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Dead or Alive (series)
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===Main series=== ''Dead or Alive'' has spawned five [[Canon (fiction)|canonical]] sequels which have continued the storyline. Of the six games in total, four of them focus on the fighting genre of gameplay. This number excludes the numerous updated editions, ports and remakes of each title. The original [[Dead or Alive (arcade game)|''Dead or Alive'']] was inspired by ''[[Virtua Fighter (series)|Virtua Fighter]]'', as noted by Itagaki in an interview. In comparison to other 3D fighters such as ''[[Tekken (arcade game)|Tekken]]'' which gained a substantial market base in Japan and North America, DOA introduced a countering system unique to the genre and an added emphasis on speed, as well as a rich graphics engine that lacked many [[jaggies]] and incorporated very smooth surfaces. The original DOA was first released for the [[Sega Saturn]] and arcades in 1996. In graphical comparison, the arcade version featured superior detail, using fully three-dimensional backgrounds and high quality music. When released for the Saturn, the game sacrificed quality in the character models and used pre-rendered images for background stages.<ref name="rep3">{{cite web | url = http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/doa/doa.htm | title = DOA analysis at Hardcore Gaming 101 | work = [http://www.hardcoregaming101.net Hardcore Gaming 101] | year = 2005}}</ref> Additionally, in a review of the game's moveset, it was discovered by players that the move lists included were not aligned properly with the game.<ref name="rep4">{{cite web | url = http://psx.ign.com/articles/064/064552p1.html | title = Dead or Alive Defective? | publisher = IGN | year = 1998}}</ref> In 1998, a [[PlayStation]] version was released in Japan, with the North American and European versions following shortly thereafter. It introduced new characters, improved graphics, "remixed" stage designs and additional unlockable costumes for the player. This was also re-released in the arcades and named ''Dead or Alive ++'' due to its upgraded content.<ref name="rep">{{cite web | url = http://psx.ign.com/articles/122/122306p1.html | title = Dead or Alive news and update | publisher = IGN | year = 1998}}</ref> The second installment, ''[[Dead or Alive 2]]'', was released in 2000, and like its predecessor improved upon the graphics engine by using NAOMI hardware.<ref name="rep3" /> Notable features included introducing CG cutscenes in line with the plot, replacing the original "danger zone areas" in stages with fully interactable ones, allowing players to juggle each other into walls, propelling characters from landmarks for more damage (the first game to implement this feature was ''[[Samurai Shodown 64]]'') and upon completing the game, presenting the player with (sometimes ambiguous) endings for each character using the game's standard engine. ''Dead or Alive 2'' has spawned the most upgrades and remakes in the series to date, with the original North American [[Dreamcast]] version and arcade version serving as the starting point. When the [[PlayStation 2]] was launched in Japan, a DOA2 version was released for it as well. Although this version was considered graphically inferior to any of the previous versions, lacked the 4 player Tag Team feature, and was never released outside of Japan, it did include extra backgrounds and costumes. The extras from this [[PlayStation 2|PS2]] version were then included in the belated Japanese [[Dreamcast]] release,[http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/doa/doa2.htm] which was available in both ''Regular Edition'' and ''Limited Edition'' versions. Another remake was released in October of that year for the [[PlayStation 2]] in North America, re-dubbed "DOA2: Hardcore". This version provided improvements larger in scope than any previous franchise entry. It expanded the unlockable costumes, amended graphical problems prevalent in the [[Dreamcast]] versions, added new game modes and included English voice acting. (''Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore'' is the only installment in the series with the ability to switch between English and Japanese voice acting.) After this, a final version of DOA2 was released in Japan dubbed Dead or Alive 2: Hard*core which was essentially the North American/European version but with a few extras; it was considered the most up to date version until the Xbox version. In 2004, after the release of ''Dead or Alive 3'', Team Ninja once again remade DOA2, this time for the Xbox system. In the planning stages, this new game was named ''Dead or Alive Online'' for its addition of online support. On January 14, it was renamed to ''Dead or Alive Ultimate'' and promised fresh content, additional characters and an upgraded version of the original ''Dead or Alive'' for the Sega Saturn. According to Tecmo, the name change was due to ''"..Ultimate would more accurately describe the feeling players feel upon experiences with the game"''.