The following is a list of characters from the Dead or Alive video game series, created by Tecmo and Team Ninja.
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Ayane (あやね) is a kunoichi who is also a member of the Mugen Tenshin ninja clan, specializing in the Hajin Mon (覇神門) style. She is the half-sister and cousin to Hayate and Kasumi, and is a ninja destined to live in the shadow of her older sister, bearing a deep-seated hatred against her as a result. Kasumi and Hayate's mother Ayame was raped by their blood uncle Raidou, thus making Ayane even more than a biological half-sister to Kasumi and Hayate. Although she would never admit it, Ayane admires Hayate, her half-brother as well as her half-sister, Kasumi. An expert in ninjutsu, her deadly Hajin Mon fighting style has given her the nickname "Female Tengu". She joins in the Dead or Alive World Combat Championship as an assassin in pursuit of her traitor sister, Kasumi, who left the Mugen Tenshin clan behind. In the third DOA tournament, she fights Omega, who is revealed to be her foster father Genra, and kills him. Genra's defeat also marks Ayane the new leader of the Hajin Mon ninja. In the fourth DOA tournament, she joins Hayate and Ryu in the destruction of DOATEC by destroying the Tritower. Her hatred towards Kasumi seems to have lifted after the tournament, as she prevents Kasumi from entering the burning DOATEC Tritower before it explodes, saving her life in the process.
Ayane also appears in the Ninja Gaiden series, serving as a support character for Ryu and later as a playable character in Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2.
Voiced by: Daisuke Gōri (DOA–DOA4), Kenta Miyake (Dimensions) (Japanese), Terrence McGovern (DOA2 HC), Joe J. Thomas (Dimensions), Kevin Nash (live-action) (English)
Bass Armstrong (バース・アームストロング Bāsu Āmusutorongu) ia a retired professional wrestler and Tina's overprotective father. He is also the widower of Alicia Armstrong, who died of a disease when Tina was only six years old. He disapproves of Tina's aspirations of wanting to be a model (DOA2), a Hollywood actress (DOA3) and (most recently) a rock star (DOA4), and enters the DOA tournaments to put an end to her fame-seeking, only to fail at each attempt. However in the fourth tournament, it is revealed that he intends to win so he would have enough money to enter the "Hyper Battle Grand Prix", which he then loses after seeing Tina in what appears to be an adult film in one of the screens and crashes into it after losing control of his bike. Like Tina in the English versions of the game, he, too, speaks with a Southern accent.
He has a strong resemblance to nWo era wrestlers Hollywood Hogan and Macho Man Randy Savage. Despite this, in the live-action adaptation he is played by Kevin Nash, another nWo founder member. In the movie, he tries to persuade Tina to return to wrestling. A repeated gag in the movie is Bass walking in and finding Tina in compromising positions with first Christie and just before their fight with Kasumi-at which point he comments "Does Christie know about this?". Bass' character is far more lighthearted in the movie-even applauding Tina when she beats him.
Voiced by: Hisao Egawa (DOA–DOA2), Banjō Ginga (DOA3-present) (Japanese), Zach Hanks (Dimensions), Derek Boyer (live-action) (English)
Bayman (バイマン Baiman) is a former Russian commando who specializes in the Combat Sambo fighting style. He first joins the DOA tournament to assassinate Fame Douglas, and later joins the DOA3 tournament to retaliate against Donovan for the attempt on his life by a sniper. Bayman was born and raised in the Soviet Union. As a young boy, he saw his parents die in an arial bombing. He aspired to join the military and became one of the Soviet Union's highly-trained commandos. But before he saw any action, the Soviet Union collapsed. Realizing the new regime would have no use for him, Bayman slipped through the cracks of the reformation and took up the life of a mercenary, putting his skills to good use in all manner of lethal assignments. He found particular pleasure in assassinations, especially challenging or high-profile assignments.
His dream assignment came to him when he entered into the first Dead or Alive World Tournament under orders from Victor Donovan to assassinate its organizer, the renowned Fame Douglas, chairman of DOATEC. His task completed, Bayman fled, now branded an outlaw. In the second DOA tournament, Bayman caught word of one of the entrants, Leon. Bayman risked capture to enter the tournament again, hoping to find and challenge his old acquaintance. After surviving a failed attack on his life by an unknown sniper, Bayman decides to retaliate against his former client Donovan and shows up at the third tournament. Bayman later enters the fourth tournament seeking revenge on Donovan. During the tournament, he is confronted by Helena who offers to help him in his quest for revenge, in which he rejects the offer. Bayman later also fights Christie, supposedly to settle a score of the enmity that aroused between the two of them, in which is his final battle. At the end of the tournament, Bayman is held in captivity within the DOATEC Tritower and is being interrogated. However, during the chaos that erupts due to Ayane and Hayate's intervention, he frees himself, grabbing a pen and stabbing his hand wound (probably to stop the drug that has taken effect on him) while his interrogators flee, however getting themselves killed in the process with Ayane's spell effects. It is unknown of what happened to him afterwards as the interrogation room door closes and the last thing heard from him is his evil-like sneer. It is suggested that he is still alive because his ending video is titled "The Immortal".
