Team Unico is saddened to hear of the passing of beat ’em up genre pioneer Yoshihisa Kishimoto. Yoshihisa was responsible for revolutionizing and advancing the beat ’em up genre during his years as a developer. He is also known for his famous franchises, River City (Kunio-kun) and Double Dragon.

In his blood

As one of the founding members who contributed to today’s beat ’em up genre, Yoshihisa himself was involved in many aspects of real-life “beat ’em ups”… Yes, he loved to fight, as he confirmed in an interview back in the day. With the influence of Bruce Lee and his hot-blooded nature, school fights were very common for him.

Double Dragon

Yoshihisa, then creator of Nekketsu Kōha Kunio-kun (1986), was asked by Technōs Japan to develop a follow-up, ideally with two-player gameplay to boost arcade revenue. Originally planned as a direct sequel, the project evolved into a new title aimed at international audiences. This led to Double Dragon, a spiritual successor with a new setting and characters. The name reflects its two-player focus and inspiration from Bruce Lee’s Enter the Dragon. The game also shifted from a school setting to a post-apocalyptic city influenced by Mad Max and Fist of the North Star, featuring side-scrolling progression and cinematic cutscenes.

The Influence

Double Dragon was a massive arcade hit. It topped Japan’s arcade charts in mid-1987 and finished as the third highest-grossing arcade game of the year there. It also led UK arcade charts in 1987 and became the highest-grossing arcade game in the U.S. in both 1988 and 1989. Taito America sold over 10,000 cabinets in the U.S. in 1988, with more than 80% of arcade operators purchasing it. Worldwide, the game sold around 40,000 units, though illegal PCB copies hurt profits and led to a successful lawsuit in 1989.

Try it on your Nova Blast

With so many different platform releases and broad input signal support, Nova Blast can be a great tool to test your Double Dragon skills. Nova Blast is the ultimate retro gaming solution from Unico. Let’s hop on and relive the thrill and excitement of Double Dragon in the glory arcade days.

  Unico, Play Different