy. Not only that, but which
items do what
Life: Extra man (if you do not buy this... words fail to explain your
stupidity)
Weapon: Varies depending on the stage. Sword on Stage 1 & 3. Nunchaku on
Stage 2
Trick: Perform special martial arts attack(s?)
Power-up: Replenish Health
Exit: Leave the shop... this is not an item... just an option
IV: Key Game-play Elements
------------------------------------
Health
- You can take 12 knockdowns before you lose a man
- You can withstand two kicks or three punches before a knockdown
- It is important that you buy a Power-up at the last possible moment
"Knockdowns"
- This is a term I am using for this Strategy Guide
- A knockdown is what happens when the enemy falls to the GROUND
Punching vs. Kicking
- It requires three punches to knockdown an opponent
- It requires two kicks to knockdown an opponent
- Therefore: kicking is quicker SO you should use it more often
Temporary Invulnerability
- Whenever you get knocked down, you are temporarily invulnerable to
attacks
- Always take advantage of this with a quick attack because they cannot hit
you back
Shopping
- Buying the perfect items is key to victory, follow me... if you want to
live...
Lives
- You start with seven lives
- You can buy two to make a grand total of 9
- You do not need that many to win the game (I've down it with 5 remaining)
AI
- Believe it or not, your opponents are pretty damn smart
- I recommend standing in one spot and mashing buttons... IF YOU ENJOY
LOSING! Move around!
- Follow my strategies for each opponent, okay fine... then at least read
my boss strategies
V: Stage 1: USA
----------------------
SECTION 1:
The Shop
- Life
- Power-up
- Weapon
What to buy:
- You obviously want to buy the Life.
- Wait until you are low on health and buy the Power-up
- DO NOT BUY THE WEAPON!
Baddies:
Lee Brother look-alikes
- 3 knockdowns
- Two appear
- These guys are cheap. They can hit you back while you are kicking or
punching them
- Jump kicks are extremely effective
- Do not stand in one place and pound kick... they will jump kick you
Bikers
- 3 knockdowns
- A total of four appear
- These cronies are not capable of hitting you back when you are punching
them
Lee Brother imitators: The New Batch
- Three appear out of the garage at first
- After you defeat the trio, one more appears
- Once the final baddie is defeated, move into the garage
SECTION 2:
AVOID THE CONVEYOR BELT!
- The baddies WILL NOT fall for it
Motorcyclists
- 1 knockdown
- There are only 2
- They both appear from the left, if you become roadkill, the cyclist will
appear from the right
- move up and down to avoid the biker coming from the right hand side...
they are hard to hit
Biker Boss:
- 9 Knockdowns
- He is accompanied by two Lee Brother posers, move in slowly and take
them out first
- Once you kill the cronies, move in and you will activate the Biker boss
- Move up and down left/right in a "V" like fashion and then jump kick,
it'll get the job done
VI: Stage 2: Africa
-------------------------
Shop
- Trick
- Power-up
- Weapon
What to Buy
- Buy the Nunchaku first
- The Trick works just as well as the Nunchaku, but the Nunchaku is too
damn cool to pass up!
- Wait until it is a necessity to buy the Power-up and you will keep the
Trick/Power-up longer
SECTION 1
Nunchaku Cronies
- 3 Knockdowns
- There are only three of them
- If you use your own Nunchaku, then these guys will be a breeze
Token Fat Guys
- 3 Knockdowns
- There are four
- Even with the Nunchaku, the Fat guys are tough
- Beware weary of their jump kicks
- Move up or down, and then wait for them to come to you, attack, move,
repeat!
SECTION 2
Bruce Lee?
- 10 knockdowns
- This Boss is THE HARDEST boss in the game, so if you lose a bunch of
lives don't worry
- His jump kick has phenomenal range and is exceptionally cheap
- Watch out, he likes to come up from underneath or above you
- Be sure to move in at an angle, then nail him with your jump kick (or
Nunchaku if you still have it) before he kicks you. If need be, you can run
away and not worry about getting hit because he runs as fast as you do. Do
not, however, run away and then jump kick into him... he will pummel you!
