List of Dead or Alive characters

The following is a list of characters from the Dead or Alive video game series, created by Tecmo and Team Ninja.

List

Character	DOA	DOA2	DOA3	DOAU	DOA4	DOAD	DOA5	Total
Akira Yuki	No	No	No	No	No	No	Guest	1
Alpha-152	No	No	No	No	Boss2	Boss	Boss	3
Ayane	Yes1	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	7
Bass Armstrong	Yes1	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	7
Bayman	Yes	Yes1	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	7
Brad Wong	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	4
Christie	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	4
Ein	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes1	6
Eliot	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	3
Gen Fu	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	7
Hayate	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	4
Helena Douglas	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	6
Hitomi	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	5
Honoka	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes1	1
Jacky Bryant	No	No	No	No	No	No	Guest1	1
Jann Lee	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	7
Kasumi	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	7
Kasumi Alpha	No	Boss2	No	Boss2	No	Boss	No	3
Kokoro	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	3
Leifang	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	7
Leon	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes1	6
Lisa Hamilton	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	3
Marie Rose	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes1	1
Mila	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	1
Omega	No	No	Boss2	No	No	Boss	No	2
Tengu	No	Boss	No	Boss	Yes	Boss	No	4
Ryu Hayabusa	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	7
Raidou	Boss	No	No	Boss	No	Boss	Boss1	4
Rig	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	1
Shiden	No	No	No	No	No	Boss	No	1
SPARTAN-458	No	No	No	No	Guest	No	No	1
Phase-4	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes1	1
Nyotengu	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes1	1
Rachel	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes1	1
Sarah Bryant	No	No	No	No	No	No	Guest	1
Momiji	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes1	1
Pai Chan	No	No	No	No	No	No	Guest	1
Tina Armstrong	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	7
Zack	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	7
Total	11	15	18	17	23	26	34

^1 Updated versions only ^2 Unplayable boss

Introduced in Dead or Alive

Ayane

Bass Armstrong

Voiced by: Daisuke Gōri (DOA–DOA4), Kenta Miyake (Dimensions–present) (Japanese), Terrence McGovern (DOA2 HC), Joe J. Thomas (Dimensions), Patrick Seitz (DOA5), Kevin Nash (live-action) (English)

Bass Armstrong (バース・アームストロング, Bāsu Āmusutorongu) is 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 a rock star (DOA4). Consequently, he enters the DOA tournaments to put an end to her fame-seeking, only to fail at each attempt. 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's picture on a billboard 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. Two years after the fourth tournament, Bass is a worker at an oil rig and has befriended Rig. He decides to reenter the ring after the next tournament is announced, mainly after hearing that Tina will participate. After defeating Tina in the quarterfinals, he places third after losing to Jann Lee in the semifinals. It is unknown if he knows about Rig's true motives.

Bayman

Voiced by: Hisao Egawa (DOA), Banjō Ginga (DOA2-present) (Japanese), Zach Hanks (Dimensions), Matthew Mercer (DOA5), 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 aerial 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. 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".

In the fifth tournament, it is revealed that Bayman has survived the incident. He is no longer an assassin, but a soldier. After his men are massacred at the hands of a Kasumi clone, he goes to Helena for answers, and he later decides to look into this on his own. He helps Hayate and Ayane find their target, and departs. Where he went afterwards is unknown.

Gen Fu

Voiced by: Takeshi Aono (DOA–DOA4), Chikao Ōtsuka (Dimensions-5) (Japanese), Roger L. Jackson (DOA2 HC), Paul Nakauchi (Dimensions), Kirk Thornton (DOA5), Fang Liu (live-action) (English)

Gen Fu (ゲン・フー, 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. He is only seen at the end of Eliot's chapter in DOA5's story mode, and he is ready to teach Eliot a more advanced kung-fu.

Jann Lee

Voiced by: Toshio Furukawa (DOA–DOA4), Nobutoshi Canna (Dimensions-present) (Japanese), Brian Vouglas (DOA2 HC), Darren Criss (Dimensions), Kaiji Tang (DOA5) (English)

Jann Lee (ジャン・リー, 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 Leifang, 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. Although he loses to Leifang in the fourth tournament, he manages to defeat her in the next one. He later claims the title of winner of the fifth DOA tournament after defeating Hitomi. Although, he wins, he is still dissatisfied, and he sets his sights on his new rival Rig.

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 Jun-Fan (李振藩)). GamesRadar featured him on their article "Kickass Bruce Lee Clones," citing his similarities with Bruce Lee and with one of his shouts featured in famous quotes.^[1]

Kasumi

Leifang

Ryu Hayabusa

Tina Armstrong

Zack

Voiced by: Bin Shimada (Japanese), Dennis Rodman (DOAX), Khary Payton (DOAX2-Dimensions), Keith Silverstein (DOA5), 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. 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.

Before the fifth tournament, he joins Helena as her assistant in the newly reformed DOATEC. He made the official international announcement for the next tournament and had a new arena built for it. He personally invited Hitomi, Tina, and Jann Lee to participate in the tournament.

Zack's appearance is based on former NBA star Dennis Rodman, who provided his voice in Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball.

In the film DOA: Dead or Alive, Zack is portrayed by actor, Brian J. White. In the film, Zack retains his natural personality. He also seems to have some interest in Tina, as in the games. When Kasumi defeats Leon by kicking him out of a window, he falls into Zack's tub, which Zack remarks "Oh shit" or "Oh shoot" (censored) and sprints out of the tub naked. In his last appearance of the film, Zack fights Tina and is defeated by her.

