Resistance is Futile: DOA U drags me back into the fold (k3nshi)

As predicted earlier this year, it was almost inevitable that I would succumb and buy a game. And sure enough, the temptation to play a 3D beat-em-up online was what pushed me over the edge.

DOA Ultimate is pretty much the same game as DOA3, but of course it has an online component. An online component that has a terrible lobby system and can suffer from heinous lag when someone from another continent decides to join your game. Sometimes you are presented with a blank screen and all you can do is either wait or reset the Xbox. Hardly the kind of LIVE standard gamers have come to expect. On the other hand, when it does work you get to play a beat-em-up online and trash talk to your buddies. I spent a good few hours playing online with Meh this weekend. I kicked his sorry ass in a thoroughly comprehensive manner, of course.

The single player game has a few annoyances. The Tengu end of game boss is still appalling and annoying, although there are some nice gfx effects on his level. The real annoyance is that to unlock one of the characters in the game (Hitomi) you need to have a save game from another Tecmo game on your hard disk. I could forgive this if the unlockable in question was merely a costume or small mini-game - but a whole character? Someone is taking the piss.

Beyond these annoyances, the biggest one is the fact the combat system is so simple. This is of course a strength - some people cant handle the amazing (and accessible) complexity of VF4Evo, but once you've played on that level its hard to go back. I keep asking myself during play: "Why cant I reverse this throw that is being executed on me and then launch straight into a devastating counter attack?".

I'm not sure if I'll keep it to be honest. Its certainly fun (I've played it for hours), and the unlocking content thing is strangely compulsive, but ultimately not compulsive enough. Oh and I dont even bother playing the DOA1 disc - it just looks so old and ropey - something for the fans only.