DLC for Dead or Alive 5: Last Round has been concluded, but Team Ninja isn’t resting, they’re coming after the whole gaming world for the next year or two, according to President Yosuke Hayashi.

Part of a group interview with Weekly Famitsu, Hayashi would describe the studio’s new years resolution as “To gamers all over the world”, clarifying that they hope they can deliver experiences that were enjoyed all across the globe this year, much like the success we saw with Nioh.

Hayashi stopped short of actually hinting at any of these titles, but Team Ninja has a wide net they could cast. Not including recently wrapped up series like Dead or Alive, they could come up with more new IP such as Nioh, or that they’ve done contract work in the past with companies like Nintendo and Square Enix. We also haven’t seen a mainline Ninja Gaiden title this generation.

Of the many fighting games that have dominated the headlines over the years, Dead or Alive 5 has kind of been on the downlow. Released in 2012, the title was ported over to the PS4, Xbox One and PC with Dead or Alive 5: Last Round in 2015. Despite plenty of DLC released thus far, Team Ninja has announced that it will be ending support for the game.

At a recent livestream event, the developer announced that, “Dead or Alive 5 has finally come to an end, but the Dead or Alive team is very active. It is time to stop what we are doing for now and look into the future.”

As a result, we may not hear from the developer “for some time”. In that time, it will be working on something else. We’ve already seen Team Ninja bring us Nioh and numerous DLC with the hack and slash action RPG having recently released in PC.

It is kind of a shame to see Dead or Alive 5’s support come to an end but Team Ninja has done a pretty good job supporting it. Though the series may be on the backburner for a while, it will be interesting to see what the studio has planned in the coming days.

Dead or Alive 5 has had its fair deal of controversy surrounding up in the lead up to its launch on the PC. Well today the game finally went live on Steam and wouldn’t you know it, it’s missing a load of content. Straight off the bat, the game doesn’t even include a multiplayer suite. It’s a multiplayer famed tournament fighter that didn’t ship with a multiplayer suite. Koei have said that this functionality is expected to arrive “within three months following the game’s release”. But that’s hardly good news for people that bought the game on day one.

So what else is wrong with it? Well you can have the beefiest PC under the sun, but the games “effects” are comparable or the “equivalent to the PS3 version”. The shadows however, which you can turn on and off, are on par with the PS4 build of the game. And there’s two stages missing for some reason, Crimson and Danger Zone.

And there’s no Steam achievements, there’s no support for Steam Cloud and there isn’t even keyboard customisable keys. In a fighting game. Let that sink in. Furthermore, something is missing from the game because it’s missing from a featured list. The Soft Engine, which improved the quality of skin on the PS4 and Xbox One.

Sources: 1, 2, 3.

And then Dead or Alive 5: Last Round came along, and now the words I wrote about the series two years ago look really, really dumb. Don’t get me wrong: Dead or Alive 5: Last Round is a great fighter, and probably the best entry in the Dead or Alive 5 series of games, but it brings back longstanding elements that were better off left behind, even if it’s not immediately obvious.

Initially, Last Round seems like your standard, innocuous fighting game update. It takes all of the content that’s been added to the game, from the original all the way through Ultimate (including the DLC), bundles it together, adds some new extras, like costumes, characters, and stages, throws in a few cosmetic enhancements, and calls it a day. As you’d expect, that means that the sheer amount of content on offer in Last Round is incredibly impressive. The two new characters bring the total roster to 34, a series high, and the addition of the DLC costumes from the previous titles bring the total number of outfits to 400, according to Tecmo. I’ll take their word for it. I wasn’t going to stand there and count them.

"The game’s other visual addition are the new costumes. Some of the new costumes look cool and fit the characters they correspond to, while others are there for plot purposes. The rest, however, are fanservice. There’s really no way to put it.

Normally, I’d be the first to praise this sort of thing, because new content and balance updates are the best way to keep a fighting game interesting over the long term, and Last Round even has the common sense to include costumes that were previously DLC free of charge (Yes, Capcom, I’m looking at you).

There are even graphical updates. The power of the new consoles means that the game runs in 1080p and 60 FPS, but the biggest change comes in the form of the Soft Engine, which utilizes the power of the PS4 and the Xbox One to enhance the game physics engine and make the characters’ skin look more realistic. If you’re surprised don’t be. This is Dead or Alive. The game has always featured good looking characters, and Last Round goes a little further with minor enhancements, though it should be noted that the game largely looks the same overall, which is to say “damn good.”