Voiced by: Takeshi Aono (DOA1–DOA4), Chikao Ōtsuka (Dimensions) (Japanese), Roger L. Jackson (DOA2 HC), Paul Nakauchi (Dimensions), Fang Liu (live-action) (English)
Gen Fu (ゲン・フー / 根富 Gen Fū) is an old martial arts master who specializes in the Xinyi Liuhe Quan fighting style. He fights in the DOA tournaments to obtain money to cure his sick granddaughter, Mei Lin. In the second tournament, he wanted to defeat Gohyakumine Bankotsubo because the nose of a Tengu can cure any disease. However, after the events of DOA2, he still needed money for the operation (the nose was only a temporary cure), so he joins again in DOA3. His task fulfilled at the end, he no longer joins the DOA tournaments, though he still remains a playable character in later games. In DOA4, he is revealed to be Eliot's teacher, and is the final boss for the latter's story mode.
Voiced by: Toshio Furukawa (DOA1–DOA4), Nobutoshi Canna (Dimensions) (Japanese), Brian Vouglas (DOA2 HC), Darren Criss (Dimensions) (English)
Jann Lee (ジャン・リー / 振李 Jan Rī) is young martial arts expert who joins the Tournaments to show his superior Jeet Kune Do fighting abilities. He is met at the tournament by Lei Fang, a girl he had saved some six years prior from a gang's attack. In the time since she had become an accomplished martial artist, vowing to prove herself not helpless by defeating Jann Lee in the DOA World Combat Championship. Not satisfied, Jann Lee enters later DOA tournaments to prove his fighting skills and looking to test himself against worthy opponents. His name, as well as his overall appearance and mannerisms, pays homage to legendary martial artist Bruce Lee (the name "Jann Lee" is directly inspired by Bruce Lee's birth name Lee Jann-Fan (李振藩)).
Kasumi (かすみ) is the main protagonist of the Dead or Alive series. According to the game canon, Kasumi, also known as "the Kunoichi of Destiny", is a female ninja belonging to the Mugen Tenshin (霧幻天神, lit. "Infinite Heavenly God") ninja clan, utilizing the Tenjin Mon (天神門) style of ninjutsu. She was to become the 18th master of the Mugen Tenshin ninja clan and a secret warrior for all mankind, but ran away in order to enter the Dead or Alive tournament. There, she wanted to defeat Raidou, who crippled her brother Hayate. However, leaving the secretive ninja clan made her a nukenin (runaway shinobi), and she is obliged to live on the run from former comrades seeking to hunt her down and exact retribution for her traitorous action.
Voiced by: Yumi Tōma (Japanese), Donna Mae Wong (DOA2 HC), Zinnia Su (DOAX2-present), Ying Wang (live-action) (English)
Lei Fang (レイファン / 雷芳 Reifan, often spelled as Leifang) is a 19 year-old college student from China and a master of the T'ai chi ch'uan fighting style. Six years prior to the series, she was saved from a group of thugs by a martial artist, Jann Lee. Although she was very grateful for being saved, she felt that she could have handled the situation herself. After that incident, she mastered the art of T'ai chi ch'uan, being known as a genius to many, and sought to prove her strength to Jann Lee. As a result, she has entered every tournament to prove to him that she can handle herself and to prove herself to him that she, too, is a strong individual. Lei Fang had lost to Jann Lee in almost every tournament, although she finally managed to defeat him in the fourth tournament.
As a girl who grew up in a wealthy family, Lei Fang is a woman of justice and bears a very independent spirit, but is also a spunky, intelligent and cheerful. Practicing martial arts has given her a strong dedication to self-improvement, both mentally and physically. Lei Fang hopes that by honing her own skills, she can eventually help others to do the same. However, along with a strong motivation for self-improvement, Lei Fang is also somewhat arrogant. She has become angry at Jann Lee for helping in a time of need, rather than thanking him for his assistance: her young age and general inexperience with the world around her can sometimes cause her to not fully think things through. This is particularly evident in DOA4 where she fights with her friend Hitomi over a simple cabbage or when kicking an old man out of the train after he accidentally grabbed her breasts.
Ryu Hayabusa (リュウ・ハヤブサ) is a character from the Ninja Gaiden video game series, also created by Tecmo. Also known as the "Super Ninja", he is the lone surviving ninja of the Hayabusa clan, a lineage that traces its roots back to ancient times, and tales of his extraordinary exploits and incredible ability are well-known. Now, having heard reports of his dear friend Hayate's rise to arms, Hayabusa lends his sword to the destruction of DOATEC.
