Double Dragon III: The Sacred Stones (NES) Playthrough - NintendoComplete

A playthrough of Acclaim's 1991 beat 'em up game for the NES, Double Dragon III: The Sacred Stones.
This Technos developed brawler followup to the classic Double Dragon II: The Revenge is a good game, but it doesn't compare as favorably to its predecessor as it would probably like. The graphics are packed with detail, but are somewhat lacking in character compared to part 2. Despite the diversity of the background graphics, the whole thing manages to look pretty generic. And very brown. The music is excellent though, and the controls are quite a bit easier to handle than they were in the first two games. I also really liked how the choice of multiple characters provided a bit of variety to the gameplay.
The main problem with the game is that its challenge is a bit on the obnoxious side. It's nowhere near as hard as most people make it out to be (though to be fair, it's absolutely brutal until you figure out that 95% of the enemy attacks can be easily sidestepped by moving up and down), but it quickly becomes repetitive. But, the story line, however pointless and senseless, is pretty entertaining and helps to break the monotony.
It does bear mentioning that this wasn't a straight port of the arcade version (Double Dragon III: The Rosetta Stone) - there are a fair few differences. Of course, this was typical for NES Double Dragon games, though the Japanese version of DD3 kept the story line much closer to the arcade's one than the US version did.
The Sacred Stones certainly isn't a bad game. It plays smoothly, moves well, and puts up a reasonable challenge, and it is quite a bit of fun until it wears out its welcome on the 700th wave of the same pair of enemies. DD3 sits firmly in third place behind DD1 and 2, but then again, so do the great majority of NES beat 'em ups.
________
No cheats were used during the recording of this video.
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[@manuelluna216]

This was my favorite double dragon game. It had something special. I'm 44 yrs old

[@devill2312]

im 29 years old but for me is amazing game too true i play her a lot in 2001 year when i become class 1 in school for first time and 2 or 3 years before that i play her too it was super amazing time when i was kid this is super game i have it big fun back in the old days i rly wanna back in time it was more amazing then the games now but sad the time change and sometimes when i wake up early in the moring i play her from retro website to remember my old days its almost the same stil amazing thing super cool game rly backs me to my old time

[@arashnanbakhsh3067]

Same41 here! I couldn’t kill the last boos no matter what….

[@amarant89]

Sono italiano, 35 anni. quando ho ancora questo gioco NES. il mio preferito assieme a Power Blade e megaman2

[@devill2312]

He is easy you just need to lwarn it​@@arashnanbakhsh3067

[@nycov7428]

You'll be surprised about me... I'm 16, I love the NES, I bought a copy of this game, I like it and I want to beat it

[@cheegers420]

I’m a grown ass man with two kids now and it’s the first time I’ve seen this ending. Hard ass game. Collected dust in my room for years due to rage quit

[@socallife25]

Same LOL.

[@JohnJohn-qs3sj]

Same, my younger brother did finish and i would watch. The soundtrack was so beautiful.

[@Aminulsiddiquee]

Epic reply 🤣🤣

[@devill2312]

thats bc you are noob when i was kid i finish it her verry easy with what champs i want is so easy just you are noob for that you are not for games i dont wanna see you in onlne games dont play them noobie

[@goldlinks]

My friend and I managed to beat it once, but yes, very hard game.

[@catparadise6889]

So beautiful were childhood days..

[@devill2312]

true for me too it was good time everytime when i not have school i wake up early in the morrnig on 8 im and go play the game with verry small sound bc my all family sleep it was so good days or in the night like now outside is night and dark but before to go dinnner and when i finish dinnerr i play before to go sleep on this game it was just amazing childhood days and nights :) and i remember how i say what will be to finish this game or what will be to have pc and to see new games in the futuret alnost like realistc and now every time when i see this game or tink for her i start thinking for this old days when i play it that game in the front of the tv it was just the best time when i see her for first time i say what game is this what levels have is amazing dam :D still i rememer it so fresh :D

[@OneArtsMusic]

👍👍👍

[@OneArtsMusic]

Yas were childhood days

[@shobhameena4937]

👍👍

[@yomedeer2695]

I know 1990 I was 5 here omg then I feel in love with WWF wrestling 1994 Bret hart was the best!

