Released last September, Koei Tecmo's "Dead or Alive 5" has only been in the hands of fighting fans for 9 months. However, this hasn't stopped developers Team Ninja from announcing "Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate," an enhanced version of the 3D fighting game that will hit shelves this fall.
According to IGN, "Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate" will incorprate features from "Dead or Alive 5 Plus," the Playstation Vita version of the game that released earlier this year. The game will bring "NInja Gaiden" character Momiji into the fray, as well as additional combatants that have yet to be revealed. Fans can also look forward to new stages to do battle in.
This is all well and fine, but do fighting game fans need a new Dead or Alive already? The last time the word "Ultimate" was slapped onto a Dead or Alive cover, it was a re-release of the original 2 games in the series on Xbox and allowed the titles to be played online for the first time ever. In comparison, this "Ultimate" edition seems potentially rushed.
Of course, the fighting game genre as a whole is no stranger to the re-release epidemic. Capcom is famous for rehashing titles, from the days of "Street Fighter II: Turbo" to 2011, when they released "Marvel vs. Capcom 3" and its extended edtion in the same year. WB Games released "Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition" in 2012, which packaged in all of the downloadable content from the gory 2011 brawler.
Still, new characters and stages are common in DLC bundles, so why did Koei Tecmo feel the need to release a new game? Last year's "Dead or Alive 5" did come out at a saturated time for the fighting game community, with popular titles such as "Tekken Tag Tournament 2" and "Persona 4: Arena" releasing just weeks before it. Perhaps re-releasing the title in a month devoid of fighting games can help "Dead or Alive" reach more people.
Whether you want it or not, "Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate" will be available both digitally and in stores this fall for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. No price point has been revealed yet, so here's to hoping the expansion sells for less than the full retail price of $59.99. While some fans may feel a repackaging is too soon, "Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate" does have some enticing features that might inspire gamers to try the title for the very first time.
Will you be picking up "Ultimate," or are you fine with last year's iteration of this storied fighting franchise?