The game’s other visual addition are the new costumes. Some of the new costumes look cool and fit the characters they correspond to, while others are there for plot purposes. The rest, however, are fanservice. There’s really no way to put it. Sure, the male characters have some bathing suits, but the majority of the new costumes focus on the female characters. In fact, the first character I fought in Last Round’s arcade mode was a woman in a bikini and heels. That should give you some idea of what I mean here. The sheer number of additions, in addition to the Soft Engine, make it pretty apparent where Team Ninja’s focus was this time around, but again, I suppose we shouldn’t be surprised. This is Dead or Alive.

"The game’s core mechanics, still built around punches, kicks, throws, and holds, are still extremely enjoyable and provide a lot of meaty gameplay to chew through.

To Team Ninja’s credit, they didn’t skimp on variety. Last Round has it all: nurse costumes, police uniforms, shirt, maid outfits, schoolgirl outfits, gym clothes, bunny costumes; you name it, they got it. You can also choose a character’s hair style and whether or not they wear glasses (I’m talking about librarian Bayonetta glasses, here).

Then there are the Private Paradise videos, which can be purchased. These allow you to look at any of the game’s ladies on a private beach, wearing any of the costumes you own, and take pictures of the action, if that’s your thing. As you might’ve imagined, there’s no gameplay in this mode, which given Team Ninja’s efforts on this particular update, shouldn’t really surprise anyone.

All of this, the costumes and the videos, are spread out over a ridiculous amount of DLC, even if you opt for the full version of Last Round, and not the free Core Fighters edition. All told, there’s more than 300 pieces of DLC here, ranging from the $1.99 Private Paradise videos to costume packs that range anywhere from $14.99 to $27.99. The Season Pass (and the Ultimate Costume set) cost $92 apiece. Chew on that for a second. It’s staggering.

" If you’ve never played Dead or Alive 5 before, Last Round is a good deal at $40, though you should probably give the free Core Fighters version a spin before parting with your cash.

This focus on skin, beach photo shoots, and dress-up aside, however, Last Round is still a fighting game, and a good one at that. The game’s core mechanics, still built around punches, kicks, throws, and holds, are still extremely enjoyable and provide a lot of meaty gameplay to chew through. Matches are still fast paced, and the ebb and flow of the game, which relies on trading attacks and counterattacks, is still extremely satisfying. The story mode is still impressive and well put together, the tutorial is still among the best in the genre, and online play still works very well. In all, it’s a great fighting game, even if the game’s new focus isn’t really on the fighting. Still, there is a great deal of pleasure to be found inside of Last Round’s game systems, especially for those with the time and dedication to master them.

It’s a real shame that the game is saddled with what is, at this time, a poor port, at least on the Xbox One. I’ve had the game crash on me in the middle of matches more than a few times, and that’s not counting the fact that everything on screen can freeze for a split second when something particularly intense happens. The game’s FAQ even takes time to warn players about certain bugs, which can be triggered by doing something as simple as completing a mission in the tutorial mode, and Team Ninja has even gone so far as to implement a code that unlocks pretty much everything to help those who have lost their saves to unexpected errors. Perhaps the PS4 version fares better in this regard, but without having played it, I can’t say for certain.

Technical hiccups and fanservice aside, however, Last Round is probably the best version of Dead or Alive 5 just because of how much of it there is. The things that made the original game (and Ultimate) good are still here, plus some new things, too. If you’ve never played Dead or Alive 5 before, Last Round is a good deal at $40, though you should probably give the free Core Fighters version a spin before parting with your cash.

"Last Round is really for the diehard fans, and it’s hard to knock Team Ninja for delivering more of what was already a great game, even if the additions to tend to be in the form of fanservice.

Those who already own a version of Dead or Alive 5 might find the upgrade a little harder to swallow, however, especially if they’re not a fan of the nature of the new additions. Last Round is really for the diehard fans, and it’s hard to knock Team Ninja for delivering more of what was already a great game, even if the additions to tend to be in the form of fanservice.

Yes, there’s a great game under all that fanservice, even with the technical issues, which will hopefully be ironed out. And it’s not like anyone is forcing you to watch the Private Paradise videos, no matter how much you might wish they weren’t there. Still, it is more than a little disappointing that a game that managed to move away from this sort of thing eventually ended up being consumed by it.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox One.