[@Flip4910]

My dad rented this for me from the video store when I was little. I swear the game was over a month late cause we were trying so hard to beat it together!!!! Such good times it's something I'll never forget.

[@edwardgaines6561]

How much was the late fee?

[@bigstew416]

Video stores were magical back in the day. I can still remember the smell

[@matthewsandifer2673]

Loved this game, didn't beat it until I was grown.

[@devill2312]

thats bc when you are super small you not have brain just doing random things for me was the same when i was kid it was super hard and i was so lucky one time to finish her then when i become big i start to do strategy in my head how to i win it and now when im big i will finish her like speed run super easy true bt the best memories was that for me before to i learn how to play her it was the best time :D for me

[@TheShowgun81]

Italy’s music hit me hard as a kid and stuck with me to this day.

[@Bladeee-shulk]

Same i always get beated in italy i cannot go further from italy i am trying hard but i cannot 😢😢😢

[@dalaxdercrisper957]

Once you are in Italy stage, you only have to use your limited continues if you died so many or else game over for good

[@devill2312]

@@Bladeee-shulk bc you are noob the game is super easy dont play online games then noob you are not for games

[@cloudyetifilmworks1468]

I guess I played every 1990 game with my family. It's wonderful to watch entire video game videos again.

[@devill2312]

yeah true it is when i was kid i have this game and i play her so much time so good game becks me to my old memories it was verry cool game :D

[@crudelisangelusthesis3768]

I have vivid memories of beating this game multiple times when I was 5. I'm 24 now and if I was held at gunpoint, beating this game being the only way of survival, I would've been dead by now.

[@mariusamber3237]

Strangely, back in the day I owned DD 2 and 3, but not the first one... even now, after having played the first game, I still like the 2nd installment the most by far. It had some of the most epic final bosses on NES, and I just liked how it played the most overall. :)

[@lukesmith9692]

I cannot stand that backwards kick

[@watamutha]

The music in 2 was epic.

[@markh995]

DD1 NES was NOT my favorite in the series at all. 2 and 3 were much better, but they made this one unnecessarily diffcult with the limited lives. If you had an NES Max with Turbo buttons you could spam special moves like crazy though.

[@duck-headedllama9991]

"Hey, I have always had the third stone with me. We have no time to waste! So, let's waste time fighting for no reason in Italy." Wouldn't it have been better if she had said "The third stone is in Italy" and that's it?

[@JustinJTime]

No, you must drag out the pain of this game by adding another level to it! Or maybe she was hoping the greased up gladiators would kill both "Bimmy" and Jimmy and take the stones afterwards. 😆

[@lklkos8928]

32:25 The best game music ending, forever

[@royalsolution9550]

Literally that was my favourite game in my childhood time 😍

[@NintendoComplete]

The Sacred Stones certainly wasn't a classic like Double Dragon 1 & 2 were, but it's hard to hate the game that birthed the legend of Bimmy and Jimmy.

[@TheJollyMisanthrope]

I remember renting this as a kid after having played 1 & 2 a ton. Was subjected to total pwnage by the game and hated it immediately.

[@Bloodreign1]

I wonder what happened to that Bimmy guy. Last I heard he opened up a donut shop and retired from fighting forever. ;)

[@NintendoComplete]

Bloodreign1 Mmm donuts.

[@lifepresent3183]

Great vid I learn from all you guys. You should have just took out those bosses all by hand

[@damagesan544]

What is the diffirence between 2p play a and 2p play b?

[@dheerajkr.1493]

Loved this game as a kid.

[@devill2312]

for me 2 dude for me 2 it was amazing game

[@mayursingh8465]

miss these games so much

[@devill2312]

me2 that was amazing time when we call friends in home to play this on one old tv with this old controllers it was just the best time

[@amansingh5108]

Best DD game ever from gameplay to music to everything!

[@Ghosthead83]

The best? Seriously?

[@KorenLesthe]

« We must go to Egypt to rescue Marion ! » Mission 4 : ITALY.

[@Elfo_Scuro]

Ahahan sti cazzi!

