Super Double Dragon - Development

Development

According to a commentary by the game's planner, Muneki Ebinuma, the game was planned to feature more elaborate stage designs than the ones in the finished version of the game. Additionally, story sequences similar to the second NES game were planned for the game, but were not included due to time constraints. Marian, the heroine from previous games, was planned to be featured in the game as a policewoman who assists the Lee brothers, but her presence was cut (her character is only mentioned in the manual). The game was also supposed to feature another opponent after the battle with Duke.

The Japanese release, Return of Double Dragon, features several significant differences from its western counterpart: the title theme and most of the background music were shuffled around (i.e.: the Mission 1 theme from the western version is played during Mission 4 in the Japanese version) and the player can perform certain actions which cannot be done in the western version (such as retrieving a boomerang after throwing it or hitting an opponent more than once successively with the hurricane kick). The enemy placement is also different in both versions and weapons such as knives and incendiary bombs do less damage in the Japanese. Enemies can duck end combo blows, thus preventing the player from finishing their combos. The final Mission also feature two additional levels before the final battle. An Option Mode is included in the Japanese version as well, allowing the player to adjust the game's difficulty setting, as well as listen to the game's music and sound effects.