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Dead or Alive 2 is a fantastic fighting game, that manages to offer gamers a deeper level of game play than you might have thought at first. In my view it isn’t as good as Soul Calibur, but then nothing is – Dead or Alive 2 claims the honourable place as the second best Dreamcast fighting game, and that is something to be proud of! The creators Tecmo, released this game on Dreamcast before the Playstation 2, so you’d think that Sony’s machine version would have improved graphics over the Dreamcast one, but it doesn’t. Although there is very little in it, the Dreamcast game actually is crisper, more vibrant in colour and has no glitches or ‘jaggedness’, but if you have a PS2 then it’s still worth getting as nothing comes close to it on that format (not even Tekken Tag Tournament in my belief). So why is DoA2 so good? I’m about to tell you…
I don’t know why but I was looking forward to this game more than most other Dreamcast games, it only cost me £29.99 so I saved 25% on the SRP, so it didn’t break the bank balance. Well, I remember the original Dead or Alive, which appeared on the Sega Saturn and Playstation, but I never managed to play it, and after reading some reviews claiming it was the best Saturn fighter so far, and naturally I would have wanted it in my gaming collection, but unfortunately, with the Saturn’s demise, I was unable to do so. But at least the second game arrived and it’s been fairly impressive to say the least!
The fighting game engine is very different from Soul Calibur, and I don’t feel it’s as well executed as Namco’s game, but nonetheless, Dead or Alive 2 plays very well indeed. The controls are simple to learn, so it’s easy to get straight into a game without learning any special moves, but there is a wealth of moves to be performed, so it will prove to be a challenge for die-hard fans of the genre. There are many power moves, various kicks, punches and throws, as you would expect, but the most impressive idea in the game are the ‘counter’ moves. So basically, whenever your opponent attacks you, you’re able to counter it by pressing certain buttons, and so the damage is inflicted on them instead. You cannot counter every single move, but when you do it’s quite impressive! Tecmo has made the game incredibly smooth and stylish – every move looks perfectly performed. You may notice that there are no weapons in Dead or Alive 2 – it’s an all out combat free fighting game, the characters don’t have swords or sticks like those in Soul Calibur, so you may want to consider this if you have to choose between the two games.
One major advantage that Dead or Alive 2 has over SC is the Tag Battle mode – enabling up to four players to fight it out until the death! You’ll be able to Tag whenever you need to, if you need your health to be replenished then tag, or if you’re tag team member wants to take over, they can do so too! Having played the Tekken Tag Tournament Tag battle, I have to say Dead or Alive 2’s is far better, but TTT ‘s is still impressive. So, where Soul Calibur excels in the single player mission mode, and 2 player bouts, Dead or Alive 2 gives you the opportunity to make use of the Dreamcast four controller ports.
The single player experience of DoA2 is not particularly impressive, and there aren’t as many ‘features’ to unlock, whereas the mission mode in Soul Calibur will last a long time and reward you with pieces of artwork, and there are new characters to be unlocked also (via the arcade mode). If you play through the story mode here you’ll be treated to a few video sequences, telling a rather brief and pointless story in between the 6fight tournament. If you get past all the regular characters then you’ll be up against the game boss – ‘Evil Tengu’ (a huge boar like monster: he flies & is incredibly powerful!). Although there isn’t much to get through in this mode, you can increase the difficulty level to suite your fighting ability. You’ll learn a bit more about the different characters, things like Bass being Tina’s father and that Ayane killed Helena’s mum. Very nice! You’ll only be awarded extra costumes by completing the story mode, there are no new characters to unlock, but at least you have something to work for – it’s not much of an incentive, but you may as well reveal all of the player’s attire.
The characters are all great with their special moves and all, but I can recommend using Helena and Ein as they seem to be the most effective – both fast and powerful. All the people have different costumes to be unlocked, but the most graphically impressive is Zack’s silver shiny one.
Great game for all who love fighting games – the alternative to Soul Calibur and a worthy purchase for anyone.
I don’t know why but I was looking forward to this game more than most other Dreamcast games, it only cost me £29.99 so I saved 25% on the SRP, so it didn’t break the bank balance. Well, I remember the original Dead or Alive, which appeared on the Sega Saturn and Playstation, but I never managed to play it, and after reading some reviews claiming it was the best Saturn fighter so far, and naturally I would have wanted it in my gaming collection, but unfortunately, with the Saturn’s demise, I was unable to do so. But at least the second game arrived and it’s been fairly impressive to say the least!