Voiced by: Mami Koyama (DOA), Yūko Nagashima (DOA2–onwards) (Japanese), Sally Dana (DOA2 HC), Kate Higgins (DOAX2–present), Jaime Pressly (live-action) (English)
Tina Armstrong (ティナ・アームストロング Tina Āmusutorongu) is a wrestling star from the United States who dreams of even greater fame. She first joins the Dead or Alive tournament, hoping that she can use it as a vehicle for becoming discovered as a supermodel, but her father Bass forbids it. To ensure that she does not achieve her goal, he also joins Dead or Alive to put an end to her fame-seeking. After competing in the first tournament, Tina is apparently defeated by her father, and enters the second tournament to achieve her dream of becoming a model. During the transition between the two tournaments, Tina changes her hair color from brown to blonde. In her subsequent entries into the Dead or Alive tournament, she changes interests, from wanting to be a model to wanting to become an actress and finally a rock star. These actions had further disappointed her already-disgraced father, who only wanted one goal for her. Tina enters New Zack Island in Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 to escape the clutches of her overprotective father, whom she needed to stay away from to prevent any more conflicts between her and her father. In the English versions of the games, she speaks with a thick Southern accent.
In DOA: Dead or Alive, Tina (portrayed by Jaime Pressly) is trying to escape her wrestling background and prove to be a real fighter. She is constantly bothered by Zack who has a crush on her. She is also bothered by Bass who wants her to return to wrestling. In the Tournament, she beats both Bass and Zack to advance to the semifinals, and is one of the four women to beat Donovan near the end.
Due to her sex appeal, Tina won G4's Video Game Vixens of the year award for 2005.[1]
Voiced by: Bin Shimada (Japanese), Dennis Rodman (DOAX), Khary Payton (DOAX2-present), Brian J. White (live-action) (English)
Zack (ザック Zakku) is an African-American DJ who specializes in the Muay Thai boxing style. After hearing about the tournament, Zack enters to increase his popularity and make a name for himself, and apparently succeeds in that endeavor to an extent. He also earns a high enough ranking in the tournament to gain a prize of significant monetary value. Zack enters the next tournament to please his fans and gain more money, in which he once again succeeds and then returns to his life of leisure. After exhausting all his financial reserves, Zack enters the third tournament to earn more money so that he can enjoy a Las Vegas vacation. However, it is revealed he did not actually win the tournament, but Ayane, who defeated Omega (Genra). Due to Ayane's departure after the tournament, Zack claims the title by default. Shortly after his "triumphant victory", Zack goes to Las Vegas and using his earnings, bets it all in various casinos. He wins enough money to buy Zack Island, an extravagant private beach resort. He then invites all the women of DOA under the false pretense of another tournament, who take the bait and arrive on the island where Zack "convinces" them to stay for a brief two-week vacation. He is accompanied by his girlfriend Niki. Unfortunately, the infamous Zack Island has sunk to the bottom of the ocean, and all that remains is a mountain of debt one hundred times the size of the original investment.
In the fourth tournament, Zack's sights are already set on his next conquest: the DOATEC Tritower, three enormous pillars stretching up to the sky. Unfortunately, the tower catches on fire (as a result of the Mugen Tenshin attack) as Zack is climbing it. He manages to escape the flames, saving Helena's life in the process. He is then made the winner of the fourth tournament due to his bravery (Helena was the original winner). After finding the treasure of an undead Egyptian pharaoh in DOA4, Zack and Niki use their newfound wealth to form an unexplained contract with extraterrestrials who use a tractor beam to raise Zack Island (now called "New Zack Island") from the ocean floor, allowing Zack and Niki to once again restore it into an island paradise for the ladies of Dead or Alive to come play in. After proposing to Niki, Zack is apparently killed in a fiery explosion after a series of flaming meteorites once again destroys the island. However, it is later revealed that he was saved by the ambiguous alien abduction ray in classic Deus Ex Machina fashion.
Zack's appearance is based on former NBA star Dennis Rodman, who provided his voice in Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball.
Voiced by: Hikaru Midorikawa (Japanese), Yuri Lowenthal (Dimensions), Collin Chou (live-action) (English)
Hayate (ハヤテ) is the eldest child and only son of Shiden and Ayame, the leaders of the Mugen Tenshin ninja clan, and was born to be the next leader of the clan. When Genra requested to Shiden for Ayane-the village's "cursed child"-to help him in his duties, Hayate treated the girl with kindness, which most of the clan did not give her. The two formed a strong bond, although Hayate did not know that Ayane was actually his half-sister, conceived when his uncle, the rogue ninja Raidou, raped Ayame when Hayate was only seven years old. Years later, Raidou attacked the Mugen Tenshin Village in an attempt to steal the clan's ninja technique, the Torn Sky Blast. Ayane attacked Raidou to defend Hayate and out of revenge for her birth, but was defeated. Hayate ran to her side, but when Raidou called him a "weakling" for hiding behind a woman, Hayate attacked him in rage. He used the Torn Sky Blast to fight Raidou, but was overcome by the ninja's superior fighting skill and the Torn Sky Blast was stolen from him. As both of their attacks collided, the resulting explosion threw Hayate into a tree, cracking his spine and sending him into a coma.
