My first experience with the Dead or Alive series was Dead or Alive 3 on the Xbox. I thought the fast paced fighting of DOA3 was a lot of fun. I also enjoyed the over dramatic rock 'n roll music associated with DOA3. I have yet to experience Dead or Alive 4, but when Dead or Alive 5 was released for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, I made sure to buy it. I still found it to be a fun fighting game, so when the PlayStation Vita version was revealed, I pre-ordered it.
Much like the Ninja Gaiden series on the PS Vita, the PlayStation Vita version of Dead or Alive 5 is known as Dead or Alive 5 Plus. You would think that because of the Plus there would be more features included into the game. That happens to be the case, but at the expense of sacrificing other features.
One of the most notable features missing in the game is Tag Team Mode. The tag fights that occur in Story Mode on the PS3 and Xbox 360 version are still there on the PlayStation Vita version of the game, but if you want to play tag team with another character you're out of luck.
Dead or Alive 5 Plus is still a lot of fun. I got my copy of the game as soon as it was released and I still play it to this day. It is definitely my favorite fighting game on the PlayStation Vita. I have played a few fighting games on the Vita, and I have really liked playing DOA5 Plus the most.
The story in Dead or Alive 5 Plus is the same exact story from Dead or Alive 5 on the PS3 and Xbox 360. There weren't any changes made to the story. I'm okay with that. It isn't the best story ever told, but I actually kind of enjoyed it. Dead or Alive 5, for that matter, does something different than a lot of other fighting games do. Fighting games usually have you select one character to fight as and then you are told the story from their perspective. In Dead or Alive 5, the choice isn't up to the player. Instead, the player must access the story through various characters after three or four fights. This allows the player to use many of the characters from the Dead or Alive 5 roster. Unfortunately, the story does end up becoming a mess, so you shouldn't really analyze it too much.
The story heavily focuses on Kasumi and, her clone, Alpha-152. Kasumi takes it upon herself to seek Alpha-152 and defeat her once and for all. I like that the story attempts to string itself together by sharing each characters' perspective. It just doesn't do a very good job. Then again, I don't play a fighting game for its story. I play a fighting game based on whether or not I find the fighting mechanics fun. Power Blow attacks are a lot of fun to perform. When a character has 50% of health (or less), the said character can then perform a Power Blow which knocks an opponent towards a desired area. Some levels even have certain areas where more damage can be inflicted when using a Power Blow.
Dead or Alive 5 Plus has other modes to offer. These modes include Versus, Arcade, Time Attack, Survival. These modes can be found under Fight in the main menu. There are 24 fighters on the roster for Dead or Alive 5 Plus, 19 of which are recurring characters, like Kasumi, Ayane, Ryu, and Hayate. Two of the five additional characters are brand new for the Dead or Alive series. If you've already played DOA5, then you will know which two characters I am referring to. If you haven't, these two new characters are Rig and Mila. Rig's fighting preference is a version of taekwondo. Mila is specializes in mixed martial arts.
That is something I really like about Dead or Alive. Each character has their unique fighting style. Although there are plenty of ninjas in the game, I have never felt that any of them fought alike. Kasumi and Ayane may have a similar fighting style, but you can tell that their fighting style was tailored towards them rather than being a generic fighting style for both.
The additional three characters come from the Virtua Fighter series. These three are Akira Yuki, Sarah Bryant, and Pai Chan. They even make an appearance in Story Mode.
Training Plus has modes of its on, such as Free Training, Command Training, Tutorial, and Combo Challenge. If you're wanting to get the mechanics down for DOA5 Plus, I highly suggest checking out Training Plus. It is pretty robust for a fighting game, and it definitely helps you improve.
Like Dead or Alive 5, the PS Vita version also allows you to play online with other DOA5 and DOA5 Plus users. This opens it up to fighting various opponents on the PlayStation 3 and the PlayStation Vita. I have encountered a fair amount of people playing the PS Vita version of DOA5, which is pretty cool. It is much like PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale on the PS3 and PS Vita. You can also play locally with a friend using Ad-hoc.
The Dead or Alive series has been rather notorious for its over-the-top breast physics, and Dead or Alive 5 Plus is no exception. In fact, there are three settings: stilled, "natural," and "DOA." That's... something.
Aside from that new feature, DOA5 Plus also includes a touchscreen-based fighting mode. It is fun to play using the touchscreen a couple of times, but it does get old rather quickly. I found myself just tapping the screen over and over again until I won the match. There is no skill whatsoever to it. It is best to just stick to the traditional fighting mechanics.
Even though you'll only really see yourself pressing the kick button and the punch button most of the time, Dead or Alive 5 Plus has an impressive number of combos to connect for each character. As aforementioned, you can learn how to execute these combos by accessing the modes under Training Plus. It goes from teaching you simple mechanics, such as moving your fighter, to connecting difficult combos.
I was pretty impressed with the graphics of Dead or Alive 5 on the PS3 and Xbox 360. Dead or Alive 5 Plus looks great on the PlayStation Vita. It may not look as good as it does on the PS3 and Xbox 360, but it definitely looks fantastic for a Vita game. Not only does it look good, but it performs well on the handheld too. I have never experienced any frame rate issues on Dead or Alive 5 Plus. The characters on DOA5 Plus still have their realistic design like the PS3 and Xbox 360 DOA5. There is one thing that bugs me though. For some reason, Leifang doesn't have teeth. Where did her teeth go?
Leifang's teeth aren't the only thing missing from the game. DOA5 had missions to perform in each fight in Story Mode, but that feature is nowhere to be seen in Dead or Alive 5 Plus. There aren't Lobby Matches on DOA5 Plus either. Lobby Matches allowed you to fight against others and let you watch matches while you wait for your turn. I already mentioned that Tag Fights are only available in Story Mode. Another notable feature that isn't on DOA5 Plus is the ability to upload recorded fights onto YouTube. You can still record fights, but you won't be able to put them onto YouTube. Although these features are pretty awesome, I don't think it is deal breaker since you're getting a pretty solid fighting game for the Vita. These features would have been nice though.
If you're a fan of the series, Dead or Alive 5 Plus is definitely worth picking up for the PlayStation Vita. I have yet to stop playing Dead or Alive 5 Plus and I love that I can take it with me wherever I go. I also like the fact that I can play online with PS3 users. Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate recently was released, but unfortunately Dead or Alive 5 Plus can't interact with DOA5U because of the changes that were made for that game. Still, there are people playing DOA5 and DOA5 Plus online. It does take some time to find an opponent every now and then, but I can confirm there are still people looking for someone to fight.
Another plus (pun intended) to owning this game if you already have it on PS3 is that all the DLC you purchased from Dead or Alive 5 carries over onto Dead or Alive 5 Plus. Not only will you be able to access the downloadable content you bought for Dead or Alive 5, you can also transfer your save from DOA5 to DOA5 Plus. Tecmo did a pretty good job of making sure that DOA5 and DOA5 Plus intereacted with one another.
I also recommend this game to those who haven't had the chance to play Dead or Alive, especially on the PlayStation Vita. I've had a lot of fun with this game. If you aren't a fan of fighting games, then chances are you won't like Dead or Alive 5 Plus. If you're looking for a fighting game that is fast paced and has ninjas, then this might be the game for you.
OVERALL SCORE:
8.5/10
OVERALL SCORE:
8.5/10
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