|
 Koei
Tecmo revealed today that
Dead or Alive 6 is in development and is
planned for a 2019 release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Steam! The
reveal trailer begins with some cinematics and transitions into gameplay.
So far... DOA6 seems to have a more "mature" vibe, with
less of an emphasis on skimpy costumes and over-sexualized females, and more focus on stage
interactions, dynamic camera angles, facial expressions, and battle damage
on characters.
After debuting the
first Dead or Alive 6 trailer, IGN had this to say about the
visuals and the gameplay.
|
While
the visuals seem to be changing, Dead
or Alive 6's core gameplay stays familiar to what the series
always has excelled at: over-the-top martial-arts action with
interactive stages. However, DOA6 does try to welcome beginner
players by introducing a new combo and special attack system:
Fatal Rush and Break Gauge. These powerful attacks use simple
commands to allow new players to experience the thrill of fighting
games without too much practice. For seasoned players, the timing
required to execute them perfectly should add an additional layer
of strategy.
Kasumi,
Hayate, Hayabusa, Helena, Jann Lee, and Zack are confirmed as
returning characters. According to Director/Producer Yohei
Shimbori, the final character roster will include other familiar
fighters as well as some brand new characters. |
Believe it or not, the
developers also told IGN that DOA6 will tone down the
over-sexualization of female characters.
|
"We
wanted to make a more cool and more mature Dead or Alive this
time, and to that end we made a conscious decision to make
characters less sexualized," Shimbori told IGN.
It goes without saying that this decision is heavily influenced by
the fact that the industry is moving away from overly sexualized
female characters in general, but Team Ninja seems to have a
concrete vision behind this shift in style. If you look at the
game's concept art, you can see that Kasumi is no longer just a
fantasy figure for young boys; she's a warrior.
"The female characters are still attractive, as are the
men, but first and foremost they are fighters," Saito
Said.
In DOA6, female characters' breasts no longer jiggle and bounce in
the exaggerated fashion the series became increasingly known for,
and the costumes we have seen so far are less revealing. Females
are depicted in a more natural way, which makes them feel more
human and believable than before.
|
It's
times like these when I wonder if certain fighting game developers do read TFG
reviews... as I've pointed out for many many years that DOA's
over-sexualization of its females is one of the things holding the series
back from being great, and being taken seriously in the competitive fighting
game
community. Can Koei Tecmo get the series back on track?
The other issue Team Ninja needs to fix, this time
around, is NOT charging over $1,000 USD for in-game
DLC
costumes. Micro-transactions
of this magnitude are no friend to gamers or serious fighting
game players. So far... DOA6 seems like a step in the right direction. I'm
excited to see what Team Ninja does with this opportunity. Hopefully they do DOA
"right" this time. A return to its roots - with some solid gameplay
enhancements, perhaps?
Stay tuned on FightersGeneration.com
for coverage of Dead or Alive 6.
|
