Dead Or Alive 3
System: XBox   Publisher: Tecmo   Developer: Team Ninja   Genre: 3D Fighting Game   Release Date: 11/15/01

Quick Synopsis	Overall Score
Enjoyment:  Playing against the computer isn't fun for very long, this is more of a two-person game. Graphics:  Dead Or Alive 3 demonstrates the spectacular graphics that the XBox is capable of Sound:  The sound effects are first-rate.

Dead Or Alive 3 demonstrates the spectacular graphics that the XBox is capable of.  This is one of the reasons why the game was released at the same time that the XBox itself was released; to show the capabilities of the XBox console.  There has never been another fighting game with graphics that are this dazzling.  Arcade games can't even compare to the images produced on Dead Or Alive 3.  The amazing details that are usually overlooked by other fighting games were not ignored in this one; which makes it look absolutely amazing.  The character models look positively life-like; although a little too polished and the women are very well endowed.  The men are not lacking in the looks department either, most of them are sporting very beefed up bodies.  The hair flows very realistically and the hands come off as very animated.  Every aspect of the face and the clothing looks authentic, even the texture of the clothing looks like bona fide leather or denim.  There is an assortment of arenas to choose from that aren't too shabby either.  Each one is meticulously thought out, some of them are even multileveled.  They positively exhausted the attention to detail in these vast areas, even the lighting looks authentic.  This could be one of the best looking games of it's time.

All of the speech is in Japanese with English subtitles.  I'm almost positive that the voice acting is good, although I do not speak Japanese myself so I can't really make an educated judgment on that one.  During the introductions and the credits Aerosmith fans will be happy to hear some of his songs playing.  They blend well with the ambiance of the game.  The sound effects are first-rate and they really engender a feeling that you have been transported into the game.

The downfall to this game is that the changes from Dead or Alive 2 are few and far between; it's basically the same game with some spruced up graphics.  There are only three new character's at your disposal; Hitomi, Christie, and Brad Wong.  This gives you a total of only sixteen characters in all.  Some of the moves have been changed and now all of the characters have the ability to do reversal attacks.  These reversals help you to counter you opponents advances and inflict serious damage onto them instead.  There are some new punches, kicks, throws, and more, but not as much as one might expect from a new version of an old game.  Another addition to the game is the ability to use some of the arenas as a weapon.  You can throw an opponent onto a lower level, off a cliff, or into a wall.  These are effective for reducing their life.

However playing against the computer isn't fun for very long, this is more of a two-person game.  The computer is a little too easy for the more serious players of fighting games.  It will continue to fall for the same moves over and over again and it will not use some of the better moves that the characters are capable of.  This makes for very little replay value if you are a more solitary player.  It doesn't offer much in the way of new options either.  You still have the team battle mode, the tag team mode, the survivor mode, the sparring mode, the versus mode, the attack mode, and the story mode.  Although the story mode doesn't offer much in the way of storytelling, rather just a few lines from the characters here and there with no real background story.  The watch mode is kind of interesting and it really shows off how spectacular the graphics really are, but then again so does the cinemas that you are rewarded with after beating the boss in story mode.  Each character will give you a different cinema, all of which aren't that interesting and the time could have been better spent elsewhere in the game.  This game is also relatively easy for the beginning players of fighting games, so if you are one of those, playing against the computer can become a bit boring after awhile too.

Still I would give this game a thumbs up, I am not that great of a player when it comes to fighting games, but this one made me feel like a winner.  The character's have very fluid movements and the female character's are a joy to play.  I still haven't gotten bored with this game and I have owned it for years now.  I say it's right up there with Soul Calibur as one of my favorite fighting games of all times.  If you want my advice, which you probably do since your reading this article, it's a great buy. 

Miranda Stites, HeroesOfGaming.com, 08/08/05