The Girls of Dead or Alive
[i]And Why They Kick So Much Rear
Sure, the girls in the game are sometimes skimpily clad. And sure, you can adjust their “bounciness” by setting your age in the options menu. But the fact still remains that the girls of Tecmo’s Dead or Alive series kick serious rear.
First we have Kasumi, the ex-shinobi. That just rocks in itself, as it shows courage and independence to renounce such ties. She is fast, her hits are of decent strength and doing cartwheels lets people like me, who can not block a hit to save my life, avoid getting thrown or beaten to a K.O. And her outfits are cute – wow, wasn’t that shallow? Seriously, though, if only she could use that tanto in battle. Maybe they’ll make a DoA 7: Melee.
Helena sort of bothers me. I guess it’s mainly because she’s a little clunkier than, and thereby slower than, Kasumi or Ayane. Often times her outfits are more tasteful and show less skin, so that is nice. And her hits are hard, thereby making her a decent contender when fighting a male character. The “windmill” looking attack is also quite effective.
Next is Tina Armstrong. I really dislike this character. Though she hits hard, she seems slower than most of the cast. Her little wrestling costumes are an annoyance, though I do suppose that fighting in a (for all intents and purposes) bikini does take away any chance of someone grabbing you by the clothing and throwing you to the floor. Maybe Ms. Armstrong has it right? But daddy sure doesn’t agree ...
“I mastered Kung Fu to live in your world.” Wow. Lei Fang is by far my favorite character, the one I always pick and the one I played my first time, ever. She is cute, sassy, well-dressed and a T’ai Chi Quan queen! My favorite move of hers is her “No, No, No” appeal in Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore. Really, I want to be her when I grow up. (Or at least when I go to No Brand Con and cosplay.) I think she is stronger than most give her credit for. Not necessarily physically, but she has a wicked independent streak and I think that, upon meeting her, we’d throw all the boys into the volcano. And all the girls who’d oppose us. I still can’t figure out how to avoid Jann Lee’s “blind elbow” attack when playing her, though. That really smarts.
Ayane-chan, the purple haired shinobi, is fast. I mean really, really fast. I hardly play her, as she moves too quickly for me to keep track of half the time. Her storyline is intriguing, shunning the traditional “revenge” plot (as is Helena’s) and the “bitterness and retaliation” plot (Lei Fang). Her moves are fairly easily executed, once you get them down – and made for rapid succession. Perhaps the only fair way to play her is against herself or Kasumi.
The girls of Dead or Alive are attractive, intelligent (for AI girls, at least) and powerful. The story modes help their personalities come to life – surprisingly well for a fighter. And, despite all the hentai doujinshi floating about with the girls’ faces (ahem) plastered on their pages, I doubt we’ll ever actually see one of the girls legitimately in such compromising situations.
I was reading the latest issue of Game Informer and stumbled across the top 50 greatest games listing. Seems that “...Tomonobu Itagaki [series creator] considers the DOA girls his children and would never allow them to be seen naked. Just very, very close to naked.” On that (perhaps rather disappointing) note (to some), I bid you adieu!