[@morienbendinelli1554]

Because yes. 😂😂😂

[@catmetal1348]

They had to go to Italy to practice for the big battle! Presumably by beating up random people that had nothing to do with the stones or kidnapping Marion. I always found that amusing how they wanted another stage so they tossed in Italy for no good reason, when all they had to do was have the 3rd stone in Italy rather than the old lady already having it.

[@rakeshsingh1622]

One of my favorite games of childhood..... While watching it has taken me in the past... And i still remembers the stage and it's villian's.

[@ArzanT]

i'm 18 years old and i played this when i was 5 years old and i still loving it, i played this at a family clone, latinoamerica (south america) privileges XD

[@devill2312]

i have it family computer when i was a kid 6 years old i play it a lot it was amazing now im on 29 years it was good old time when iplay it her thats a good game

[@imyanigmw]

This was my shit, favorite DD of all time. Great music, good mechanics and a nice challenge.

[@devill2312]

yeah true she have good mechanics this dd3 is more good then dd2 true i like more dd3 she is more cool and have wepons l but is funny on this old game i remember how the wepons have ammo :D but still is the best dd one friend have it dd2 but she was not so good with the atacks they are stupid in dd2 that make her more hard then dd3

[@BryanX64]

@Games Broke I about had a stroke trying to read that

[@mdshowkatali9595]

such a memorable version of double dragon!

[@XkhushalX]

This game has a cheat"when you use round spinning kick in air rapidly press start key or Select key". Used both keys to skip level.

[@AyushYadav-ni7wu]

Yeah dude ......

[@maiil4861]

Japanese version only i think

[@devill2312]

@@maiil4861 no when i was a kid i have the english version and i remember it works so works if just your game have inside this program if is not programed to have it she wil not have it

[@EdPaul-uc3ew]

My eldest brother taught me and my brother this lol. We use to skip till the Egypt level and beat the shit outta the boss 😂😂

[@SwaggerLikeUz]

Loved DD3! That last boss was a pain. Finally beat it after a million tries on co-op in the late 90s. Great times!

[@Aurochhunter]

I hear ya', it took me ages too. I remember reading in some gaming guide that you have to knock her down 25 times to defeat her.

[@SwaggerLikeUz]

@@Aurochhunter Exactly! One of the most strategic boss fights ever made & my friend who joined on co-op both of us thought we were vets lol playing DD3 for yrs, and yet still barely beat the game it literally came to the last 2 bars of energy. 😅

[@moaozz4186]

This game was one of my favourites & the best Double dragon among all other versions too... How I miss those days...

[@nimeshsingh3396]

Back in childhood days I've cleared this game several times and all the time i enjoyed playing this game. This is just masterpiece ❤ and beautiful memory of childhood.

[@mr.horse1801]

Hey guys. It wasnt a typo!!

[@machingunjelly]

I loved how they added the flip judo toss move haha

[@EdPaul-uc3ew]

I love spamming that shit 🤣

[@ankushzap]

funny fight

[@peaceandfreedomeconomics8984]

When I was a kid I thought Japan was full of Ninjas all over the place.

[@Westernhospitality]

It is. You just can't see them.

[@kendrickcooperimmarshallte2142]

This one was extremely difficult but I love how the longplayer manhandled and tricked the opponents

[@dennisaustin6058]

The Double Dragons brought me back to playing NES for hours, when Xbox brought out Splinter Cell I played it but there is nothing like the NES games.

[@blsfinest1981]

I spent hours and it was a true accomplishment as a 12 yr old to complete this game .. I even recorded it on vhs bc i felt it was such an accomplishment .. this game holds a special place

[@markh995]

Dude. Me too.

[@Googlesucksballs]

as much as I hated the game out of all the NES DD games.....I loved the soundtrack for this.

[@bifftannen1598]

My favorite's China. Almost sounds SNESy

[@theadisunboys2]

I came just for the soundtrack

[@ricardoponce110]

Is beautiful and ni te play por shild ens

[@sumphoneo]

Bro, we're in the same boat. I thought this was the lamest of the 3 but had the best soundtrack.