The fighting game engine is very different from Soul Calibur, and I don’t feel it’s as well executed as Namco’s game, but nonetheless, Dead or Alive 2 plays very well indeed. The controls are simple to learn, so it’s easy to get straight into a game without learning any special moves, but there is a wealth of moves to be performed, so it will prove to be a challenge for die-hard fans of the genre. There are many power moves, various kicks, punches and throws, as you would expect, but the most impressive idea in the game are the ‘counter’ moves. So basically, whenever your opponent attacks you, you’re able to counter it by pressing certain buttons, and so the damage is inflicted on them instead. You cannot counter every single move, but when you do it’s quite impressive! Tecmo has made the game incredibly smooth and stylish – every move looks perfectly performed. You may notice that there are no weapons in Dead or Alive 2 – it’s an all out combat free fighting game, the characters don’t have swords or sticks like those in Soul Calibur, so you may want to consider this if you have to choose between the two games.
One major advantage that Dead or Alive 2 has over SC is the Tag Battle mode – enabling up to four players to fight it out until the death! You’ll be able to Tag whenever you need to, if you need your health to be replenished then tag, or if you’re tag team member wants to take over, they can do so too! Having played the Tekken Tag Tournament Tag battle, I have to say Dead or Alive 2’s is far better, but TTT ‘s is still impressive. So, where Soul Calibur excels in the single player mission mode, and 2 player bouts, Dead or Alive 2 gives you the opportunity to make use of the Dreamcast four controller ports.
The single player experience of DoA2 is not particularly impressive, and there aren’t as many ‘features’ to unlock, whereas the mission mode in Soul Calibur will last a long time and reward you with pieces of artwork, and there are new characters to be unlocked also (via the arcade mode). If you play through the story mode here you’ll be treated to a few video sequences, telling a rather brief and pointless story in between the 6fight tournament. If you get past all the regular characters then you’ll be up against the game boss – ‘Evil Tengu’ (a huge boar like monster: he flies & is incredibly powerful!). Although there isn’t much to get through in this mode, you can increase the difficulty level to suite your fighting ability. You’ll learn a bit more about the different characters, things like Bass being Tina’s father and that Ayane killed Helena’s mum. Very nice! You’ll only be awarded extra costumes by completing the story mode, there are no new characters to unlock, but at least you have something to work for – it’s not much of an incentive, but you may as well reveal all of the player’s attire.
The characters are all great with their special moves and all, but I can recommend using Helena and Ein as they seem to be the most effective – both fast and powerful. All the people have different costumes to be unlocked, but the most graphically impressive is Zack’s silver shiny one.
Great game for all who love fighting games – the alternative to Soul Calibur and a worthy purchase for anyone.
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Yeah really ant.
pb wrote:
> Ant, how could you forget that I'm the one who mentioned that your
> smiley resembled a pringles man, I'm hurt!
Joe, hi, has anyone
> found Tony yet. I think he's still hidden under the games boxes.
> Look out for a small yelping noise.
Or should that be listen
> out? Never quite sure..
Oops. forgot that. Sorry pb, I always seem to miss you out. Sorry, mate! Don't be annoyed with me!!
Also, I know where Tony is.... yes...cleaning up his kitchen floor!! After my Ant colony peed all over it!! And I stole all his sugar!!
> Ant, how could you forget that I'm the one who mentioned that your
> smiley resembled a pringles man, I'm hurt!
Joe, hi, has anyone
> found Tony yet. I think he's still hidden under the games boxes.
> Look out for a small yelping noise.
Or should that be listen
> out? Never quite sure..
Oops. forgot that. Sorry pb, I always seem to miss you out. Sorry, mate! Don't be annoyed with me!!
Also, I know where Tony is.... yes...cleaning up his kitchen floor!! After my Ant colony peed all over it!! And I stole all his sugar!!
Ant, how could you forget that I'm the one who mentioned that your smiley resembled a pringles man, I'm hurt!
Joe, hi, has anyone found Tony yet. I think he's still hidden under the games boxes. Look out for a small yelping noise.
Or should that be listen out? Never quite sure..
Joe, hi, has anyone found Tony yet. I think he's still hidden under the games boxes. Look out for a small yelping noise.
Or should that be listen out? Never quite sure..
Hello Joe! nice to see a new face!
