Double Dragon Revive - About To Get Ugly (Review)
- James Stephanie Sterling
- 1 minute ago
- 7 min read
Double Dragon Revive
Released: October 22nd, 2025
Developer: Yuke's
Publisher: Arc System Works
Systems: PC, PS5, Switch/Switch 2 (reviewed), Xbox Series X/S
Double Dragon Revive doesn’t play as bad as it looks, but that’s not saying much because it looks so utterly fucking shit. Also, it doesn't play that much better.
While the beat ‘em up genre has enjoyed some great modern entries including Absolum, Shredder’s Revenge and Streets of Rage 4, it’s sad to see a staple like Double Dragon floundering behind - arguably, the last time it had a hit was way back in 2012 with the well received Double Dragon Neon. There are some who’ll say they liked Double Dragon Gaiden, but they are not people with whom I may find common ground. That slapdash junkpile of borderline false advertising was an abject mockery.
Taking Revive for a name implies some awareness of the series’ current straits. It brings with it the suggestion of a comeback, a new lease of life, an exciting refreshment for a title that sorely needs it. How tragic it is, then, that any awareness Yuke’s may have had going into this project began and ended with the naming convention.
If this is what revival looks like, then perhaps Double Dragon is better off dead.
While I won’t make this review entirely about the graphics - there’s plenty else to dislike - it’s incredibly hard to get around just how awful it looks. My colleague Conrad likened it to an Xbox Live Arcade release, and at the risk of insulting some of the genuinely lovely games that arose on the platform, he’s not wrong. There’s something distinctly XBLA about both the jaggy 3D models and the smeared low-res look, like a budget offering from the dawn of gaming’s HD era.
If it wasn’t so fuck ugly, it’d almost be nostalgic, but I find nothing charming or “retro” about it. There’s a certain tier of bad graphics that, for some reason or other, triggers my OCD in a way that makes me think of dirt. I want to wear gloves when I play Double Dragon Revive because the thing looks grimy. It’s spiky, rusty, glitchy, and a reminder that I should get my tetanus shot.
I’m in awe at how hideous it is. Like, if quality 3D models were this far beyond Yuke’s’ grasp, why not just embrace it and go with a fully retro aesthetic? I have no idea what they thought they were accomplishing with this shit. Were they trying to make a stylistic point by evoking the mid-2000s, or do they genuinely think it’s contemporary? What a fascinating spectacle.
Tragically, the actual game teeters on the verge of promising but continuously lets itself down. Gameplay is exceedingly simple, with a basic combo string, a strong attack, a special attack, some situational moves and a powerful finisher running off a charged meter. In typical fashion, you brawl your way from left to right as one of four characters, bashing gang members around as you attempt to bring down the empire of big bad Willy.
If there’s one thing I hate, it’s an evil Willy.
The first two levels seem hopeful. They’re full of things to shove enemies into for a quick KO, and every character will have at least one strike in their arsenal to knock enemies toward them. Dumpsters, electrical outlets, fridges, there are plenty of hotspots and they’re all quite fun. Some areas allow unlimited one-hit KOs by being near busted guardrails or bodies of water, which is either amusing or trivial based on how sick of the game you’ve gotten.
Weapons can be pretty enjoyable too, with thrown knives bouncing right back to your feet for continuous lobbing and blunt instruments providing some satisfying thwacks. You can also use certain fixtures to initiate parkour attacks which are powerful if they work, and the finishing moves are satisfying screen clearers when used at the right moment.
Those are the good points. Regrettably, they exist in a bland game with a dreadful 2.5D perspective and some bafflingly bad ideas. Also it controls like rubbish.
Aside from one of the four playable options, everybody handles awkwardly and laggily. A lack of response is keenly felt in the uselessness of the block and dodge commands, which can’t cancel your attacks to any meaningful degree. Such poor defensive moves might not be so bad if the game didn’t feel horridly clunky in general, or if the angled 3D movement and vague target locking were a lot less clumsy.
Things aren’t so bad in the early portions, since enemies are spaced out enough that they won’t keep plugging the many gaps in your characters’ offense. Combat doesn’t take long to come undone though - you’ll curse every foot-wide whiff as your chosen lummox tries and fails to target the closest opponent, confidently launching attacks into pure oxygen and being too committed to their latest strike to avoid the hostile damage coming in from behind. On the plus side, the enemy AI struggles just as much to target you!