[@sumphoneo]

@@theadisunboys2 kzbin.info/www/bejne/jmLRmnyeqqtogbc Without the playthrough

[@aayushsarna6508]

one of my most favourite games of all time .. thanks for the ending

[@scarecrow-or7153]

Hii 2020

[@MichaelJason-ns3pr]

The memory in my childhood never can forget, this game in that time is worth more than any game even till now🔥

[@BASEJOCK11]

“They fight like children compare to me”

[@CreutzfeldJakobDiseasepatient]

6:27 Just WOOOOWWW. You're good. You're damn good.

[@NintendoComplete]

:) Thanks!

[@yaduvedansh554]

My favourite music oh shit i listened this atleast 16 years agao when I was used to play

[@samuelrivera7762]

Chin always made me laugh the way he ran lol

[@LestatdeLioncourt]

so true 😂

[@Bladeee-shulk]

Yes 😂😂😂and he is a very easy opponent i do only one this when he cames running i go away from that place and then when he come slowly i make a, spinning kick in air and again and again repeat it

[@Zaxares]

Chin is basically the "slow, but super strong" character, while Ranzou is the ultra-mobile, but fairly squishy character (he's my favourite though!) The Lee brothers are all-rounders, and also the only ones who can use grappling moves.

[@devill2312]

yeah true bc he is fat :D

[@MFields2178]

I remember being so excited to get this game. Along with Ninja Gaiden, I was also hooked on Double Dragon. Unfortunately I was tremendously let down. The game grew on me after awhile, and it sports an excellent soundtrack. I just missed my knee move. That was the best move on Double Dragon 2. Also you can just run around the areas killing bad guys. Unfortunately you have one life which also sucked. I did beat it and enjoyed the whole "old woman being the bad guy" and facing Marian at the end. Honestly this is a decent game. The arcade version was horrible.

[@Rob0917]

Thanks for the spoiler bruh 🤦🏼‍♂️

[@scifigames4612]

U know u can skip every level by pressing specific keys and just complete the game in 10 seconds

[@Hyalyago]

You made every movement in the game except one: The reverse launching. Just when you grab (pressing up and forward with A and B) in the middle of the air, press up and back with A and B. You will change direction launching your enemies to the opposite side without having to turn around.

[@Zaxares]

There are also some unique moves you can pull off in two-player mode. Running and doing a flying kick move onto your partner (except Ranzou. He's too busy holding his ninjato. :P) will make them catch you and throw you back at the enemy (similar to what the enemies sometimes do). If Billy and Jimmy both jump in the same spot and do a Cyclone Kick at the same time, they will perform a Super Cyclone Kick that both covers a longer distance and does about 50% more damage. It's usually not worth the risks of bunching up, but it's mega-cool to watch. :D

[@NintendoComplete]

No kidding? Thanks, I had no idea there was such a move.

[@Hyalyago]

@@NintendoComplete You're welcome. 😎 I just saw you were complicating things when you could comfortably throw enemies with the reverse launching and wondering why, heheh

[@Bloodreign1]

The arcade and Genesis versions were horrible, the NES version was good. Love how the first stage's first bit has the boss music from the last boss of the arcade version to start us off (in the dojo bit).

[@raizen328]

You played the game so much better than others that made videos of this. One only did jump kicks and the other only did the cyclone kick, your video was far more entertaining.

[@devill2312]

no just you are noob dude the game is super easy wheni was kid this was the first game what i finished is super easy idk how you are that bad

[@BhogalKaran]

The funniest thing is at last the marian i think she is not gonna atack me but she kick my ass and i died in seconds,😂😂😂

[@markh995]

Egyptian level music is one of my favorite NES tunes ever. The final boss battle was also fun, where she's force slamming you into walls, launching fire birds at you, morphing into a fire serpent as she teleports, and levitating; I was panicking while she was doing all of that when I was a kid playing this for the first time.

[@NOACCEPTANCE772]

Chin: my Kung Fu is unmatched! >Proceeds to do nothing and get his ass kicked

[@JamieCowan-cc5xc]

This is one of the greatest double dragon games

[@rcblazer]

I actually prefer this game over the Arcade and Genesis version (The Rosetta Stones) It's great to know I'm not the only person who actually knows how to play the game well (not relying entirely on Billy's spin kick for every opponent, knowing how to use the weapons, Chin, and Ranzou, ect.)

