Double Dragon II - The Revenge (US)

Mastering Double Dragon II - The Revenge (US) starts with learning its unique control scheme first: remember that the Left Attack and Right Attack buttons hit in those specific directions, no matter which way your character is facing, so you don’t have to waste time turning around to hit enemies sneaking up behind you. The most valuable move in your arsenal is the cyclone kick, activated by pressing Jump and the corresponding Attack button at the exact same time. This move hits all enemies around you, deals high damage, and can even deflect incoming projectiles like ninja shuriken and gunfire. For general combat, never get surrounded by enemies on both sides if you can avoid it: prioritize taking out weaker grunts first before focusing on tougher enemies like Abobo and the sword-wielding ninja bosses. When you find a baseball bat or metal pipe, hold onto it for as long as possible: these weapons deal massive damage and don’t break easily, making them perfect for taking down boss characters with minimal health loss. Always break every barrel and crate you find: many hide health-restoring food items like roast chicken, or extra weapons to restock your inventory. If you’re playing co-op mode, communicate with your partner to avoid friendly fire, and split up to cover left and right sides of the screen so neither of you gets flanked. For specific level challenges: on Level 2’s conveyor belt section, stand still only when you’re actively fighting enemies, otherwise keep moving to avoid being pushed off the edge into the pit below. On Level 5’s ninja fortress, never stay in one spot for more than two seconds, as hidden ninjas will throw shuriken at you from off-screen. For the final boss Willy, who carries a hitscan pistol, never stand on the same horizontal line as him for longer than a second. Rush him immediately as he spawns, use a cyclone kick to stun him, then throw him repeatedly until he is defeated to avoid taking unnecessary gun damage.