During the first Dead or Alive Tournament, Hayate was captured by DOATEC and was made to undergo various experiments as part of "Project Epsilon". After Project Epsilon was deemed a failure, Hayate was abandoned and was later found in the Black Forest of Germany by Hitomi, whose family took him in. Suffering from amnesia, he was named Ein (アイン Ain, German for "One") and studied karate under Hitomi's father, later mastering it. He then joined the second Dead or Alive tournament to seek out his forgotten past, encountering many who knew him, including Ayane, Kasumi, Ryu Hayabusa, and Helena Douglas. He was eventually bested by Hayabusa in the tournament. Soon after, he regained his memory as Hayate and returned home to his village. In Dead or Alive 3, Hayate was assigned as the new leader of the Mugen Tenshin ninja clan, succeeding his father. He joined the third tournament to help Ayane and Ryu defeat DOATEC's new superhuman creation Omega, who was once Ayane's foster father and ninja master Genra. Although he felt it was his duty to defeat Omega as leader of the clan, Hayate was bested by Ayane, who then proceeded to the final round and killed her foster father, citing that it was a personal affair. He later returns in Dead or Alive 4 with Hayabusa and Ayane to defeat DOATEC and its latest creation, Alpha-152. He crosses paths with La Mariposa, who reveals that she manipuated them into attacking the Tritower. He appears as the final boss in Hitomi's story mode (as Ein), where he offers to help the latter rebuild her father's dojo is she could beat him in a fight.
In the live-action film DOA: Dead or Alive, he is captured by DOATEC after winning that year's DOA competition rather than being captured by DOATEC in his home village. Also, he is meant to test Donovan's newest invention rather than being tested on Project Epsilon. He is also the reason for Kasumi's entrance in the tournament, much like the first game. Donovan states that Hayate is stronger than Kasumi and that he has a "perfect blend of skill, timing and strength". Hayate and Ayane are also shown as lovers rather than half-siblings. Instead of ninjutsu in the games, the fighting style he used was Eagle Claw.
Voiced by: Yuka Koyama (Japanese), Zoe Galvez (DOA2 HC), Karen Strassman (DOAX2–DOAP), Julianne Buescher (Dimensions), Sarah Carter (live-action) (English)
Helena Douglas (エレナ・ダグラス Erena Dagurasu) is the illegitimate daughter of Fame Douglas and his mistress Maria (マリア), a world-class soprano opera singer. Seemingly distant from her father and his work, when he was murdered, Helena was hardly affected. Helena followed in her mother's footsteps, becoming a famous opera singer in her own right. While performing at the Great Opera House, she was targeted by an unknown assassin (Christie) using a sniper rifle. Maria, who was present with her, spotted the rifle at the last second and dove in front of her daughter, killing her instantly. The assassin fled, leaving Helena alone and covered in her mother's blood. Helena set out for vengeance, utilizing the Pi Qua Quan fighting style.
While searching for the culprit, she discovered that the murders of her parents and attempt on her own life are somehow related to the Dead or Alive World Combat Championship, and entered the tournament to discover the truth. Although never explained in the series, Helena appears to have learned or known information pertaining to DOATEC, most notably the ill-fated Epsilon Project when she encountered Hayate suffering from amnesia. During the tournament, she also encounters Ayane; in the encounter she accuses Ayane of being her mother's murderer. Ayane neither confirms nor denies having killed Helena's mother, after which a fight breaks out between the two. Helena is later captured by Donovan and imprisoned. Although Helena, the reluctant heiress, states that she is not in any sort of connection with DOATEC, Donovan tells her that the only way to obtain her freedom and know the truth behind DOATEC is to win the third tournament. In the meantime, Donovan assigns Christie to keep an eye on Helena and, should the need arise, kill her if she discovers too much. Helena soon confronts Christie, who admits that she is an assassin sent to kill her.
In Dead or Alive 4, Helena takes control as the new chairman of DOATEC. She invites the assassin Bayman to the DOATEC Tritower in order to hire him to take out Donovan, but he declines. That night the Tritower comes under attack by the Mugen Tenshin ninja clan. Helena comes across Lisa, who admits she tricked the ninja into attacking to stop Donovan. She later crosses paths with Kokoro, and reveals they are blood-related, as Miyako (Kokoro's mother) was one of Fame's mistresses. Helena finally finds out that Christie killed her mother and confronts her. The end result to their fight is left unknown, except that they both survive. In her CG ending, Helena decides to go down together with DOATEC and subsequently sets the Tritower complex on self-destruct. Plagued by flashbacks of her deceased mother, she moves up to the helipad between the three towers that make up the complex. On her way, Helena finds Anna, a mistress of Fame Douglas who helped plan the assassination of Helena's mother, and consequently shoots her in the head. Meanwhile, Ayane, Hayate, and Hayabusa are using ninpo powers to destroy the towers and the DOATEC security forces while Kasumi battles her clone, Alpha-152. Helena, willingly giving up her life, was about to be consumed by the flames of the burning buildings when Zack suddenly saves her, flying in with a helicopter.