I am SHEEPY a confused 15 year old from Scotland!
You may see me drifting in and out of this discussion board writing some rubbish then one in a while i write something quite good!
I am SHEEPY a confused 15 year old from Scotland!
You may see me drifting in and out of this discussion board writing some rubbish then one in a while i write something quite good!
Gunstar Heroes... probably THE game of the last decade.
-This post comes from Grix Thraves, and no, you REALLY don't want to know...
-This post comes from Grix Thraves, and no, you REALLY don't want to know...
Black and White is not my bag. Severance: Blade of Darkness is, and that is my next addition to my PC Gaming shelf.
Wiz 'n' Liz rools.
FantasyMeister: Where's a funny signature when you need one.
Wiz 'n' Liz rools.
FantasyMeister: Where's a funny signature when you need one.
Cheers Dan.
I have got a megadrive actually - how did you know that? Its classic gaming at its best (well... sort of..) - always preferred it to the SNES, but then that was probably partly just because I owned it, I felt a duty to "defend" it, as alot of console owners do.
In answer to Ant, I also currently own an N64, and all the Game Boy versions so far (dunno if I'll be splashing out for a GBA just yet though).
I'm sort of playing the waiting game with the new consoles, PS2 etc, so I can see how the Gamecube and X-Box turn out. Although games like Z.O.E. look fantastic, so there's hope yet.
Have to say I'm an avid PC gamer - everyone ordered their copies of Black and White yet? And if not, why not? - But I still love a good ol' joypad slinging showdown with my mates whenever I can, and like I say the newer consoles are a mighty tempting investment for my hard-earned cash.
Keep up the great posting everyone!
I have got a megadrive actually - how did you know that? Its classic gaming at its best (well... sort of..) - always preferred it to the SNES, but then that was probably partly just because I owned it, I felt a duty to "defend" it, as alot of console owners do.
In answer to Ant, I also currently own an N64, and all the Game Boy versions so far (dunno if I'll be splashing out for a GBA just yet though).
I'm sort of playing the waiting game with the new consoles, PS2 etc, so I can see how the Gamecube and X-Box turn out. Although games like Z.O.E. look fantastic, so there's hope yet.
Have to say I'm an avid PC gamer - everyone ordered their copies of Black and White yet? And if not, why not? - But I still love a good ol' joypad slinging showdown with my mates whenever I can, and like I say the newer consoles are a mighty tempting investment for my hard-earned cash.
Keep up the great posting everyone!
Joe@SpecialReserve wrote:
> Wow, that was a quick response.
I suppose I'm in the middle,
> like I said I enjoy humour, and I'm all for a bit of mickey-taking
> (*gets his magnifying glass out and holds it under the sunlight*),
> but I'm a nice guy really! (*uses it to light a fire and toast
> marshmellows for everyone*) -scared ya there eh Ant.
Na, you can't scare me. Anyone who tries to...well.. I will make them cower like a cowardly coward.
But enough of that, what console(s) do you own??
-This comment comes from Ant, a 5-time Gameaday winner. He is very popular in most forums (apart from the rebellious N64 forum), and he has a lot of friends. His favourite sayings are "ONCE YOU POP, YOU CAN'T STOP!!" and "CLASSIQUE!", and he always writed them after his very special Pringles smiley face {:), which he made up himself.
{:) "ONCE YOU POP, YOU CAN'T STOP!! CLASSIQUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PS- I may seem mad, but I'm not really. You can ask most people on this forum.
> Wow, that was a quick response.
I suppose I'm in the middle,
> like I said I enjoy humour, and I'm all for a bit of mickey-taking
> (*gets his magnifying glass out and holds it under the sunlight*),
> but I'm a nice guy really! (*uses it to light a fire and toast
> marshmellows for everyone*) -scared ya there eh Ant.
Na, you can't scare me. Anyone who tries to...well.. I will make them cower like a cowardly coward.
But enough of that, what console(s) do you own??
-This comment comes from Ant, a 5-time Gameaday winner. He is very popular in most forums (apart from the rebellious N64 forum), and he has a lot of friends. His favourite sayings are "ONCE YOU POP, YOU CAN'T STOP!!" and "CLASSIQUE!", and he always writed them after his very special Pringles smiley face {:), which he made up himself.
{:) "ONCE YOU POP, YOU CAN'T STOP!! CLASSIQUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PS- I may seem mad, but I'm not really. You can ask most people on this forum.
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