Series director Yohei Shimbori has explained that the Dead or Alive series may not have a new release for the foreseeable future while also talking about how his team has made a considerable amount of DLC "worthy of the Guinness Book of World Records" and that it is time to look toward their future.
These statements were a part of an announcement held at a tournament.
Watch the video here.
Also announced is the long-coming end of Dead or Alive 5's DLC and support- this lead many to believe a new entry was to be announced.
Disappointment has filled the hearts of many DoA fans, some angry, who've long loved and supported the series. Others are wondering if it was truly the best choice to release this news at an event that people were enjoying.
Dead or Alive 5 released 5 years ago for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation Vita, and Microsoft Windows. 3 years later the game re-released as Dead or Alive 5 Last Round for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, and Microsoft Windows which featured a list of previously released DLC and additions.
Those aren't DoA 5's only releases however, the game released again just a year after DoA 5's initial release in 2012 as DoA5 Ultimate for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
DoA 5 Ultimate was the game's first expanded edition and DoA 5+ was released close to Ultimate for the PS Vita as an update to the Vita version.
After all that you'd think they'd be done? I mean, most games these days release, then release DLC for 1-2 years, then finish off with an "Ultimate" package or a "Definitive" or "Complete Edition" if the initial release began last gen and they've brought an upgraded version to PS4.
That didn't stop the DoA team however, and I didn't even mention arcade versions being released alongside almost each of the re-releases mentioned above!
They continued to release more and more DLC "worthy of a Guiness Book of World Records" just as the director said.
I know I've said at some point, "I feel like I've been seeing DLC release for the game for years!", and I have. 5 years is a pretty long time to continue supporting and creating DLC for most games that aren't MMORPG's or mobile games, especially when DoA 5 began this long journey last generation. So while it does seem a bit crazy, its actually not unlike the DoA developers to take one title into multiple variations as previous entries like DoA 2 had several entries as well back at the start of the 2000's.
But there's one more thing that some people forget- and this is partly due to their releases that are not in the west. 10 years after it's last entry, Dead or Alive Xtreme got a new entry in the spin-off series as Dead or Alive Xtreme 3: Fortune came out- with much global popularity might I add.
Support and DLC for DoA 5 Last Round continued and Xtreme 3's content continued as well while both games combined had released tons of costumes (the bulk of the DLC mountain created) simultaneously.
While most of the DLC released has not been story content, the team has been hard at work on DoA 5 and Xtreme 3 content together for over the last 5 years.
All that being said, I wouldn't be super jazzed myself to develop another title of the same variety right away- one which may be potentially set up for 5 more years- without some kind of variety in work.
With what's available for DoA 5 at this point I feel they've more than done their job making DoA 5, a good 5 times over. But this does bring a few thoughts to mind regarding games that are released toward the end of gaming generations.
I like DoA and DoA 5 was even on a Christmas Wish-List of mine back in 2012.
I feel DoA 5 did a fine job at giving fans just about everything they wanted from the fighting-game franchise. DoA Xtreme making a comeback is an added bonus and I have yet to delve into that title myself.
But I digress. The DoA 5 journey began in 2012 just over a year from the PS4's launch. The game was initially made for the PS3 and 360 hardware and was pretty easily upgraded for present-gen consoles. I think its safe to say that the team would have released Ultimate regardless, maybe even Last Round eventually whether the PS4 and Xbox One released or not. The fact that this game has evolved for so long and survived a generation update without any content drought is pretty phenomenal and shows the sheer dedication of the team to keep things refreshing as years have passed. That doesn't matter whether it is different swimsuits for the characters or character additions- even just running support for a game throughout console and game version releases is a job itself.
I think that this is definitely the point where fans need to understand that for those who've been designing costumes of varying design and colors and more for (no matter the version) what has pretty much been the same game for 5 years do honestly deserve some kind of break.
And its not just only about DoA 5 and Xtreme 3, since the PSP release of DoA Paradise in 2010, the team has overseen and developed 9 major titles in 7 years and 10 if you count the cancelled Dead or Alive: Code Chronos. Its also not totally uncommon for developers to announce or infer the hiatus of a popular series or franchise, with Mass Effect's current shelving recently coming to mind.
What I'm saying in all of this is, "I understand DoA devs, take your well deserved break." and that fans should try to be supportive considering what we have already and how much/long the devs have supported DoA 5.
Overall though do not despair completely if you're a DoA fan. This is a series that also shares its universe and characters with other series by Team Ninja and crossover titles. Its safe to say that while DoA 6 might not be coming any time soon, there's always opportunities for the developers to make new titles in the same universe or introduce characters into other series as well. That might be staying hopeful, but I feel there's a high chance to see such.
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