| | |  | All Games | Home » » » Dead or Alive 4 | | | | | | | Description: | | Dead or Alive 4 takes advantage of the superior technology of Xbox 360, to redefine 3D fighter games. Go wild with a new fighting system, larger tournament groups, detailed scoreboards and more. Form clans, or just enter the lobby areas to talk with other DOA fans. Best of all, the fighting system allows even more mastery and strategy of your favorite character -- including the most complex DOA countering system yet! | | | Features: | |
• New characters added to the DOA all-star line-up
• New interactive stages
• New and in-depth story line and cut-scenes
• Through Xbox Live, players can simultaneously compete, form clans and discover the new and interactive DOA4 lobby area -- featuring voice and text chat
| | | Product Details: | | | Product Length:
| 7.75 inches | | Product Width:
| 5.75 inches | | Product Height:
| 0.53 inches | | Product Weight:
| 0.25 pounds | | Package Length:
| 7.5 inches | | Package Width:
| 5.4 inches | | Package Height:
| 0.6 inches | | Package Weight:
| 0.25 pounds | | Release Date:
| December 30, 2005 | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 77 reviews |
| | | Game Information: | | | Platform:
| Xbox 360 | | Media:
| Video Game | | Item Quantity:
| 1 |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
 ( 77 customer reviews )
Write an online review and share your thoughts with other customers.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
31 of 36 found the following review helpful:
 The AtonementJan 05, 2006
By E. Kim
"A great man should die as a shattered jewel rather than live as an intact tile"
The newest installment in Team Ninja's fighting game series, Dead or Alive 4 has met all it's expectations. Every fighting game series on the market today has their respective strong points, DOA always being the amazing graphic edge, but more than anything on this newest edition, tecmo has slightly revamped the fighing techniques making DOA4 the most balanced game in it's genre.
Single player lacks an easy mode, so for the casual gamer, it might be somewhat of a challenge. But because of this factor, it helps develop the mechanical skills used in the game. Some veterans might find some slight difficulty at first, but should get the hang of things after a few goes. Definately not a "button mash" game. This aspect I gladly invite. I think that usually easy modes lack any challenge, if anything the only positive aspect of the mode is to learn move sets and combos, which can easily be learned in the Sparring mode. With unlockable costumes, characters, and other achievements, the single player mode will likely keep your interest.
The online mode has it's kinks, but for the most part is very good. I really like the lobbies and the avatars to install goals within the online game. Rankings and scores also helps keep a competative nature. Within the mode you can set-up tournaments, private matches, and many other fighting settings. Their has been a few glitches and every once and awhile some lag. The glitches I'm sure will be fixed as they are found and the lag in a lobby has more to do with a bad connection as opposed to bad service.
If you are into fighting games and want a challenge both offline and online, Dead or Alive 4 is a must have if you have a xbox360.
14 of 16 found the following review helpful:
 More work, less play.Jan 03, 2007
By My Inner Goth Girl
In redesigining Dead or Alive for the XBOX 360, Team Ninja seems to have systematically removed any element of fun from the game. By drastically changing the countering system, by increasing the challenge, and by introducing a new boss, somehow they lost that which made the other games enjoyable in the first place.
First, the countering system. Since the inception of the Dead or Alive series on the Playstation One, the countering system set DOA apart from other fighters and became, next to the female characters, the title's major gimmick. In DOA 4 that countering system has been complicated by adding a counter-intuitive command for middle and jumping kicks. Instead of entering back and the free button, one has to go forward instead. Compounding this, the window of opportunity for successfully countering an attack has decreased substantially, making it more difficult to break a combo.