That was back in 2012 when it first released for the PS3 and Xbox 360 though. Dead or Alive 5 has been through multiple iterations since then with Plus, Ultimate and now with Last Round. The first major change of note is the jump from a 720p dynamic resolution on the PS3 and Xbox 360 to a native 1080p resolution on both the PS4 and Xbox One. DOA 5 has always been a good looking game and now, we get to admire the background details, level design and characters.

Unfortunately, that was the only real change that Team Ninja really implemented into Last Round when it comes to visuals. It’s odd because in this generation, for the most part developers have been working hard to significantly improve the visuals on their PS4 and Xbox One remasters. Go look at Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition which brought a revamped Lara Croft to current gen consoles. Grand Theft Auto 5 is another key example in making your game look so much better on new technology, even if you’re not significantly revamping your textures.

Video comparison between PS4 and Xbox One versions showcasing Hayabusa and Hayate in action. Please click 1080p for best video quality.

Instead, Dead or Alive 5: Last Round’s engine has been slightly modified for the PS4 and Xbox One. We won’t fault Team Ninja for this since the original’s engine was built from scratch for last generation consoles. Both versions manage to run at 60 frames per second with few drops in between. Hayabusa and Hayate leaping around in various battles was a slightly smoother sight on the PS4 (58 frames average) than the Xbox One (55 frames average) for what it’s worth. But that’s pretty much it. Dead or Alive 5: Last Round bears many similarities to Saints Row 4: Re-Elected which simply received a bump in resolution and frame rate to reach “remastered” status.

In one of the odder design decisions ever made, Team Ninja decided to keep character introductions at 30 frames per second. Although this has always been the case since the original game came was released a few years back. but ponder that for a second and think about switching from the introductions at 30 frames to the actual combat in 60 frames. Jarring? You bet and though it could be justified as adding a cinematic feel to introductions, it’s still a weird transition that will become annoying the more one plays.

More head to head screenshots between the PS4 [right] and Xbox One [left] versions. 

Team Ninja also took it upon itself to offer no discernible post process anti-aliasing or anisotropic filtering to the game which would have improved the quality of the visuals immensely. If you check the character selection screen on the PS3 and Xbox 360, you’ll notice MSAA 2x on the characters. The idea to transition this to current gen characters, especially with the added power of the PS4 and Xbox One, was apparently lost somewhere.

The process wouldn’t even be that difficult – if you look at Dead or Alive 2 Ultimate on the Xbox versus Dead or Alive 4 on the Xbox 360, you’ll find three times the number of pixels and better texture filtering. After more than two years on the market and with better hardware available, would it have killed Team Ninja to use a simple renderer to achieve some kind of anti-aliasing for the actual fights?

A selection of screenshots showcasing the PS4 [right] and Xbox One [left] versions in action.

As a result, you’ll see plenty of jagged edges while playing and the overall texture work seems like a direct lift from the previous generation. Keep in mind that many of the new things in the jump from DOA2U to DOA 4 were attempted for the first time such as the MSAA 2X. Rendering tech was fairly similar but there was a little more than a year’s gap between the release of Dead or Alive 2 Ultimate and Dead or Alive 4. With the PS4 and Xbox One providing so much more power and with a longer gap between the original release and Last Round, Team Ninja should have been capable of more than just a 1080p resolution and a 60 FPS frame rate that isn’t even locked.

Conclusion

There was a time when Team Ninja was a pioneer in outstanding visuals for consoles. Dead or Alive 2 wowed a world obsessed with Soul Caliber on the Dreamcast and Dead or Alive 3 showed us just what the Xbox’s hardware capable of. It didn’t stop there as Dead or Alive 2 Ultimate proved the studio could create an effective remake or remaster or whatever one wants to call while significantly improving the visuals.

Dead or Alive 5 was meant to be an evolution of the series towards a more serious fighting game, stepping away from the cartoonish styling of the past. While it may have satisfied fighting fans on the PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2012, Dead or Alive 5: Last Round’s visuals represent a huge missed opportunity. No improved lighting or better shadow quality, no AF, no ambient occlusion for the environments…there isn’t even anything by way of new animations to be seen. This is the exact same game that was available more than two years ago with a higher resolution and a slightly variable 60 FPS frame rate.

For some fans, that may be enough but those expecting another revolution from the series that always impressed us with the technology available today, you’re better off waiting for a possible Dead or Alive 6.