Voiced by: Koji Totani (DOA2–DOA4), Jōji Nakata (Dimensions) (Japanese), Richard Epcar (Dimensions), Silvio Simac (live-action) (English)
Leon (レオン Reon) is an Italian mercenary who, like Bayman, specializes in the Combat Sambo style of close-quarters combat. While he was on the Silk Road, he met Lauren, a young thief, and fell in love with her. The two were in a loving relationship until Lauren's sudden, tragic death in the desert. As Lauren died in Leon's arms, her final words were: "The man I love is the strongest man in the world." To prove her worth, he enters the second DOA tournament, where he fights Zack, who he seemed to have recognized from the past (though Zack does not seem to remember or actually know him), and Gen Fu. He loses in the second tournament, but returns in the third tournament where he encounters Jann Lee. After the events of the third tournament, he returns to the desert oasis where he had buried Lauren, and sees the mirage of his lover who gives him a desert flower before disappearing, indicating that he has fulfilled her expectations. He no longer participates in the DOA tournaments, though he remains a playable character in DOA4.
Voiced by: Yukimasa Kishino (DOA3–DOA4), Unshō Ishizuka (Dimensions) (Japanese), Grant George (Dimensions), Song Lin (live-action) (English)
Brad Wong (ブラッド・ウォン / 布拉德皇 Buraddo Won) is a drunken wanderer who specailizes in the Zui Ba Xian Quan fighting style. He embarks on a journey in search of a riddle from his old master Chen, who told him to "bring the legendary drink called Genra." After three years of wandering on his journey, he finds himself in the DOA fighting tournament.
Voiced by: Kotono Mitsuishi (Japanese), April Stewart (DOAX2–present), Holly Valance (live-action) (English)
Christie (クリスティ Kurisuti) is a British assassin hired by Donovan to keep an eye on, and eventually kill, Helena Douglas. Christie's mission is to stop Helena from competing in the tournament and later to prevent her from discovering more about Donovan's plans and his anti-Douglas faction. She is disguised as a servant to Helena, though her specific occupation is not given. When Helena confronts Christie, Christie reveals to her that she is actually an assassin sent by Donovan. She specializes in the She Quan fighting style. In Dead or Alive 4, Christie seeks to prevent the Mugen Tenshin clan (Kasumi, Hayate and Ayane) and their ally Ryu Hayabusa from destroying DOATEC. It is also revealed that she was the assassin who killed Helena's mother (earlier it had been implied that Ayane was the killer). She also fights Bayman (although not in her Story Mode), supposedly on seeking an evening of the score as being assassins. She later appears on Zack island in Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 to carry out a special assignment for her client.
In DOA: Dead or Alive, Christie is portrayed as being a more approachable and social person then her game counterpart, as well as possessing platinum blond hair and the family name "Allen". In the film, Christie is known as a master thief (and an assassin, according to her "profile" image), with a character called Max as her partner-in-crime and on-off boyfriend.
Voiced by: Yui Horie (Japanese), Hynden Walch (DOAX2), Eden Riegel (Paradise, Dimensions), Hung Lin (live-action) (English)
Hitomi (ヒトミ) is a German girl who enters the DOA3 Tournament in order to test her karate skills against other martial artists and prove to her father, a karate master, that she is capable of her skills. She is the one who found Hayate following the events of the first game. During the tournament she crosses paths with Jann Lee, who also shares a keen passion for martial arts. In the later stages, she finally meets with Ein, although now he is Hayate. She tries to convince him to come back to her father's dojo in Germany, as well as prove to him her martial arts skill.
In Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball, Hitomi was invited to Zack Island for the Dead or Alive 4 tournament. However, that was only a ruse concocted by Zack to lure the girls of DOA to a two week tropical vacation. Hitomi later returns in the sequel to the island to participate in the Dead or Alive 5 tournament after receiving a false invitation from Zack. Hitomi is the only one to fall for Zack's ruse a second time, as the rest of the girls had their own motives for coming. In Dead or Alive 4, Hitomi's father was struck with a sudden illness. Although he has recovered, the dojo's business is now in financial trouble. To save the dojo, Hitomi joined the DOA4 tournament to win the cash prize. During the tournament, she faced and defeats Lei Fang after a dispute over a cabbage, and again faced Jann Lee after he "rescues" her from a T-Rex (she found it "cruel" of him to attack the dinosaur despite its attempt to eat her).
Voiced by: Junko Minagawa (Japanese), Rolland Lopez (Dimensions) (English)
Eliot (エリオット Eriotto) is a 16 year-old high school boy from England and the sole apprentice to Gen Fu. He joins the fourth DOA tournament, very determined to prove to himself that he is worthy of being the successor. He is also revealed to be uncertain of why Gen Fu would choose him as his successor, seen while talking to Brad Wong. He later faces Gen Fu at the end of his story mode, and defeats him, proving his worth. Despite being English, most of his outfits are traditional Chinese outfits. His fighting style is Xing Yi Quan.
Eliot makes a brief appearance in the DOA live-action film, losing in the first round to Hayabusa.
