RipTen Review: Dead or Alive Dimensions (3DS)

Dead or Alive: Dimensions is a game of firsts for the series. It is the first DOA title on a Nintendo platform. More notably, it is also the first handheld game in the series. While it would have been easy to sacrifice quality to get Dimensions onto the portable platform, Team Ninja has kept this game true to its predecessors and made an all-around impressive game.

Dimensions is, quite simply, the prettiest game I’ve seen on the DS to date. The levels are huge and each part shows attention to detail. The attention to detail continues with the character models, which show no polygons whatsoever. The resolution is fantastic, with no jagged edges showing, and the whole thing runs at a solid 30fps in 3D mode or 60fps with 3D turned off. To be honest, the graphics feel like they belong on a console more than a handheld, and have more in common with DOA4 on the Xbox 360 than any of the 3DS’ other titles.

Dimensions looks great in 3D, but the effect really isn’t necessary to the game. The reason I mention this is that with the fast pace the fighting maintains, sometimes the extra fps is worth more than the cool 3D effect. Still, both 2D and 3D maintain a solid framerate throughout and are completely playable; the difference in fps is a matter of preference more than anything else.

Dimensions’ controls are completely solid. Dimensions uses the same counters system that the series is known for. Unlike many other fighting games (such as Street Fighter), DOA doesn’t use complex button combinations to pull off moves. Instead, it’s all about the timing. Getting the timing right with different attacks is the key to pulling off successful combos and counters, and it allows for a fluid, free-flow style combat. You’ll either love or hate the system, but for series veterans you’ll feel right at home.

Not many people will be playing Dimensions for the story, which is a good thing. Trying to make sense of the story is nearly impossible. Story mode is known as Chronicle, and it’s a combination of in-game and pre-rendered cutscenes, interspersed by fights. The pre-rendered cutscenes are really cool, and for those who are familiar with the DOA story, they’re fun to watch (though not really breaking any new ground). However, if you don’t know much about the DOA backstory, prepare to be confused. The problem is compounded by the fact that many of the in-game cutscenes consist of the character model frozen, playing sound effects, more like a motion comic than full video. It’s kind of annoying to watch, and gives a general feeling of being unfinished to the cutscenes. Still, it’s a minor gripe.

There’s really no end of modes to Dimensions. In addition to Chronicle, there’s a classic arcade mode where you face off against opponents in a time-trial to beat the clock. There’s also a survival mode where the object is to survive against ever-increasingly difficult enemies. Tag Battle puts you and a CPU player against opponents of varying difficulties. The idea of Tag Battle is fun, but considering that the CPU can tag themselves into the battle at any time, sometimes it can get annoying. The AI tries to hop in whenever your health gets low, but sometimes you just want to finish the fight instead of constantly swapping out players. It would have been a lot better if they’d included a way to manually swap with your AI partner. There’s also a free play mode, which is basically just endless battles against a single CPU opponent. These can be fun for practicing your skills are just having some good battles without worrying about completing a challenge.

Multiplayer is always a big focus in a fighting game, and Dimensions has several modes to offer in this area. Local wireless is great for challenging a friend, but there’s no download play so you’ll both need your own copy. While I can see why this is necessary, it’s annoying to need 2 copies of the game to play with a friend. Online multiplayer is fairly simple; you choose whether you want to play in your region or anywhere in the world, and then choose a character. Then you face off, and once the battle is over, you’re brought back to the matchmaking screen. There’s really no reward for playing online (besides the joy of kicking another player’s ass). Lag is a serious problem in online multiplayer. Even on a high-speed connection playing against someone from my local region, the game slowed to a crawl. Playing online almost feels more like luck than skill, at least in the matches that I’ve played so far. Eventually I got fed up with it and just quit trying altogether. Online lag seems to have been a problem in DOA4 to a lesser degree as well, so this might actually have something to do with the game engine and not the speed of the connection or the platform. Whatever the problem, it’s annoying and is a major flaw in the game.

In the end, Dimensions is a solid entry into the fighting genre on the 3DS. The game honestly feels more like a full-fledged console title rather than a handheld. The graphics are gorgeous, the controls solid, and the fighting intense. While there are some issues with the online play, there’s plenty to keep you going in offline and hopefully Team Ninja will be able to update the game and fix the online issues. In the meantime, Dimensions is one of the best games available for the 3DS at this point, and a must-buy for any fan of the DOA series.

Here’s The Rundown:

+Awesome graphics

+Great overall fighting game experience

-Online Multiplayer is almost unplayable

-Story mode is somewhat confusing