GamingBolt’s Bill Smith also contributed to this article.

Dead or Alive 5: Last Round’s launch has been, in the tradition of all major AAA releases this generation, been all kinds of messed up, with free to play monetization schemes, broken compatibility with existing peripherals, and the game simply not appearing on the online stores from which it is supposed to be bought.

That last problem, at the very least, has now been solved, as Tecmo Koei confirmed that Dead or Alive 5: Last Round can now be purchased on the PlayStation 4 from PSN starting this Wednesday, February 25 (the PSN version was the only one that was missing; the Xbox One version was available digitally without any issues since day one).

So if you are interested in getting the entire experience, it is probably for the best to hold off and buy the game on Wednesday when it goes live, instead of buying the free to play version and then getting each character and mode piecemeal (which would lead to you spending three times as much money).

Fans of fighting games the world over are all very well acquainted with the series that is, Dead or Alive. Sure, it’s not the most realistic of fighters, but it offers a solid fighting experience that, speaking frankly, few games can match up to. Today in Europe the game launched in retail stores spread far and wide bringing the Dead or Alive formula to European combatants, gearing them up for battle in the game’s interactive levels and the brand new Danger Zones.

Dead or Alive 5: Last Round also happens to have the largest and most expansive roster of any Dead or Alive title to date, which is good news for fans of characters both old and new. The game bundles together that massive amounts of content from previous titles into one powerhouse along with a host of customisation options which includes in excess of 400 costumes, hairstyles and accessories. Don’t forget that we loved the original build of the game.

If you’re a fan of the fighting genre, then today is a very good day.

Multiple users on a variety of online communities have reported the issue.  and Tecmo has issued a response, stating that Team Ninja is now working with Microsoft to get the problem resolved as soon as possible.

“We’ve been investigating the issue reported at this moment and we are working closely with both 1st party platforms,” Team Ninja said in a statement provided to VideoGamer.com. “We will let you know as soon as we have any updates. We apologise for any inconvenience players might have experienced.”

Meanwhile, all we can say is, hold off on playing the game if you own it on Xbox One for now.

Team Ninja and Tecmo Koei’s anatomically, er, pleasing fighting game franchise, Dead or Alive, will be headed to PCs for the first time, as the latest trailer for the game’s (alleged) final update, Dead or Alive: Last Round, confirms a Steam release for it as well. The game was, until now, slated to release for Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation 4, following multiple releases of the original game on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Dead or Alive 5: Last Round’s Steam release should come as a victory for PC players on multiple fronts- the game joins a growing legion of fighting game appearances on the platform following games like Mortal Kombat, Injustice, and Street Fighter all having made an appearance on it already. It is also just the latest in a long line of Japanese games and companies to have pledged support for the platform.

More varied support for the PC, both in terms of the companies that support it, as well as in terms of the genres it gets, is only a good thing, so keep it up, I say.

Dead or Alive: Last Round launches in February 2015.

Dead or Alive 5: Last Round was a pretty damn good fighting game (probably the best entry from a technical standpoint in the entire series, actually), that didn’t quite get the recognition that it deserved at the time of its release. Since then, subsequent re-releases have ensured that it has always stuck around however, and now it seems like Tecmo and Team Ninja are prepping it for one final round- Dead or Alive 5: Last Round has been announced as the definitive edition of the fighting game, and it will be coming to the Xbox 360, PS3, Xbox One, and PS4.

“DEAD OR ALIVE 5 Last Round marks an exciting step forward for the franchise, and one that fans have been asking for,” said Yosuke Hayashi, Team NINJA leader. “Bringing the game to a new generation of consoles is allowing us to create the most graphically striking version of any Dead or Alive game ever, and we are very happy to give our fans the chance to experience our signature high energy fighting entertainment as only the latest consoles can deliver it.”

Tecmo is ensuring that the game will remain consumer friendly, as they have announced that pPayers can bring their run of rosters, costumes and accessories from DEAD OR ALIVE 5 Ultimate, as previously purchased DLC content will be transferable from last gen consoles to the PS4 and Xbox One. They have also announced that the game will retail for much less than the standard game, with the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions going for £24.99, and the PS4 and Xbox One versions costing £34.99, both pricepoints being much less than a brand new game usually costs.

Dead or Alive 5: Last Round launches in Spring 2015.