Voiced by: Ayako Kawasumi (Japanese), Kathryn Feller (English)
Kokoro (こころ) is a 17 year-old Japanese girl that uses the Bājíquán fighting style. Her mother, Miyako, was one of Fame Douglas' many mistresses (another being Helena's mother, Maria), and after Kokoro's birth, Miyako and her child moved to the country. Kokoro began training to be a geisha, but her heart was actually in both training to be a geisha and martial arts. She asked her mother if she could participate in the fourth Dead or Alive tournament, and she hesitantly accepted, but also says a statement indicating she could possibly meet someone of significance ("..blood is thicker than water"). After several rounds of the tournament, Kokoro meets Helena, who, unbeknownst to Kokoro, is her half-sister. However, Helena seems to recognize Kokoro and mentions Miyako before their fight. Kokoro's CG ending shows her returning home to pursue her geisha training once again, doing things like fan dancing and playing the shamisen and taiko drum.
Itagaki comments that Bājíquán was first used in Virtua Fighter series, which he calls the "origin of 3D fighting games." Virtua Fighter's main character, Akira Yuki, uses this fighting style, but Itagaki hopes to reproduce the martial art even more realistically in DOA4.
Voiced by: Maaya Sakamoto (Japanese), Masasa Moyo (English)
Lisa Hamilton (リサ・ハミルトン Risa Hamiruton) is a young woman who first appears in Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball, being hired by Zack as Zack Island's holiday representative. Prior to her appearance, she was once the lead scientist at DOATEC, being involved in the Epsilon Project. However, for an unknown reason, she released Hayate. She then left DOATEC for a job as a stockbroker, though she still remains affiliated to DOATEC as its lead scientist for Project Alpha.
Lisa is shown to be a very sociable character, getting along with everyone, including Ayane and Christie. She also seems to be a bit of a workaholic, evident by her multiple jobs, and the fact that she is almost always seen doing some form of work. Her multiple careers and job-changing is a trait she shares with Tina, her best friend from her high school days.
In Dead or Alive 4, she appears as a masked luchadora named La Mariposa (ラ・マリポーサ Ra Maripōsa, Spanish for "butterfly"), entering the tournament to match her wrestling skills against Tina's. She also confronts Hayate, revealing to him that she had manipulated him into destroying DOATEC. Also, in a cutscene involving her talking to Helena, she has shown to have some form of resentment with the company, specifically with Donovan's motives. She finally teams up with Tina to defeat a rival wrestling team at the end of her story mode, revealing her true identity in the process.
In 2006, Lisa was named IGN's "video game babe of the day".[2]
Voiced by: Osamu Saka (Japanese), Andrew Kishino (Dimensions) (English)
Genra (幻羅) was Ayane's foster father and the leader of Mugen Tenshin's Hajin Mon ninja. He was the one who sent Ayane after Kasumi after the latter left the clan in order to avenge Hayate. In Dead or Alive 3, he was used as a test subject by DOATEC for Project Omega, transforming him into the superhuman Omega (オメガ). As Omega, he appears as a hulking figure fully clad in dark samurai armor, and wields a tokkosho sword. Unlike most matches in the Dead or Alive series, his battles are fought at an obscure camera angle. He was finally defeated and killed by Ayane, who later cremates him, taking his tokkosho. He appears in Dimensions as an unlockable character. His appearances in the games and movie adaptation are portrayed with his face obscured, usually with a wooden mask.
Voiced by: Osamu Saka (Japanese), Joel Swetow (Dimensions) (English)
Bankotsubo (万骨坊 Bankotsubō) is a Tengu, a mythological creature from Japanese folklore. First appearing in DOA2, he escaped to the human world from the Tengu world after murdering his leader, Kuramasan Maouson. He wants chaos to reign over the world, but is stopped by Hayabusa. He later appears as an unlockable character in Dead or Alive Ultimate, Dead or Alive 4, and Dead or Alive: Dimensions.
Voiced by: Koji Yada (DOA,DOAU), Tetsu Inada (Dimensions) (Japanese), Michael McConnohie (Dimensions) (English)
Raidou (雷道 Raidō) is Ayane's biological father, Kasumi and Hayate's uncle, and Shiden's older brother. A power-hungry shinobi, he seeks to master all of the Mugen Tenshin clans' techniques. He raped Ayame, Hayate and Kasumi's mother, who became pregnant with Ayane, and was later banished from his village as a result. He later returns to the village to gain the clan's signature technique, the Torn Sky Blast, and confronts Hayate after briefly defeating Ayane. Hayate uses the Torn Sky Blast to beat him, but Raidou counters with his own version of the technique after only seeing it once and defeats Hayate after a brief struggle, slipping him into a coma. He was killed by Kasumi in the first DOA tournament, thus deeming her its winner. He is playable in all console versions of the original Dead or Alive once unlocked. He also appears in Dead or Alive: Dimensions as an unlockable character.
Alicia Armstrong (アリシア・アームストロング Arishia Āmusutrongu) was Bass Armstrong's wife and Tina's mother. She died of a disease when Tina was six, forcing Bass to take care of her by himself. In one of Bass' cutscenes in DOA4, when Tina is thanking people to her interviewers, she thanks Alicia.
