Going to Japan for Tokyo Game Show this year was a dream come true in many ways, and that includes going to an event ostensibly for Ninja Gaiden 3 then being treated to the surprise reveal of Dead or Alive 5. Certainly we all knew Team Ninja hadn’t made its last DoA, but it was nice to see the series still exists even after the less than nice exit of series mastermind Tomonobu Itagaki. The first impression we got was that DoA was refocusing on action after years of favoring scantily clad beauties. Now Tecmo Koei has released the full footage of the game they showed that night, not just the first half put on the net the night of the announcement. Even if you saw it the first vid, watch on to see Ninja Gaiden star Ryu Hayabusa exact some revenge in round 2.
For “Pre-Alpha” footage, the fighting looks pretty good, with exploding cars, dropping girders and even some Ninpo thrown in for good measure, so maybe this can help get the series back on track. We don’t want to say Dead or Alive became a joke, but it had unquestionably given in to its sleazier side with so much emphasis on panties and boob jiggling instead of, you know, punching and kicking people. Though the Team Ninja reps reassured us that they hadn’t forgotten about the ladies, we hope the use of two male fighters and focusing on the action is a sign that the devs at least want to balance out the franchise’s more lascivious practices.
Oct 7, 2011