This in itself wouldn't have been so bad if the same treatment had been given the CPU opponenet, but no. They counter more often...as if at will. The opponent also blocks more effectively, severely limiting your offense. But not only has the CPU's defense improved, but offensively the CPU is a rediculous challenge. You will find yourself consistently being pummeled by perfectly executed combos, juggles, bounce combos, chain throws, and counters. Meanwhile, your ability to defend against these attacks is nearly absent. There are gaping holes in your blocking, you can't seem to break a chain throw, and if you do somehow manage a block the hardwired CPU executes a throw instead. Overall this challenge makes the game more frustrating than fun. Yet, as NORMAL level is the lowest difficult setting available (and their definition of normal is other games' hard or hardest), that is your only option. Even sparring mode proves to be a pain as there is equally no easy setting. However, by varying your attacks, you can catch the opponent off guard and manage a few good combos. The problem is, you go from entering known commands to random direction and button combinations. DOA goes from a fairly sophisticated game to a mindless button masher. Combine all this with a controller that cannot seem to register a simple crouch command and makes you jump forward when all you want is to step forward and you have a recipe for a lot of swearing and control throwing. There are some moments when you cannot do anything at all, and you wonder why you're even holding a controller in the first place.
If you do manage to slog through these hyped-up, Wheaties-eating, omniscient opponents you eventually meet with the game's new boss, a poorly coceived Kasumi made out of bluish plasma, Alpha-152. This boss will go down in history as one of the cheapest, most difficult of all bosses. Not only can she string together 10 to 12 hit combos, but she has a counter attack that takes nearly half your life bar, she teleports, and she can seemingly complete a throw from anywhere. Even still, once you figure her out, she is surprisingly easy to beat provided you have the right character (Kasumi seemed to work best for me). If you only had to face her once, it would be no big deal, but you have to face her again and again if you want to unlock more features. Honestly, I don't know why fighting games even need a boss.
Your reward for all this work is, excpt for a few exceptions, a lame movie and or an equally lame new outfit. Apparently all the best outfits have to be purchased online. As I am not an online player, there is very littly reward or satisfaction in this game. What happened to Leifang's leather one piece spy outfit. And though her movie is quite funny, it is not taijiquan. Tai Chi is about maximum result with minumum effort. Spinning around a pole by your hands in order to kick a guy is more in the style of a ninja. And do we really need Tengu? Moreover, you can also unlock a Spartan from Halo. What a Halo character is doing in Dead or Alive is anyone's guess. I suppose as Mario is to Nintendo, Halo is to the XBOX.
Story wise, DOA is also lacking, but fighting games were never known for their depth. There seems to be little reason why any of them, aside from those with connections to DOATEC, would even be fighting in the first place. The new characters Eliot and Kokoro are kind of boring compared to the old cast. What is with Kokoro anyway? An apprentice Geisha studying Chinese kung fu? Besides, she too much resembles Leifang which creates some confusion. La Mariposa is slightly better, but suffers from too elaborate moves. Her acrobatic attacks often take to long to be effective.
What has improved are the environments. The interactive nature of the stages is by far the most enjoyable new aspect of the game. It is satisfying to knock your opponent over a table or log, or smash him into a cart of fruit. Sadly, there is little else of any appeal here. Even the much touted graphics were not as impressive as what I had first heard. The hair looks like ribbons of plastic and, like scarves and jewelry, seems to move of its own accord. Fabric often looks fake escpecially in some of the textures and in the movement of skirts. Otherwise, it is a beautiful game, but still too frustrating to actually be enjoyable. I play video games to aleviate stress, not add more. I think many players would agree.
28 of 35 found the following review helpful:
The Most Beautiful Fighter AvailableJan 07, 2006
By T. Hooper
"thdizzy"
Dead of Alive 4 doesn't disappoint. First of all, the graphics are just mind-blowingly beautiful. You've never seen such a beautifully designed fighter game before. To tell the truth, I bought an X-box 360 because I'm a big fan of the Dead or Alive series. Now that I've played the game, I can say that I'm satisfied.
I give a quick rundown of the changes from the previous version. Multiplayer is as fun as usual, but the story mode will be a little more difficult than in previous versions. The reason for this is that the computer AI is a little stronger than before. If you tend to use just a few moves, the computer will pick up on that and will counter you almost every time. If you learn to vary your moves, then it's not much of a problem. Also, the window for pulling off a counter has been reduced, so it's much more difficult than before to do a counter. Again, with practice and timing, you can improve your skills to make up for this. Also, I felt that the final boss in this game is a little more difficult than previous bosses. By that, I mean much faster and much trickier. I found that by using charges and footsweeps, you can usually beat the boss with only a few tries. Overall, the single player game has become more challenging.