Voiced by: Jōji Nakata (Japanese), Richard Epcar (English)
Fame Douglas (フェイム・ダグラス Feimu Dagurasu) was the chairman of DOATEC and Helena's biological father. He was assassinated by Bayman (who was hired by Donovan) after arguing with Donovan in DOA1, where it is thought that he was opposed to the human experimentation proposed by Donovan, which led to his assassination. His illegitimate daughter, Helena, stands to inherit his position as chairman of DOATEC, but in DOA3 Donovan makes attempts to stop this from happening by kidnapping her and forcing her to compete in the tournament for her freedom. She escapes her imprisonment and goes on to inherit Douglas' position as chairman of DOATEC in DOA4. He makes his first physical appearance in Dead or Alive Dimensions.
Voiced by: Yui Horie
Mei Lin (メイ・リン / 梅林 Mei Rin) is Gen Fu's granddaughter. In the first DOA game, she suffered a terrible disease, resulting in Gen Fu entering three DOA tournaments for her operation. In the fourth DOA tournament, she is fully recovered, hence Gen Fu no longer enters the tournament. She can be seen at the end of Eliot's ending.
Voiced by: Hōko Kuwashima (Japanese), Kari Wahlgren (English)
Ayame (菖蒲) is the mother of Kasumi and Hayate and the wife of Shiden. She was raped by Raidou in the past, thus giving birth to Ayane.
Voiced by: Bin Shimada
Chen (チェン / 陈) is Brad Wong's old drunken master and great teacher of Zui Ba Xian Quan. He sent Brad Wong to search for a drink named Genra. He can be seen in Brad's story mode in DOA3.
Voiced by: Mariko Suzuki (Japanese), Amanda Troop (English)
Irene Lew (アイリーン・ルゥ Airīn Ru) is Ryu Hayabusa's ally and love interest from the Ninja Gaiden series for the NES, though only mentioned in the first Dead or Alive game in Ryu's backstory. Irene makes her first physical appearance in Dead or Alive: Dimensions, acting as a support character for Ryu and the Mugen Tenshin ninjas during their mission to take down DOATEC. Irene previously appeared in Ninja Gaiden II as the character Sonia, which is revealed to be her alias.
Voiced by: Tomoko Fujino
Miyako (美夜子) is Kokoro's overprotective mother and a geisha residing in Kyoto. In her earlier years, Miyako fell in love with Fame Douglas, and the two of them had an affair which resulted in Kokoro's birth. Being the center of the seeding workings at DOATEC, Miyako feared for her daughter's safety. To protect her, Miyako returned to Japan and raised Kokoro as a single parent, never telling her daughter about her father or her heritage to DOATEC, and started to oversee Kokoro's training to become a geisha. However, when Kokoro became more interested in martial arts than her geisha training and decided to enter the fourth DOA tournament, Miyako reluctantly allows her to go while warning her that she will not be satisfied in finding out the truth. Her affair with Fame was revealed by Helena.
Voiced by: Takeshi Aono
Muramasa (村正) is a character from the Ninja Gaiden series. He made several appearances in DOA4 as the merchant who deals with Bass, Hitomi and Lei Fang in the Sea Side Market.
Voiced by: Lyssa Browne
Nicole (ニコール Nikōru) is the result of collaboration between Tecmo's Team Ninja and Microsoft's Bungie Studios.[3] Team Ninja originally asked Bungie for permission to use the Master Chief, which proved impossible due to storyline restrictions.[3] But the staff at Bungie were intrigued with the idea and wanted to try something similar. As a result, Bungie developed the concept of a Spartan not entirely connected to the Halo storyline who could conveniently and somewhat plausibly be fit into the Dead or Alive universe. This concept evolved into the character of Nicole. Nearly all of the resources for her design came straight from Halo 2 game data. The data was modified to work in the Dead or Alive game engine as a female combatant, but kept to the traditional Spartan design; a feminine figure would have been implausible for such a heavily armored, cybernetically enhanced individual.[3] According to Nicole's fictional backstory, she is born in the Martian city of Legaspi in 2531. This, however, seems unlikely as the SPARTAN-II program used children of the age of 6 and born in 2511. Members of the UNSC Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) kidnap her at the age of six and enroll her in the SPARTAN-II Project, an initiative designed to develop the "Spartan" series of supersoldiers;[4] this is the same program that the Master Chief, and other Spartans from the Halo series undergo. Bungie explained Nicole's presence in the Dead or Alive setting of the 21st century in an article that revealed the character's background. The studio stated that the character, who has never appeared in any other Halo fiction, is sent to the 21st century when a partially stable "bubble" in the space-time continuum opens near Nassau Station, where she and her unit are preparing for a secret mission.[5] This "bubble" is created when Apocalypso, an ONI stealth vehicle, interacts with real-space, as a result of an unusual slipspace incident. This incident traps Nicole in the 21st century. While waiting for the bubble to collapse, which she hopes will enable her to return to the future, she battles any member of the DOA cast to arrive at the station, protecting its classified information.[6] To keep the space-time continuum stable, she avoids lethal force in executing her current task.