The one “good” character, Ranzo, offers a glimpse of a better game - he’s so much more responsive and his quicker attacks leave fewer openings for enemies to take advantage of. Once unlocked, he’s the closest you might get to having some lasting fun, but he’s still unwieldy for the most part and he’d feel wonky in almost any comparable videogame.
Many enemies can charge up powerful “Aura” moves. You’re meant to counter them with your special attack, and figuring out the requisite timings is its own shitty game. Charge times are poorly communicated, you need to factor the individual speed/distance of each Aura move, and you need to be in the midst of your special attack as they hit you. If it’s too early or late in the animation, you’ll either eat their attack or nothing will occur.
It just never feels right. It’s not a real parry mechanic, which might’ve given the block button more function. While the actual counter is satisfying once triggered, having to essentially vibe it out very much isn’t.
Visual prompts appear when you can allegedly perform contextual moves, but the laggy gameplay means there’s no guarantee of a result. This is especially notable when trying to attack downed enemies, as it almost never works despite the clear prompt. Swinging off poles to do slam attacks is slightly more reliable but it doesn’t once feel like a smooth and fluid maneuver. Nothing does.
Jumping is imprecise and hard to control, which isn’t a problem in a game that doesn’t have excessively punishing platforming sections. Naturally, Double Dragon Revive has a banquet of excessively punishing platforming sections, made all the worse by that unhelpful 2.5D perspective and zero protection against the edges of pitfalls.
This is where the game reveals itself to be either a stupid moron or a spiteful dickhead. Perhaps both.
Platforming portions seem maliciously designed to take full advantage of how ill-suited to platforming the game is, because it’s sure as shit the only way they derive their “challenge”. Some of the rotating platform sequences are downright disorienting, and areas with big rolling balls delight in how hard it can be to judge their relative placement. Thin walkways and moving floors are a total hassle to navigate, solely because they don't belong in this videogame.
The controls, the camera, the environmental layout, none of it is designed to competently handle platforming and Revive actively capitalizes on it, manufacturing fake difficulty out of its own fucking inadequacies.
Revive is flimsy on the content front with practically no incentive for you to put yourself through its handful of levels more than once. There’s not much to unlock, nothing to upgrade, not even the most shallow of collectibles to gather. Just half a dozen short, bland, samey stages with horrible boss fights that, like the platforming sections, use Revive’s shortcomings to their cheap advantage. Aside from that, there’s another mode that’s just more of the same.
When I reached the stage that culminated with a fight against four previous bosses at once plus an influx of mooks, all of them capable of juggling me between them before I could even react, I decided the game can fuck itself. Oh yeah, because of the shitty recovery times, getting passed around like Stephanie Sterling on a Friday night is a common experience throughout the whole game. Both yourself and enemies are really bouncy once they’re knocked in the air, and it feels rather shoddy.
It’s rather incredible going back to Double Dragon Neon after playing Revive and immediately getting hit with how much better it is. While its graphics haven’t aged brilliantly, the thick outlines and cartoony colors have held up immeasurably better than this absolute dog’s mess. The animations are smooth and full of character, the aesthetic is memorable, and it plays a fucksight better.
Revive does have online co-op at least. At the time of writing, absolutely nobody is playing Revive’s online co-op.
All of these deficiencies are tragic when viewed through the lens of Revive’s promise. It’s satisfying to kick a mook into the camera. When attacks actually land they’re enjoyably punchy. The complaints enemies whimper when defeated can be quite funny. There is the skeleton of a good brawler here, but the meat stapled onto it is rotten and weak.
Plus it’s just cheap. The whole production reeks of something farmed out for a quick buck. There’s enough potential on display that I can readily believe some of the individuals who worked on this thing gave a shit, but clearly not enough of them and very clearly without any serious investment backing them up. I feel bad for whomever did care about making this game work, because while the effort is visible, it could never have been enough.
The word “slop” has recently been overused to the point of death, and that’s a shame, because I’d very much like to call Double Dragon Revive slop. It baffles me how you can put out something this ugly and unenjoyable without attaching an apology to it instead of a price tag, but that's videogames for you.
4.5/10
