Any new gaming console needs to offer a quality fighting game at launch, and for the Xbox that title is Tecmo's Dead or Alive 3. Though DOA3 doesn't revolutionize the fighting genre, it does offer a great gaming experience, and its graphics easily surpass every other fighting game on the market--on any system. DOA3 offers eight modes of play, including story, team battle, tag battle, and sparring. Sparring mode is customizable and is a nice way for new players to learn how to play the game, while story mode lets you take one of the 16 available characters through a series of matches culminating in a fight against the über-powerful Omega. Once you defeat Omega, a short movie specific to your character is unlocked. The story mode doesn't make a lot of sense (and the dialogue is laughable) but the end movies are pretty cool, and it's fun playing through the game as each of the characters.

Any new gaming console needs to offer a quality fighting game at launch, and for the Xbox that title is Tecmo's Dead or Alive 3. Though DOA3 doesn't revolutionize the fighting genre, it does offer a great gaming experience, and its graphics easily surpass every other fighting game on the market--on any system.

DOA3 offers eight modes of play, including story, team battle, tag battle, and sparring. Sparring mode is customizable and is a nice way for new players to learn how to play the game, while story mode lets you take one of the 16 available characters through a series of matches culminating in a fight against the über-powerful Omega. Once you defeat Omega, a short movie specific to your character is unlocked. The story mode doesn't make a lot of sense (and the dialogue is laughable) but the end movies are pretty cool, and it's fun playing through the game as each of the characters.

The real meat of the game, though, is its combat, and DOA3 delivers in spades. Each character has specific attacks, such as Zack's Devil Elbow or Bass Armstrong's Stun Gun Chop, and once you get the moves down, the entire affair can unfold like a carefully choreographed ballet as combatants block blows, counterattack, and land devastating punch and kick combos. Adding to the game's appeal are the massive and detailed multilevel arenas (introduced in DOA2), in which a precise kick or punch can send a combatant plummeting through the air down to the arena's next level.

It's obvious that DOA3 was designed as a showcase for the Xbox's graphical prowess, and it shows--the game's graphics are awesome. The character models look amazing and feature highly detailed clothing and accessories, and the animations are extremely smooth. The environments are also outstanding, and feature tons of little touches such as fluttering leaves, snow-covered ground that can be torn up during the course of a fight, and great-looking water. Even the background structures are highly detailed.

DOA3 doesn't rewrite the rules of the fighting genre, but its great graphics and intense fighting--especially in multiplayer mode--make for an enjoyable gaming experience. --William Harms

Pros:

• Brilliant graphics
• Lots of gameplay modes
• Multileveled arenas keep the fighting exciting

Cons:

• Story mode makes no sense
• Few unlockable extras

Developed for the Xbox, Dead or Alive 3 boasts a host of new characters, lighting effects, interactive environments, muscle and clothing movement, and more. Choose from a lineup of new and returning characters and engage in frenzied fighting. Enhanced movie sequences deliver John Woo-style slow-motion effects. Multitiered settings also let you explore multiple areas within a level. Up to four players can battle it out, while the single-player mode offers a variety of challenging levels.

Returning favorites include Kasumi and Lei Fang, or you can play as newcomers Hitomi, Christie, and Brad and test your skills in 16 unique fighting environments. Choose from more than 13 different fighting styles, including karate and Zui Ba Xian Quan (Eight Spirits Drunken Fist). Environments feature destructible scenery and varied terrains, such as mountains and sand. The redesigned costume system, updated tactical reversals, and all-new air throws take this title's fighting engine to the next level. Dead or Alive 3 also takes full advantage of the powerful Xbox platform to offer character models and a physics engine that delivers a stunning degree of realism. Dramatic lighting, shadows, and reflections heighten the realism, while subtle water effects animate puddles, ponds, and oceans with incredible detail.