Release Date: December 29th, 2005
Available On: Xbox 360
Genre: Fighting
Number of Players: 1-4 (both online and local)
Strong Points: Very fast and fun fighting system; a superb offering of both single player and multiplayer fighting game content; many characters with different fighting styles so that there is a fighter for everyone
Weak Points: An extremely long learning curve will likely put certain users off
Technical Score: B
Artistic Score: B
Final Score (not an average): B
Moral Warnings: Intense hand to hand combat; extremely revealing costumes to the point where they could not possibly keep certain body parts of the female fighters covered in real life; partial nudity and some sexual content (in the ending cut scenes); some language
The games in the Dead or Alive series, brought to us by Team Ninja, have always been about countering and pulling off impressive combos. According to many, the forth installment has outdone itself greatly by offering up never before seen graphics, unbelievably fast combat, and one of the best online strategies ever seen in a fighting game. However, being one of the first Xbox 360 games to release, could it be that consumers have just been blasted away by the power of the 360, with all the hype being given to DoA4 really just attributed to Microsoft’s new system?
The Dead or Alive games have always been fast, beautiful fighters, relying on countering (same as a reverse), combined with many long combos, as the main way to victory. To narrow that down even more, the previous DoA games have had more of an emphasis on countering, especially when against the computer. Naturally, two experienced human players wouldn’t get very far in a fight if all they try to do to each other is counter.
The fourth installment hasn’t changed in most regards, with one major exception, and that would be the countering. The window to perform a successful counter has been drastically shrunk, which means that the speed has also been revamped greatly. So, if people enter this game with the notion of button mashing, they’re in for a rude awakening unless if they are incredibly lucky.
As with many fighting games, it is best to pick one character and master him/her, before moving on. Dead or Alive 4 has a good character roster of 16, and everyone’s fighting style varies greatly. What this means is, nearly everyone’s tastes when it comes to picking a fighter will be satisfied. Everything from Bass’ Pro-wrestling, power punching style, to the lightning quick attacks of Ayane or Kasumi is included in DoA4. However, some characters aren’t as good as others for beginners. Certain individuals need you to be a far more effective counter then others, like Bass or Bayman, making them far worse pick up and play characters then, say, Ryu Hayabusa, who, at least in my experience, works well for beginners.
All of these characters, excluding any unlockable ones, can play through Dead or Alive 4’s story mode which consists of eight battles in total, usually ending with Alpha 152 as the final boss. Also, a few of people are unlocked when Story Mode is beaten with a character (beating it with Hitomi unlocks Ein, etc.). All characters except for the unlockables have their own movie ending that plays after beating Story with them, and these can be watched any time afterwards through DoA’s Movie Theatre. As with many fighting games, completing the Story Mode with each individual character unlocks a costum for him/her. However, Story Mode isn’t the only place to unlock customs. It works with Timed Mode as well.
There is a timed mode that is almost exactly like Story Mode, save there are two rounds in a fight instead of one, and there are no movie endings whatsoever.
Another fight mode in DoA4 is Survival. In this you take on 100 opponents in a row without a break. However, you do get small items that replenish your health whenever you defeat someone, so it isn’t as merciless as it sounds.
As with most fighting games, there is also a training mode, which works wonders if you’re new at the game. Training mode is open to all characters, including any unlockable ones, and through this mode you practice through all of your selected fighter’s combos. You can also set your opponent to perform any attack, which allows you to hone your countering skills as well.
The final mode in Dead or Alive 4 would be its most popular and also the most fulfilling to play, and that would be versus multiplayer. There are two kinds of multiplayer: one on one and Tag Matches. The one on one matches are just like any other fighting game: you and your opponent both pick their fighter and duke it out for a set number of rounds, which the player can set. Tag matches have four players instead of the traditional two, having it be a two on two fight. However, only two of the four fighters are in the ring at a time, but your partner can, by clicking Left Bumper, switch in to take over the fight which places the replaced fighter outside the ring, where he/she regenerates health slowly. Switching in/out with the right timing can lead to unbelievably long and powerful combos. However, picking the right time to switch in/out is utterly crucial to your success as a failed Tag combo will likely result in much pain, and possibly losing the match.
The previous games in the Dead or Alive series have always stayed ahead of their competition in terms of visuals, and the fourth entry remains consistent with that legacy. Quite literally, the game shines of beauty. The character models themselves are remarkable, having realistic effects like flowing hair and rippling garments. That, combined with ever so lifelike character models, albeit a bit anime style, give this game a good face, and that’s not even including the surprisingly detailed environments, which only add to the greatness of this game’s graphics engine. Speaking of the environments, one thing that has been improved upon in Team Ninja’s new fighter is the interactivity that can be found in many of the levels within the game. Things like getting hit by a cheetah or a car will drain your health. Most of the levels also have a second plateau within them, and if you hit your opponent down to it, you’ll damage them considerably.
The music in DoA4 I found forgettable, usually being nothing more then monotonous background noise. However, that’s not to say that this game fails everywhere in the sound department. Bone crunching punches and kicks vibrate through your speakers with an awesome resonance that only adds to the enjoyment of the game. Every playable character in the game is voiced in Japanese, with one exception being the Spartan, who has a very strong Southern American voice that, quite frankly, feels out of place in the midst of all the Japanese talk.
Morally, Dead or Alive 4 fails on several fronts. First of all, being a fighting game, DoA4 naturally has its share of violence in the form of punching, kicking and grappling. While not overly brutal, the combat does have a fair amount of bone breaking and the like. However, after someone has their arm or neck snapped they simply get up and are miraculously healed. Also, there is no blood in the fighting whatsoever. Far worse then the violent content would be the sexual substance found in Dead or Alive 4. Ever since the first game debuted in the arcade, the games in the Dead or Alive series have been infamous for their “bouncing breasts” physics. Though that “feature” is less prominent in the latest installment, other sexual content, ranging from skimpy outfits to partial nudity, warrants a strong M rating by the ESRB. Having the majority of the voices in Japanese, the game has next to none spoken swearing, yet there is a bit of language in the subtitles, mainly d*** and h***, yet god**** and b****** were used once as well.
I can easily recommend this game to anyone who is a fan of the fighting game genre that will not be put off by the immoral content. It also has a solid online system that will give many, many hours of replay. Add on to that the impressive graphics and a very robust fighting system, and the next fighter to be released on Xbox 360 has a high bar to pass.
-Zack Atwell (zack@revolve21.com)
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