[@susanfit47]

At some point, Tradewest was going to publish the NES version of Double Dragon III, before the rights were given to Acclaim instead. Tradewest's version of the game had a very different script from the final retail version released by Acclaim, being a rougher approximation of the later-released Japanese version, but otherwise the two English versions are identical in terms of content. This suggests that Acclaim simply took the build that was already made for Tradewest and made their own changes from there, while Technos independently refined their own version for their native Japanese market.

[@harshit8511]

This used to be my favourite childhood game ❤ Getting goosebumps while watching this video ❤😊 Thanks a lot for uploading this 😊

[@Mason_000]

This was the bestest of all the games for some reason

[@KenMasters.]

Because it was the most experimental in the entire trilogy.

[@runner_x1075]

The Best soundtrack in the history of videogames :')

[@nitishrohilla7887]

My childhood memories ❤

[@qrcode4718]

Very good game. Best DD. Much better than the arcade or genesis version...

[@vishnuvardhanreddykona]

nostalgia...

[@robthames5065]

This takes me back to my childhood when an obvious villain and plot twist were not so obvious.

[@lkrocks4386]

Me and my brother completed this game so many times when we were kids.

[@davidlewis2615]

This was the first game I played all the way through.

[@Okazu84]

Remember beating it in front of my older cousin for the first time in front of the two other younger ones, who then litterally hated me for weeks because of that. He was quite fond of himself and what he thought was unquestioned superiority over the rest of us. And I'll never forget his face when I not only reached Marion and *then* even beat her ... FIRST, DAMN, TRY. Still recall my hands shaking. First and only time ever I beat any end boss on any 8/16 bit machine like that, as far as I can recall. Somehow managed to quickly understand you could avoid her fire snake sneak attack by simply moving vertically. The rest of her moves were relatively easier to deal with, and boom. Ending. Funny thing is that we didn't read any word of english back then and had to shout in panic for my dad to come from the living room that afternoon to translate live so that we can finally figure out what happens next for each hero lol. He recall him mentionning the horrible grammar mistakes, too 🤣🤣🤣 By far the most demanding of the trilogy, not so much in terms of crude difficulty but the fact that each character had a single life and the Egyptian sections towards the end were so long with next to zero tolerance for mistakes. DD1's last stage was also a hard nut to crack but at least you come up there stacked with lives.

[@patrickhawthorneLS]

Thats some HARD stones right there

[@devill2312]

i have it this game when i was kid that was amaizng game :D

[@ahmadhumaizivlog85]

My childhood memories🇲🇾🇲🇾🇲🇾🇲🇾🇲🇾🇲🇾🇲🇾🇲🇾🇲🇾💪💪💪💪💪awesome

[@khaledzekri9951]

Thanks for the memories, but in the end, that plot twist thou!!

[@bradhedgehog12]

Sometimes I gotta play this

[@amitpandit8006]

I love this game in double play me and my bro used a lot to play this game in 90s 😘😘✌️

[@renehualpapedroza118]

esto lo jugaba cuando tenía 9 o 10 años ahora q tengo 40 me trae muchos recuerdos hace años q no veía este juego

[@PatrickC139]

I think this was always my favorite of the 3 double dragons for NES. The sound track for super double dragon though is something else.

[@EvilXero359]

It's a shame that remakes of the Double Dragon games weren't considered to be made but it's probably for the best

[@alexandergillingham2592]

Beautiful music in this game

[@kristophsams5036]

I remember this one more than I remember DD2 for Nes. I preferred DD2 on the Arcade anyway which is why I probably never liked it much. I absolutely loved this game. My brother and I put in hundreds of hours in this game when we were young. It was a very hard game, but there are helping hands here. Use nunchuks on the 1st level boss and he's dead in 5 hits. On the 3rd stage with the ninjas, Chin can whip their asses easily and I only use his claw on Ranzou. Ranzou is the best on the final level in the temple and can even beat his own ninjas fairly easy. As for Cleo/Marion, just do your best. She's a bitch, literally, and I haven't found much strategy other than just beating her senseless with everything you have and avoid the fire teleports and wall slams.

[@palaciosCore]

Grandioso video bro.

[@cutlasssupreme6984]

I am a 42 year old man now and watching this brought back some anger I felt as a kid. I’ve been asked before, why are always in a bad mood - my answer: Double Dragon III.

