If I Were Making Dead Or Alive 7...

It appears as if Dead Or Alive 6 is dead.  The only players left are the hardcore crowd and true fans, like myself.  While I'm still hoping for a DOA 6 Ultimate or Last Round (which I will buy if it comes out), it's time to move on for the trainwreck that is DOA 6.  That means it's time to dust off my Hypernerd Workbench and put together a Dead Or Alive 7 wishlist.  So, if I were making DOA 7, I would...

1.  Make Better Costumes

Dead Or Alive 5 had lots of outfits for all your needs.  You had outfits that could make your character look cool, sexy, functional, or whatever.  DOA 6's costumes collection was a collective meh, especially the DLC ones.  Also, Zack has had bad outfits throughout the series.  Give that man some outfits that don't look...suspect.

I don't want this costume to return ever again.

Of course I'm not saying take away the sexy stuff, because that's one of the things that makes DOA what it is.  I love me some swimsuits (I don't think they should just be limited to Xtreme) and school uniforms.  I'm just saying to be a little more original and/or cool, especially when it comes to what the guys are wearing.

Swimsuits should not just be for the Xtreme series.

The creepy fetish outfits don't really have to go, but probably should have a limit.

More costumes like this, Team Ninja.

2.  Make Better Customization Options

DOA 6 had shitty customization.  There are several solutions to this, most of which have been mentioned ad nauseum.  One way I think customization could be improved is make it so that players can add take away parts of outfits.  I'm not talking about anything predictable, like trotting a character out in their underwear.  No, more like making small changes that can make the same outfit look drastically different.  For example, take Rig's default outfit, a hooded vest and work pants.  It looks cool and all, but I can't help but feel the ability to raise or lower the hood before the fight would make it that much better.  How about the ability to open or close jackets, as well as the ability to removing them from costumes that have them?  Simple things like that can reinvent the wheel without breaking it.  And I'll never say no to a color-selection palette.  All that is before we get to any actual accessories.

One thing I would NOT do is the one-size-fits-all garbage that games like Tekken and Soul Calibur do.  The pieces often look too big and awkward in those games.  This is also why I wouldn't do away with character-specific outfits and accessories.  They just look better.  DOA is a series that's always looked good.  Let's keep it that way.

As good as this outfit is, I've always wanted to lower the hood.

Kokoro's exercise outfit looks fine...

...but I'd like the option to add a jacket like this and unzip it as well.

I would love to change the length and color of socks like this.

3.  Make Better Character Choices

DOA 6 had a nice starting cast, but the characters they added via DLC left a little something to be desired.  I'm never going to be against Mai Shiranui in a DOA game no matter how many times they bring her back, and Tamaki is nice, but Kula Diamond...they could have done better.  Even from the King of Fighters roster, there were so many better choices than Kula.  I thought they should have mixed it up and added another guy, like Kyo or Terry.  If they were dead set on adding another girl, KOF has better option there as well, with King, Shermie, Leona, and the list goes on and on.  That's just characters from King of Fighters.  The could have added Virtua Fighter characters who didn't appear in DOA 5, such as Eileen and Lion.  Street Fighter characters like Cammy and Sakura would make my day.  And I'm praying they make a play for one or two Tekken characters, perhaps Asuka, Lili, and/or any of the Mishimas.  And I would have a nerdgasm if Ryofu from Ikkitousen made the cut.  Simply put, guest characters should make your players say, "Holy crap! Look who they added!"  Not, "Ehh…they could have chosen a better character."

NiCO and Diego were solid additions that I liked more than I thought I would.

Kula has grown on me over the years, but she has no business being in DOA.

4.  Stop Bullshit DLC Practices

Those season passes are total bullshit.  There is NO reason for a season pass to cost more than a brand new game that isn't heavily discounted.  For a game that's already less popular than the competition, that is suicide (hence the game is dead).  $90 season passes will only piss off the fans (speaking as a fan) and chase away anyone who might have been willing to give the game a try.  These passes should be $50 tops and even that's pushing it.

Does this make sense to you?

On the other hand, DOA 5 had $2000 of DLC.  Season passes can help reduce the costs if you want it all, but I prefer the pick-and-choose method when it comes to DLC, to avoid paying for shitty content.

5.  Have A Better Sense Of Direction

Even before the game came out it seemed DOA 6 was doing its best to kill itself.   First, they said they were going to avoid the skimpy outfits for the sake of being taken more seriously at tournaments.  This, of course, didn't sit well with the fans who weren't super hardcore because that's one of the things that sets the series apart.  Then they decided to throw in some skimpy outfits anyway, which pissed off outsiders (who weren't going to buy the game anyway).  The end result is that everyone got confused, it still wasn't taken seriously, and recorded low play numbers even at its peak.  Now, a mere one and a half years later, the game is dead.  Go all the way or don't go at all.  Trust your player base.  And above all, don't listen to bums who never have or will buy your game no matter what you do.

I would also get rid of that god-awful costume parts unlocking system.  Either bring back the old way of unlocking a costume each time you beat a game mode or have all the parts earned go towards whatever character the player is using.  The randomizing of parts would only be acceptable in the instance that you unlock all of a character's outfits and continue using that character.  The way it is now is BS.  You shouldn't have to grind for 26 years to get the outfits you want.  It wouldn't even take that long if you weren't earning points towards outfits and characters you don't want 95% of the time.

As for that hair debacle...let's not even start on the stupidity of that.  Who thought that was a good idea?  That person should be without a job if he or she still has one.

And that how I would START creating Dead Or Alive 7.  As mentioned before, I am a huge fan of DOA, so it sucks to see the game in this shape.  It is my second favorite fighting game series behind Street Fighter.  I want to see it live again, because the games have a lot going for them once you get past all the BS.  If DOA wants to live again, it needs to embrace everything it is and IMPROVE it, not run it into the ground.

So, what would you do if you were making DOA 7?  Add more males?  Remove sexy outfits entirely?  Make the DLC better or worse?  Add one or more new game modes?  Something else?  Comment and have your voice heard.