Dead or Alive 5: Last Round Reviews
Despite the creaks and cracks of the franchise beginning to show, Dead or Alive 5: Last Round is a solid and content-rich debut for the series on current-generation consoles.
Solid, if far from revolutionary, and well past its used-by date in terms of its treatment of women.
I'm glad to have it on next-gen, but there are quite a few issues to be ironed out. With the amount of support Tecmo has given this game with DLC and the optional F2P version, I'm sure that these issues will be fixed in due time.
The optional PAYG purchase model and cringe-worthy sexy lady stuff might distract you from the fact that this is a hugely entertaining fighting game. Slick, spectacular and fun to play, Last Round is right up there with the best games in the whole Dead or Alive series, and one that's worth paying upfront for if you don't want to end up paying over the odds. It's not a must-have for those who've already played Dead or Alive 5: Last Round on other formats, but if you haven't, it's a good time to give the game a try.
I'm glad to see the DOA series come to PC, but this port is a bit shaky at launch. The core gameplay is good, but no online play (for about three months when a patch comes out), a mixed graphical presentation, and other oddities make this hard to recommend right now -- might be best to give it some time to simmer.
Undoubtedly Dead or Alive 5: Last Round’s strongest selling points are its gameplay and its goofiness.
When all is said and done, DOA 5 ends up being a great looking, middle of the road fighter that still heavily relies on absurd female characters in revealing outfits to sell copies.
Frustrating difficulty spikes in some modes. The sheer, blatant fanservice will no doubt turn some people off. The Xbox One version currently suffers from a number of technical issues.
If you're still playing Dead or Alive 5 after three years on the market and have the desire to continue on a new set of consoles, then the price of admission shouldn't mean much to you. Even then, it's difficult to recommend only because of how little Team Ninja has added to the overall experience.
The best version to date, but not definitive
Dead or Alive 5: Last Round is a good fighting game that remains similar to the last release, building on the already strong foundations created by the game two and a half years ago.
Overall, Dead or Alive 5: Last Round is the definitive version of a last gen game. Visually, it still looks great; however, it's still based on a last gen game. A new DoA running on current gen consoles with higher resolution textures can't come too soon, but for now, Dead or Alive 5: Last Round is satisfactory.
Dead or Alive 5: Last Round is a hard game to review, because honestly it's a good game. However, it's only a good game because of everything that Dead or Alive 5, Dead or Alive 5: Plus, and Dead or Alive 5: Ultimate did. If you want to upgrade to a next-generation version of this fun fighter, go ahead. If you really really want two new characters, go for it. But if you are looking for something truly new and different, you are unfortunately looking in the wrong place. I would like to say that Dead or Alive 5: Last Round is the definitive version of the game, and if it were the last version of the game to come out it would be, but there's nothing to say that Koei Tecmo won't release Dead or Alive 5: Super Mega Ultra Deluxe Edition a year from now, no matter how many times we hear this is the last one.
Without online multiplayer, all the stages and possessing visuals that are inferior to the console versions, Dead or Alive 5 Last Round manages that rare and horrible thing of making PC players feel like second-class citizens to their console brethren and in doing so, succeeds in heavily tarnishing what is actually a pretty incredible fighting game in the process.
Even though feminist may cringe at the Dead or Alive franchise, the overtly sexualised content is also what made this franchise so popular and giving up on this would just turn the game into another bland fighter. Given that, most of the female characters are quite powerful characters, although some have one too many clichés.
There's a lot of content with dozens of fighters, and plenty of costumes to unlock, making it the definitive version to pick up.
Granted you purchase the correct version of course, Dead or Alive 5: Last Round is a great addition to anyone's collection. That being said, if you've missed out on previous installments or just want a solid fighter on a next gen system, Last Round provides some good ol' fashioned fun.
A great fighting game that is unfortunately let down by a few bugs.
There is so much to be pleased about in Dead or Alive 5 Last Round for hardcore fans, those that had stopped playing and are returning to the series again now, and complete newcomers that have yet to dive into the franchise. This is one of the most competitive Dead or Alive games thus far, striking a respectable balance across its large roster of characters, with fast gameplay and plenty of underlying mechanics.
Dead or Alive 5: Last Round is a good re-release of the original experience on the PS4. It manages to keep the trademark low barrier of entry and complexity, but it still offers plenty of depth for fighting game fans. Even if it advertises its DLC a lot, and the titillating physics aren't to everyone's taste, you can have a lot of fun with the new title.