Dead or Alive (series)

Dead or Alive
Logo of the series since Dead or Alive 3
Genres	Fighting
Developers	Team Ninja
Publishers	Koei Tecmo
Creators	Tomonobu Itagaki Katsunori Ehara
Platforms	Arcade, Saturn, PlayStation, Dreamcast, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Xbox 360, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo 3DS, PlayStation 3, iOS, PlayStation Vita, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Microsoft Windows
First release	Dead or Alive November 26, 1996
Latest release	Dead or Alive Xtreme 3 March 24, 2016
Spin-offs	Xtreme series of games, film

Dead or Alive (Japanese: デッドオアアライブ, Hepburn: Deddo oa Araibu^?) is a video game series produced by Tecmo and developed by Team Ninja. It is primarily composed of fast-paced 3D fighting games that begun with the original Dead or Alive in 1996. DOA is the creation of Tomonobu Itagaki, who has since left the company and is no longer working on the series which continues without him. In addition to its countering-based play system, the franchise is arguably most known for its female characters. This aspect of the series' popularity led to the creation of the spin-off game Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball and its sequels, where the females and their sex appeal play a more focal role than it does in the core Dead or Alive series. A live-action film adaptation DOA: Dead or Alive was released in 2006.

The Dead or Alive series focuses on fast-paced gameplay in a three-dimensional playing field. Like other modern fighting games that attempt to emulate real life martial arts, DOA's input system is designed so controls correspond game character's actions; if the character moves forward with a punch, the controls most likely would include the punch input and pressing forward on the directional pad. In comparison to others in the fighting game genre, such as Virtua Fighter, the series places emphasis on striking characters quickly and efficiently. There is an emphasis on quick combos and air-juggles since the game's countering system and fast recovery times prevent slow, technical sets of moves in most instances.