Double Dragon hits XBLA tomorrow

"You got 50,000 on Double Dragon?"

That line, uttered by Fred Savage in the 1989 feature film The Wizard, represented a turning point in the movie, the moment when Savage's character recognized his friend and fellow runaway Jimmy was not just a withdrawn and socially awkward head case, but a gaming prodigy capable of besting even the toughest tournament-level competition.

Xbox 360 gamers will be able to see if their skills can measure up to Jimmy's this week, as Microsoft today announced Double Dragon as its Xbox Live Arcade Wednesdays release.

An instantly popular beat-'em-up when it was released in 1987, Taito's Double Dragon let two players take the roles of twin brothers Billy and Jimmy Lee as they cleaned up the mean streets in an effort to rescue Billy's kidnapped girlfriend.

For the game's release on Xbox Live Arcade, Empire Interactive took the original Double Dragon and re-created it with high-definition visuals, new music, and online multiplayer action. The publisher is also including the option to play the game with its original graphics for arcade purists. Rounding out the package are extras like scans of original sales fliers for the arcade game, tips for newcomers, customizable button configurations, and the XBLA-standard leaderboards and achievements.

Double Dragon will be available Wednesday at 2 a.m. Pacific for 400 Microsoft Points ($5). It has been rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older.