So should you get it? The answer is YES! If you have an X-box 360 and you don't have this, then you need it. That's all I can say. This game has left me speechless.
6 of 7 found the following review helpful:
Rewarding if you have staying powerJul 03, 2006
By David Foskin
"SneakyGoblin on XBL"
When is something entitled 'Ultimate' not actually meant to be 'Ultimate'? When you're Team Ninja of course. Painfully unfunny jokes aside, Tomonobu Itagaki was certainly suffering from a case of premature appellation with his stop-gap DoA reimagining for Microsoft's original games system. Dead or Alive 4 is actually the 'ultimate' Dead or Alive game so far, but for the purposes of clarity (and conformity) we'll continue to call it Number Four.
On 360 it was impossible to think that DoA4 would look anything less than stunning. Certainly DoA3 was one of the Xbox's best-looking earlier titles and the apple certainly hasn't fallen far from the tree. While the cherry blossom-strewn courtyards, Las Vegas-style strip and wrestling-ring levels are all graphically impressive, this time around it's the little things that make the major difference. The wavy heat haze on the Savannah level, the reflections of the characters and environment in glass and puddles, the neon lighting effects, the sense of scale provided by distant mountains visible from the top of the temple steps, even down to spectators in the wrestling-ring stage holding up boards with slogans and pictures that actually correspond to the fighters taking part (or booing if the fighters don't land a punch for a while) - these are just a few examples of some of the small details that, when combined, add up to a very large and juicy cherry atop the cake.
Characters have also received extra attention to detail, with clothing fabrics looking even more impressive than ever before. Fur, mesh and silk are all wonderfully recreated and richly produced. An attempt has also been made to accurately provide long flowing hair for the female fighters, however this is not always successful with some odd results where it appears to flow around their shoulders like liquid. There are also some Soul Calibur 2-esque clipping issues with hair and some characters' clothing. The game also allows for photos and replays of the action to be saved for posterity, preserving forever that moment when you dished out (or received) punishment.
The attention lavished on fine detail is unsurprising however when you look at the game's character models. As exquisitely produced as they are, again Team Ninja have backed themselves into a narrow cul-de-sac with the art direction of the game which now seems to have gone as far as it can and even peeked around Number Three. DoA has and always been the digital equivalent of playing Barbie Vs. Ken for adults, with characters that have an almost plastic sheen to them and with some male characters looking very much identikit aside from hair and clothing.
Following criticism of the earlier games' fighting system, Team Ninja have made quite a few changes to address issues such as unbalanced fighters and problematic mechanics. More emphasis has been placed on the Critical Hit and Counter system and while it may take a while to adapt, it certainly makes the game more tactical and interesting to play. Fights are much faster (to a giddying degree in later rounds and higher difficulties) and it certainly feels more fluid and fun, with amendments made to characters like Kasumi and Ayane to balance them. This tinkering will certainly go some way to making the game more appealing to those who found it unbearable before.
Scenery-smashing moves are again present and have been, quite literally, expanded upon. Levels now often sprawl in a multitude of different directions meaning fights can take any number of paths. As an example, brawling on the Temple Steps means players can fight under the archway and into the courtyard, or in the opposite direction down the steps. This in turn leads them to being able to knock opponents over a barrier and off a tiled rooftop, or down another flight of steps. Players can never be sure of which direction a fight will take them, meaning a new dimension of intra-level variety is created.
There are also static and moving obstacles such as benches, trees, fences, traffic and even dinosaurs. There's a real sense of showmanship in belting your opponent into an oncoming police car (as it swerves to avoid the two nutters fighting in the middle of the road), watching with glee as they roll over the bonnet with a thud of metal and a 'plink' of shattering glass. Or much more simply, but just as satisfyingly, kicking your nemesis over a stone table, following it up by vaulting across and punching them in the head as they struggle to recover.
Disappointingly Team Ninja is guilty of committing the same crime as in DoA3 (and a felony duplicated recently by Namco in Tekken 5); that of the cheap and dirty boss fight. Alpha-152, a see-through version of Kusami, is a nasty and unforgivable little addition to the game that introduces a difficulty spike that spoils the Story and Time Attack modes. Complete with a low-down, dirty, unavoidable charge-blast attack that decimates half your energy bar (something which should be outlawed from modern-day fighters under pain of death) players will find themselves (at the very least) gnashing their teeth at the vile tactics employed. Thankfully Alpha-152 is not present as the final encounter for every character in Story mode, meaning it's not all frustration and tears.
