River City Girls' Double Dragon brothers are getting talking plushies

WayForward and Youtooz have opened pre-orders for a pair of talking plushies based on Billy and Jimmy Lee from the River City Girls series. The Double Dragon protagonists are styled after their dojo-running appearances in River City Girls 2 and include internal voice boxes that play seven different phrases.

The plushies use voice lines recorded by Game Grumps hosts Dan Avidan and Arin Hanson. Both actors reprised their roles specifically for the physical merchandise. The automated YouTube transcript hilariously mistranscribes Hanson as "Aaron" during the introduction, but the duo is fully present in the promotional material to test out the prototypes. Avidan called the opportunity to voice a plushie a huge honor and pointed out it was a career first.

Having a plushie that yells at you in Arin Hanson's voice is certainly a choice. You can squeeze them to trigger the voice lines. The actors joked about other ways to activate the sound boxes, but we do not recommend punching your collectibles. Each character has a distinct set of seven phrases pulled straight from their in-game dialogue. Avidan and Hanson also recorded a short rap for the release. The lyrics reference the characters' worldwide fights in Japan and Egypt. That specific line is a direct nod to the plot of Double Dragon 3: The Rosetta Stone.

Bridging the Technōs universes

Billy and Jimmy Lee have been around since the original arcade release of Double Dragon in 1987. Their inclusion in the River City Girls games ties the Technōs Japan beat-'em-up universes together. In River City Girls 2, they act as instructors who teach new moves to Misako and Kyoko. They operate out of their own respective dojos in the game world and charge players a hefty sum for combat upgrades.

The Youtooz designs capture their specific look from that game. The translation to plush form keeps Billy's angry expression and Jimmy's smug smile intact. WayForward's modern interpretation of the brothers gave them distinct personalities that contrast heavily with their original 8-bit arcade counterparts. Billy is portrayed as intense and serious. Jimmy is far more relaxed and arrogant. The plushies reflect this dynamic perfectly through their embroidered facial features and specific voice line selections.

Youtooz built its brand on vinyl figures of internet personalities and gaming characters. The company has slowly expanded into plush toys over the last few years. This collaboration with WayForward makes sense given the crossover appeal of the Game Grumps hosts and the retro gaming community.

The pre-order window

These are currently available directly through the official Youtooz store. The pre-order window closes on July 30, 2026. The official cutoff time is listed as 9 AM Eastern / 12 PM Pacific. Those time zones are completely backward, so you might want to get your order in early just to be safe.

Merchandise for modern retro revivals usually stops at acrylic standees and standard t-shirts. Seeing full voice box integration for secondary characters shows just how much mileage WayForward is getting out of the Technōs catalog. The developer has managed to build a cohesive world out of disparate 1980s arcade properties. The River City universe keeps expanding. Now it can yell at you from a shelf.