Copyright © 2000 Tecmo Inc.

With the launch of the Sony Playstation 2 during March in Japan, and its claim of ushering in a "new era of games," Sega would seem to be in big trouble. Yet unexpectedly, the biggest game in March wasn't anything from the new powerhouse system, but rather from Tecmo and the Sega Dreamcast in the form of DEAD OR ALIVE 2. While the PS2 launch titles are graphically pretty, they don't hold a candle to the refreshing game play and improvements found in DEAD OR ALIVE 2.
Tecmo Japan and their internal development team, Team Ninja, have outdone themselves, creating an extremely addictive, beautiful, and compelling 3D fighter, eclipsing Namco's SOUL CALIBUR in terms of game play and fun factor. What makes DEAD OR ALIVE 2 so fun is just about every aspect of the game: from the stunning visuals, to the real-time cinemas before each match in Story Mode, to the downright rock-solid game play. Tecmo's newest offering is the new king of 3D fighting games.
Graphically, it is up there with SOUL CALIBUR. While Namco's weapons fighter has the slight edge with gorgeous lighting effects, weapon arcs, and solid, meshed characters; DEAD OR ALIVE 2 has a very distinct, consistent stylized look to it that makes it stand out in its own right. Perhaps the greatest highlight would have to be the character models, especially during the cut scenes. Before each match the camera pans in on each fighter and a real-time cut scene occurs. The characters' faces are so detailed and well built that you can actually see subtle facial expressions! The mouths are perfectly lip-synched to the characters as well, offering a glimpse of the future of fighting games. This may seem like a "minor graphical improvement," but what it achieves is nothing minor at all—total immersion into the game. Playing Story Mode and seeing these real-time cut scenes happen draws you closer to the characters that you are playing. Since it is real-time generated, whatever color and costume you pick is actually reflected in the cut scenes as well. Even in Versus fighting, the camera zooms in on the characters before and after the match, once again adding a great immersion factor.
On a side note, Team Ninja kept all the fan service intact, with their "cutting edge" breast physics and plenty of panty shots. For those that find it offensive, or would like some more parental control, you can turn down the jiggling of the breasts with the Age option in the Options screen. It is unfortunate that many people only see this one aspect and immediately dismiss the rest of the game as nothing more than a game for juvenile boys. Nothing can be further from the truth.
The other huge improvement is in the level design: All the fighting stages have some degree of interactivity, with the highlight being multi-leveled stages. Sure we've seen some of this occurs in games like EHRGEIZ and POWER STONE, but the sheer scope of the stages in DEAD OR ALIVE 2 has never been done before. Imagine fighting your opponent near the edge of a giant waterfall and kicking him off the edge, sending him plummeting down to the river below, and then jump after him to continue the match on the stage there! How about fighting in the bell tower of an ancient church with stained glass windows, and delivering a massive roundhouse kick that sends your opponent crashing through the window onto the floor below! These are examples of the refreshing game play and innovation found in DEAD OR ALIVE 2.
One area that deserves special mention is Tecmo U.S.'s localization effort. They kept all the original Japanese voices for the US release, and used classy English subtitles to translate the story and all the intro/win taunts spoken by the fighters. Thus, the US version of DEAD OR ALIVE 2 has all the great original voice actors, with highlights like Tange Sakura (Sakura in CARD CAPTOR SAKURA), and Touma Yumi (Deedlit in RECORD OF LODOSS WAR). The music is a solid blend of rocking guitars and electronica, with a great opening theme.
Lastly, the controls for DEAD OR ALIVE 2 help put it at the top of the fighting genre. While similar to the original DEAD OR ALIVE, which featured Punch, Kick, and Counter; the old Counter button has been replaced with a "Free" button, which basically allows you to move in total 3D while holding the button down. In addition, counters (where you deflect an opponent's attack and counter-attack with your own) have been made more difficult. It now requires holding a direction and the Free button to instigate the move. It is for the better as counters are now more skill-based and less sloppy. Game play and moves in DEAD OR ALIVE 2 are very similar to the VIRTUA FIGHTER family, but the addition of the counter move for every character gives DEAD OR ALIVE 2 a very distinctive feel. Basically, it turns the traditionally "attack-attack-attack, block-block-block" routine into a much more free flowing, Hong Kong kung fu movie style battle. It is something both visually appealing to spectators, and very rewarding and refreshing to the players.
Tecmo's DEAD OR ALIVE 2 has superb production values, deep and rewarding game play, and stunning visuals. It is arguably one of the best 3D fighters released to date. Despite the launch of the Playstation 2 in Japan, with games like DEAD OR ALIVE 2 for the Dreamcast, Sega has nothing to fear. Unfortunately, this game hasn't been released in Japan for some reason, and one can only imagine the great loss Sega Japan must have suffered because of it. Luckily it is available in the U.S., and for U.S. gamers this is one more shining jewel in Sega's crown of games.

Rating: 9.6 / 10

Sega Dreamcast
3D Fighting
1 to 4 Players
T-3601N
$49.95
Available now in the U.S.A.
Where to buy