The A.I. also seems to occasionally lose all control and self-restraint, with characters like Hitomi, and most notably Jann Lee, presenting a spike in difficulty that is off-putting and soul-destroying at times.
There are noticeable problems with collision detection, meaning some grabs, punches or kicks don't connect. Thankfully there are workarounds as the player adjusts their gaming style, learning when these may occur. However a more sordid glitch means that floored opponents sometimes correct themselves and break into combos in a heartbeat, an almost impossible feat that no recovery move could ever produce and which feels like the A.I. is cheating. In a game where contact is everything, such activity will frustrate when, during a pivotal moment, the player finds their breathing space throttled from them and their opponent attacks instead of going prone.
The game's saving grace from niggly faults with the A.I. comes from the system's Live capability. While first unveiled in DoA: Ultimate, Live's seamless integration with the 360 and its games makes taking fighting online easier and much more fun than ever before. DoA4 contains an avatar-based lobby system that allows players to fight, meet others, or simply hang out and spectate. Winning the various online matches (including Winner Stays On, Loser Stays On, Team Battle, Survival etc) results in the player earning Zack Points which can be spent in Zack's shop to change the appearance of avatars or to buy new wacky costumes for the fighters themselves. Taking a leaf from DoA's Volleyball outing, items available change on a daily basis meaning that it will be some time before a full wardrobe of accessories and outfits is accrued. Online play is given a further edge in that losing fights means Zack Points are deducted, adding that real incentive to keep winning.
Although unique, DoA's lobby is not as innovative as it could have been. While understandably limited to one fight at a time per lobby, in order to join the queue to fight, players must leave and enter the in-game spectator view. If they choose to go back to the lobby, they then lose their place in the queue, making the fanciful and delightful lobby almost redundant. Far better would have been a system that allowed you to register your place in the queue and then transport you back into the game appropriately. Of course there's nothing stopping those who want to go off and challenge someone to a one-on-one in their own lobby (which is graciously donated free of charge the first time they go online), but that seems overly fiddly and may be far more trouble for some than it's worth. Presently some games also suffer serious lag that can stop proceedings mid-combo as everything plays catch up.
As an overall experience DoA4 is thoroughly capable and enjoyable, proving through its latest incarnation that it has certainly evolved into a fighter that can be taken seriously and seen as more than cheap titillation or a T&A simulator for prepubescents. While not as close to perfection as Team Ninja would have everyone believe, there is certainly enough substance to put the series back on track and offer a serious contender to the next round of Virtua Fighter and Tekken games.
8 of 10 found the following review helpful:
An Incredible ExperienceDec 30, 2005
By Steve L.
Dead or Alive 4, the most recent iteration of the popular DOA series, is an incredible experience. Everything is superb. The character models-though still cartoony in appearance-are still detailed enough to drop a few jaws. All 22 fighters have multiple costumes that can be unlocked that are almost life-like. Each costume has realistic textures to further enhance the experience, but the true pinnacle of DOA4 (graphically) are the battlefields. It is apparent that the level designers spent a lot of time crafting each individual level. All arenas feature multiple tiers, destructible items, and backgrounds that will make you question if you're still in reality.
Aside from graphics, DOA4 boasts gameplay that is extremely fun and easy to get into. While beginners may button-mash, the inclusion of small, yet important, improvements will keep veterans interested. Such improvements include a more difficult counter system, and a more in-depth ground game. Furthermore, all 22 fighters have their own unique fighting styles and each character has an expanded arsenal of moves.
Overall, this game does not leave much to be complained about and is a solid addition to the library of Xbox 360 games. If a game like DOA4 can achieve the best graphics of any game thus far only a month after the launch of the 360, imagine what future games are capable of once game developers adjust to the new system.
I would recommend Dead or Alive 4 not only to fans of the DOA series, but also to any fighting game fan.
See all 77 customer reviews on Amazon.com
| | |
|
