Dead or Alive Ultimate

"The Ultimate Package? You Decide."

Team Ninja's Dead or Alive series has always been known for it's trademark graphics as well as it's scantily clad females. Now Team Ninja has packaged the first Dead or Alive with a new remake of DOA2 which comes complete with an online mode. The series has always been known to attract casual fighting, but at the same time is abhorred my many elitists for it's lack of depth. This new DOA is really no exception. It all come down to whether you love it or hate it.

Story
The DOA series has never been big on story. However, DOA ultimate is pretty much the same story as DOA2: hardcore. A beautifully rendered opening scenes explains the relationship of Kasumi, Hayate, and Ayane from young children to current time. It explains exactly why Kasumi and Ayane have nothing but contempt for each other, and why Hayate cannot remember who he really is. All the characters from the original DOA2 return, with Hitomi and Bayman as hidden characters. If you've played DOA 2, then you should pretty much know what to expect.

Gameplay-7/10
This has always been the center of controversy for quite a while now. Many elitist fighting fans would argue that the series lack the depth in it's fighting engine that can be found in several other fighting games. Another complaint is that the counter system is ridiculously easy to perform and terribly rewarding and damaging. DOA ultimate doesn't exactly fix many of these problems. DOA2's move list is still a bit lacking even compared to DOA3. The characters are missing a few moves that they originally had in DOA3. Even a beginner can pick up a character like Kasumi and look like an expert.

Even with all this, it must be said that this game is fun in it's own right. This is easily one of the fastest playing and most fluid games to date. The game runs at a blazing pace and it's speed is extremely addictive. Even the counter system has been improved. It's not so easy to pull off a counter like it was in DOA3. A counter must be crucially timed in order to pull it off this time around, unlike DOA3 where even an beginner can pull of a counter attack with little skill. While the game's basic engine remains the same, it's been toughened up to avoid making it so user friendly. The online play can be as a blast if you can play someone with a decent amount of skill. Sometimes one can experience a lag during gameplay. This is especially a shame considering Mortal Kombat Deception online play hardly experiences any hiccups. If you've been a fan of the series until now, you should enjoy this game very much. But if you've been one of those people who constantly complained about the lack of depth in the series, then it's safe to say not much has changed for you.

Graphics and Sound-10/10
This is one area where it's almost impossible to complain about. The series has always been known for it's appearance. The DOA series is easily the best looking fighting franchise to date. The character models are phenomenal and amazingly detailed. The backgrounds and fighting arenas are equally impressive. You really have to see it to fully appreciate the game's graphics.

This time around, the voice-overs are all in Japanese. Some of the voices like Hayabusa and Ayane fit well. However, I still find it awkward to see the likes of Zack, Bass and Tina speaking Japanese. If there's was one thing that can be changed about the voice-overs, it should reflect that of Virtua Fighter 4. Japanese characters spoke Japanese, and American characters spoke English. This is a minor gripe, but the sound effects and voices-overs are nicely done.

Replayability- 9/10

Online mode is perhaps the one thing that you'll be playing for a while. If you've played DOA2, then there's really no point in beating everyone's quest. There in lies the problem. If you want to unlock hidden characters, you need to beat the story mode with certain characters. Another thing that might keep you playing is the fact that there are about 200 costumes to unlock. The females have a lot more characters than the males. Tag battle, team battle, versus, and all the other gameplay options are available as always. If you really into the online mode and wouldn't mind putting up with a few slowdown problems, then you should really like this game.

Overall, this is pretty much what you would come to expect from the series. Lush visual and the scantily clad females are all in place. The online play is a nice addition to the series, and the having 200 costumes to unlock can keep you busy for a while. The engine has been beefed up a tad, but if you've never been a fan of the series, this game won't convert you. However, if you've enjoyed what the series has offered so far, you will surely put many hours into this game.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/01/04