Nicole's fighting style is very quick and powerful, a variation of standard military close quarters combat. Her move list contains moves of other characters in the game; her fighting style is a hybrid of Leon and Bayman's movesets to create a blend of striking combos and throws.[7] Her style meant to incapacitate an armed opponent in a matter of seconds and take advantage of her enhanced strength, as well as to exploit any environmental advantages.[8] She is described as having great speed despite her large size.[9] Many of her moves allude to the Halo universe, with names such as "The Great Journey" and "The Grunt Punt"; the former is a powerful move that sends an opponent down stairs or off a ledge.[10] Also in Nicole's repertoire are several technologies from Halo, including active camouflage, represented by her taunt and rendering her nearly invisible, and the plasma grenade, represented by a command throw.[11] Previews of Dead or Alive 4 showed a Spartan among the game's characters; this attracted attention and curiosity regarding whether such a character would appear fully functional in the final version of the game.[12] The character's moves, all of which were homages to the Halo series, and the inclusion of a Halo-based level were positively described in pre-release reviews.[12] Bungie returned the favor, and in the release of Halo 3 there is an armor type called Hayabusa, for which its design is based on Ryu Hayabusa's appearance.
Voiced by: Yuka Koyama (Japanese), Kari Wahlgren (DOAX2-present) (English)
Niki (ニキ) is Zack's newest girlfriend. They met in a casino after the Dead or Alive 3 tournament, when Zack won a large sum of money that allowed him to buy an island which he named after himself. He invited most of the females he remembered from the last tournament to his island under the false pretense of holding another tournament. The women arrived and after finding out it was a hoax, they decided to nonetheless spend their vacation there, but Zack and Niki were eventually left alone on the island. However, a previously inactive volcano erupted, and Niki decided to escape using Zack's jet pack. Zack survived, but his island was completely destroyed. During Dead or Alive 4, they are seen robbing an ancient tomb and escaping in a truck filled with gold.
Niki is Zack's lucky charm (Lady Luck) and he takes her everywhere with him, going as far as naming a beach on his island's eastern shore after her. Niki joined the cast of Dead or Alive Xtreme 2, but not in a player controlled role and appearing only in cut scenes with Zack as before.
Voiced by: Marina Inoue (Japanese), Ali Hillis (English)
Rio (リオ), full name Rio Rollins Tachibana (リオ・ロリンズ・タチバナ Rio Rorinzu Tachibana), is a character from Tecmo's Rio series of pachinko games, which also received a 2011 anime series, Rio: Rainbow Gate, as well as the Rakushou! Pachi-Slot Sengen series of video games. She appears as a cameo in Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 and as a playable character in Dead or Alive Paradise. She is a casino dealer who works at the famed Howard Resort and her ability to grant good fortune to everyone around her has given her the nickname of "The Goddess of Victory".
Voiced by: Yukitoshi Hori (Japanese), Lloyd Sherr (Dimensions) (English)
Shiden (紫電) is Kasumi and Hayate's father, Ayame's husband and Raidou's younger brother, the biological uncle of Ayane, and the former leader of the Mugen Tenshin ninja clan. When he was a member of the Mugen Tenshin ninja clan, he was a stronger ninja than Raidou. In Dead or Alive 3, his position of leadership was ceded to Hayate. He made his first physical appearance in Dead or Alive Ultimate, and as a playable character in Dead or Alive: Dimensions.
Voiced by: Moriya Endo (Japanese), Grant George (Dimensions), Eric Roberts (live-action) (English)
Victor Donovan (ビクター・ドノバン Bikutā Donoban) is the leader of DOATEC's anti-Douglas faction and is head of the Development Department, a state-of-the-art military fortress where Projects Alpha and Omega were developed. In the first Dead or Alive game, Donovan employed the Russian assassin Bayman to kill DOATEC's chairman, Fame Douglas. This attempt is thought to have been successful, as Douglas died shortly after the event. The nature of Donovan's rebellion is thought to be controversy over experiments to be carried out to create an ultimate DOA fighter.
In Dead or Alive 3 Donovan captures Helena, Fame Douglas' daughter, since she stands to inherit her father's position as chairman of DOATEC. He challenges Helena to win the DOA3 tournament in order to gain her freedom and learn the truth behind the company, and also employs the assassin Christie to keep an eye on her. Meanwhile, Bayman seeks revenge after Donovan plotted his assassination to tie up any loose ends. Donovan is thought to be behind experiments such as Project Epsilon, to which Hayate was subjected; Project Alpha, the cloning of Kasumi; and Project Omega, the augmentation of Ayane's foster father Genra into the ultimate DOA fighter Omega. In Helena's ending of Dead or Alive 4, Ryu is shown destroying a ship with a man who may or may not be Donovan. The same figure also appeared to have been assassinated by Christie in a gentlemen's club. In what may appear to be the canon telling of Donovan's fate, Dead or Alive: Dimensions shows the shadowy antagonist placing on his face the same mask that corrupted Genra. An aura of demonic energy then surrounds Donovan as he walks back into the shadows, laughing maniacally.
Donovan was portrayed by Eric Roberts in the 2006 movie adaption. He was killed in the explosion of DOA Island after being paralyzed by an acupuncture dart thrown by Kasumi.
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