VII: Stage 3: JAPAN
--------------------------
Shop
- Life
- Trick
- Power-up
- Weapon
What to Buy
- Immediately pick up the weapon. The sword is extremely effective for
the jumping samurai.
- As soon as you run out of health pick up the Power-up
- AFTER SECTION 1: you should use your final coin to by the Life
SECTION 1
Jumping Samurai
- 3 Knockdowns
- There are a total of five, two come at you at first, then the group of
three will surround you!
- If you have the sword, stand in one spot and mash A/Punch.
- If you die and lose the sword, you will die a few more times, they are
impossible without it...
SECTION 2
The Ninja
- 5 Knockdowns per, 15 total
- Don't forget to buy the Life with your final coin
- After you Knockdown the boss 5 times, he will clone himself...
- Stand in one place and keep waving that sword until all three have been
defeated
- If you lost the sword... use the jump kick... but, you will get your
arse kicked no matter what
VIII: Stage 4: ITALY
There are no shops on this stage
SECTION 1
Male-Thong-Wearing-Archers
- 3 Knockdowns
- There are a total of 5
- When you are at a distance, they shoot arrows
- When you are close, they cheaply nail you with their bows
- Either way, these guys have an edge over you
- The best strategy for these guys is to slowly move in, and then use your
jump kick
- Watch your back though, they will try to hit you with arrows from
both sides
SECTION 2
Lance-Knight
- 9 Knockdowns
- It is possible to defeat this boss without taking any damage
- When he comes charging at you... RUN! He'll be right behind you. When
he starts to gain ground, you will see him move down and then back up very
quickly. As soon as you see this, vault your jump kick into his face! It
takes a bit of timing, but it is not hard.
Stage 5: Egypt
------------------
There are no shops on this stage
SECTION 1
Motorcyclists
- Defeat these goons with the same strategy on Stage 1. This should be a
synch.
SECTION 2
Wood nymphs
- 3 Knockdowns
- I counted four of these goofy creatures, but I might be wrong...
- The have one attack and it has quite a bit of range
- For these guys, the jump kick is almost completely ineffective
- When you kick/punch them, they cannot fight back. I recommend
kicking vs jump kicking
SECTION 3
Rockmen
- 4 Knockdowns
- There are five of these guys
- They can throw rocks at you and punch you, very much like the archers of
Italy
- However, they cannot fight back when you kick/punch them, so punch
them if you please
Old Hag
- 15 Knockdowns
- Old Hag can beat you with her cain, or she can shoot fireballs at you...
but,
- If you use my strategy she won't lay liver-spotted finger on you
- First, make sure the Old Hag stays on the left side of the screen
- Second, next to the wall where the depth changes, and go down as far
as possible without being able to move forward
- Finally, mash kick! The Old Hag can only receive a beating, not give
one
SECTION 4
Puzzle
- Spell Rossetta, when you do, a doorway will open
- If you fail, a giant head will spit at you which nails you for 3
knockdowns
- Once he starts spitting, it is nearly impossible to complete the
section... I cannot do it
SECTION 5
Mummy
- 13 Knockdowns
- The Mummy does not fall down when you register the Knockdown, the Mummy
jumps back
- The same strategy with the Old Hag works here too... except it's not
quite as effective
SECTION 6
Cleopatra
- 16 Knockdowns
- She can shoot bouncing orbs
- Wait until she shoots the orbs, and then counter... trust me, this is
easy
CONGRATULATIONS!
You finished reading the Walkthrough of my Strategy Guide
X: Everything Else
-----------------------
Update 1.01
- I finished the main guide a while ago... but it was unreadable
- This was because the end paragraph characters were read improperlly
on IBMs
- I fixed this problem (albeit VERY slowly) using Virtual PC
Update 1.02
- Made some minor changes... grammar and spelling
What I need for the next update/revision
- OFFICIAL NAMES
- CODES
What might come if I feel like updating
- More in depth boss strategies and patterns
- Dialogue/plot
The Author
- Billy Lee, Dragon Master - wkenneth@isg