[@alocervancouver6006]

What a Nintendo Hard game, thanks for showing us that it is actually beatable.

[@jamesremington8056]

this game was Impossible. my hats off to you dude

[@danraines9958]

I remember getting this game for my birthday when I was 6. It took a game genie for us to beat it.

[@charlesmullins3238]

I’ve got mine from 87 broke out and game genie but no code book….no way I can get anywhere in 1 life…operation wolf…tmnt….legends of the diamond…og punch out…Mario 3 and few more all play with original rf cord and power cord…handle with care

[@trustobey1016]

I remember playing this as a kid and fighting Marion and she wouldn't die always thought there was a certain way to beat her.

[@Akshaysharma-ef9mm]

🤣🤣me and my brother always thought that the queen never die🤣

[@peterplaatjies9267]

Thus was a very nice surprise for a 8-bit game.

[@mohdsayadrafique1524]

It was my favorite game when I was 8 years old

[@devill2312]

me too i got her for my birthday from my granny inside have 4 games and one of the games was this dd3 i still remember her so perfect like im playing her like before when i just see this video makes me feel like my old days in the front of my big old tv playing it her amazing for that was the best gift for me this game have good soundtracks and good levels she is super easy i remember when i play her for first time was amazing for that i still remember this game bc she was my favorite too

[@simonmejia6896]

IT'S BIMMY!! WOOHOO!

[@crimsontide1980]

Nice to see Bimmy and Jimmy had a good ending

[@marcelogiroldi3782]

Jogo da minha infância... Nintendo forever!!!

[@martinlastname8548]

I am going to buy the Switch JUST to play this

[@DerekLogan-ve3bw]

That is my favorite double dragon game double dragon The sacred Stones of power my favorite maneuver is the mid-air summer assault

[@namvo3013]

I remember wall bounce attack is possible in this room 24:00. Easiest to do with the ninja guy

[@Shetu_Sharma]

these games were much beter than most todays games

[@LaiSteve66]

Handled Noriam like a pro. Well done.

[@kadad5288]

I loved this game more than its predecessors

[@anay1489]

3:37 made my day!

[@nyy190343]

I swear those mummies at the end took 47 hits to go down

[@afnx6]

I was 9 years old staying in chaina when my dad first bought me the sega chinese console and i remember being hooked to this game, God knows how many times i played it and finished it, but the writings was in chinese..first time seeing the english subtitles. After so many years i finally know the plot 😂

[@yuvrajdancharan6382]

bachpan ki yad aa gayi yar 😭😭😭😭

[@michaelcharlesthearchangel]

One of the hardest and best NES games of all time, Double Dragon III. You knew you were in for a good time, being punished by the game, after you discovered that the regular bad guys delivered as much damage as a mini boss. I bet most players couldn't get past the first level on their first try. I remember the last stage in Egypt, beating the game using Chin and his metal claw on the last boss while double kicking to deal the heaviest damage.

[@DrownedInExile]

Sacred stones sound like something that belong on Thanos's gauntlet.

[@moisesgomez230]

Love the soundtrack brings nostalgia

[@sesanti]

That Chin guy hit like a truck at 100mph.

[@carlosaround]

For some reason I find this version more appealing than the Arcade one xD

[@mohdsaifullah8944]

My childhood favorite 🎮❤❤

[@garretmangio9756]

15:00 Bimmy: "Spend time in Italy practicing"?! What the f-HAVE YOU NOT BEEN PAYING ATTENTION?! I just trekked three countries, beating the piss out of a large gang to gather these stones, and I "need practice"?! By the way, are we ignoring the fact I beat the Shadow Warriors TWICE?! Did you NOT read my resume?!

[@its_kaiser672]

this game one of the favurate game ever i was looking for this game cartage in every shop for 8 years but finally i bought this cartage from some friend when i was 17 and played it again and completed it

[@claudiu2186]

For those who dont know, there is a metod so you can skip levels, like from usa, to china, to japan etc.. :)) when you pressed 2 buttons i think... I dont remember, like pause button and something else but i dont remember. So wasnt a very hard game, but is very very hard when you are just a kid, like i was, but the good part was that you can skip levels and if you die you can come back from where you died.