<ref name="rep8">{{cite web | author = Tor Thorsen| url = http://www.gamespot.com/xbox/action/doaonline/news.html?sid=6086518 | title = Dead or Alive Online now Dead or Alive Ultimate | publisher = Gamespot | year = 2004}}</ref> ''[[Dead or Alive 3]]'' was released for the Xbox as one of the system’s launch titles for American gamers (as well as Japanese and European). As with previous facets of the series, it took advantage of the system's power to push the range of the graphics and stage sizes farther than DOA2. However, it lacked in unlockable content compared to ''Hardcore'' and controls were somewhat more lenient to allow players new to the series to adapt to gameplay. ''Dead or Alive 3'' was one of the best-selling installments in the series; in 2002 Tecmo announced the game had reached sales of over one million copies.<ref name="rep7">{{cite web | author = Giancarlo Varanini | url = http://www.gamespot.com | title = Dead or Alive reaches 1 million | publisher = Gamespot | year = 2002}}</ref> <!-- Image with inadequate rationale removed: [[File:Doa4cover.jpg|thumb|196px|Cover of ''Dead or Alive 4'' {{deletable image-caption}}]] --> ''[[Dead or Alive 4]]'' was released later in 2005 as a launch title for the Xbox 360 platform. Initially held back by retailers,<ref name="rep9">{{cite web | author = Douglas C. Perry | url = http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/665/665745p1.html | title = Dead Or Alive 4 Delayed? | publisher = IGN | year = 2005}}</ref> like ''Ultimate'' it included Online support where players could interact in a similar fashion to an arcade setting, fighting opponents at win/loss intervals. Nevertheless, like ''DOA3'', the game featured a low number of costumes and numerous series characters now had to be unlocked by the player. {| class="wikitable" |- |- style="white-space: nowrap;" !style="text-align:left;"|Title !style="text-align:left;"|Year !style="text-align:left;"|Platforms |- |''[[Dead or Alive (arcade game)|Dead or Alive]]''<br />''[[Dead or Alive (arcade game)|Dead or Alive ++]]'' |November 1996: ([[Model 2]]), July 1997: ([[Sega Saturn]])<br />March 1998: ([[PlayStation]]), July 1998: (TPS-System) |[[Arcade game|Arcade]], [[Sega Saturn]], [[PlayStation]] |- |''[[Dead or Alive 2]]'' |November 1999: ([[List of Sega arcade system boards#Sega NAOMI|Sega NAOMI]]), March 2000: [[Dreamcast]] |[[Arcade game|Arcade]], [[Dreamcast]] |- |''[[Dead or Alive 2|Dead or Alive 2 Millennium]]'' (Sega NAOMI) |January 2000 |[[Arcade game|Arcade]] |- |''[[Dead or Alive 2]]'' |March 2000 |[[PlayStation 2]] (Japan Only) |- |''[[Dead or Alive 2|Dead or Alive 2 Regular and Limited Edition]]'' |September 2000 |[[Dreamcast]] (Japan Only) |- |''[[Dead or Alive 2#Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore|Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore]]'' |October 2000 |[[PlayStation 2]] (North America and Europe Only) |- |''[[Dead or Alive 2#Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore|Dead or Alive 2: Hard*core]]'' |December 2000 |[[PlayStation 2]] (Japan Only) |- |''[[Dead or Alive 3]]'' |November 2001 |[[Xbox]] |- |''[[Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball]]'' |January 2003 |[[Xbox]] |- |''[[Dead or Alive Ultimate]]'' |October 2004 |[[Xbox]] |- |''[[Dead or Alive 4]]'' |December 2005 |[[Xbox 360]] |- |''[[Dead or Alive Xtreme 2]]'' |November 2006 |[[Xbox 360]] |- |''[[#Dead or Alive 5|Dead or Alive 5]]'' |TBA |TBA |- |''[[Dead or Alive Online|Dead or Alive: Online]]'' |TBA |[[Personal computer|PC]] |- |[[Dead or Alive Paradise]] |March 2010 |[[PlayStation Portable]] |- |[[Dead or Alive: Code Chronos]] |TBA |[[Xbox 360]] |- |Dead or Alive: Dimensions (Previously Dead or Alive 3DS)<ref name="rep21">{{cite web | url = http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=406593 | title = Famitsu 9/23 | publisher = Famitsu | year = 2010}}</ref> |TBA |[[Nintendo 3DS]] |}
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