Introduced in Dead or Alive 2

Hayate/Ein

Voiced by: Hikaru Midorikawa (Japanese), Yuri Lowenthal (Dimensions–present), 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 if she could beat him in a fight. In the fifth tournament, he and Ayane are asked by Zack to follow Kasumi and assist Helena in her attempt to investigate the newly formed MIST. He encounters a Kasumi clone and he is later on forced to kill her. After being freed by Lisa from Rig's trap, he helps Kasumi, Hayabusa and Ayane defeat the remaining clones.

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.

Helena Douglas

Leon

Voiced by: Koji Totani (DOA2–DOA4), Jōji Nakata (Dimensions-present) (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 his worth, Leon 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 later installments.

Introduced in Dead or Alive 3

Brad Wong

Voiced by: Yukimasa Kishino (DOA3–DOA4), Unshō Ishizuka (Dimensions-present) (Japanese), Grant George (Dimensions–present), Song Lin (live-action) (English)

Brad Wong (ブラッド・ウォン, Buraddo Uon) is a drunken wanderer who specailizes in the Zui 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. After his search for the legendary wine apparently ends after DOA4, he accompanies Eliot, much to Eliot's annoyance.

Christie

Hitomi

Introduced in Dead or Alive 4

Eliot

Voiced by: Junko Minagawa (Japanese), Rolland Lopez (Dimensions), David Vincent (DOA5) (English)

Eliot (エリオット, Eriotto) is a 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. He decides to enter the fifth tournament, and Brad follows him. He places fourth after losing to Hitomi, and he is now ready to learn Xinyi Liuhe Quan, as taught by Gen Fu. His principle outfits are usually traditional kung fu uniforms, though he also wears modern Western fashions. 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.

Kokoro

Voiced by: Ayako Kawasumi (Japanese), Kathryn Feller (DOAX2–Dimensions), Heather Hogan-Watson (DOA5) (English)

Kokoro (こころ) is a 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. After she and her mother move to Tokyo for her mother's business, Kokoro sees Helena's announcement for the next tournament. She lost to Eliot in the quarterfinals.

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. Kokoro is set to appear in Dead or Alive 5, in which she first appeared in a trailer fighting against Akira Yuki.

Lisa Hamilton

Voiced by: Maaya Sakamoto (Japanese), Masasa Moyo (DOAX2–Dimensions), Wendee Lee (DOA5) (English)

Lisa Hamilton (リサ・ハミルトン, Risa Hamiruton) is a young African-American 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 Dead or Alive 5, it is revealed that she is an operative for Donovan's new organization, M.I.S.T. In the game's true ending, after she frees Hayate and the Mugen Tenshin ninja and Hayabusa destroy the lab, she is trapped under some debris and her scream can be heard in the following explosion. Whether or not she survived is unknown.

Introduced in Dead or Alive 5

Mila

Voiced by: Ryoko Shiraishi

Mila (ミラ, Mira) is an up-and-coming MMA champion who has scored spectacular victories all over the world. She spends her days training at the gym in between shifts at her part-time job, honing her skills as a lightning fast, orthodox striker with a strong follow-up ground game. She also feels intense admiration for a certain fighter, and she has entered the fifth Dead or Alive Tournament to follow her dream of taking on her idol in the ring.^[2] Some days after an exhibition match with Tina, she loses in the quarterfinals to Hitomi.

Rachel

Rig

Voiced by: Hiroki Tōchi (Japanese), Liam O'Brien (English)

Rig (リグ, Rigu) is a natural born fighter, he has used his powerful instincts to master of the art of taekwondo. He has run the oil rig from a young age, and his colleagues simply call him "Rig". But even he doesn't know his real name or where he comes from. He learned taekwondo on the oil rig, which led him to create his own style, with plenty of moves he came up with himself.^[3] Through playing story mode in Dead or Alive 5, it soon becomes apparent that Rig knows more about his identity than he lets on. He is the son of Donovan. He knew about the Mugen Tenshin Ninja prior to meeting them, and disappears after losing to Kasumi in a fight in the lab. In the game's extra cutscene, he reveals to Donovan that Phase 4 is according to plan.

Marie Rose

Voiced by: Mai Aizawa (Japanese), Christine Marie Cabanos (English)

Marie Rose (マリー・ローズ, Marī Rōzu) is a young maid who uses systema. A mystery behind her cheerful look remained unknown. She debuted in the Arcade Edition of Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate and is a DLC character in the retail version of the game.^[4] Her opening card when entering the fight as well as her interactions with Helena imply that she acts as her servant or maid.

Momiji

Phase 4

Nyotengu

Voiced by: Akemi Satō (Japanese), Brina Palencia (English)

A female Tengu from the mountains of Japan. Nyotengu practices Tengu-do, a unique fighting style passed down for ages.^[5] She is a DLC character in the retail version of Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate.^[6]

Honoka

Voiced by: Ai Nonaka (Japanese), Kira Buckland (English)

An 18-year old Japanese fighter capable of instantly learning any fighting move that she sees. She made her debut on the game Dead or Alive 5 Last Round.Also Raidou's daughter.^[7]

Boss characters

Alpha-152/Kasumi Alpha

Genra/Omega

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.

In Dead or Alive: Dimensions, Genra is featured as a boss character and as an unlockable character. In the game's Chronicle Mode, it is revealed that he willingly gave himself over to DOATEC to become stronger, revealing his cruel, twisted and power-hungry personality. It is also revealed that he allowed Bankotsubo, the Tengu, to pass through the human world. He was finally defeated and killed by Ayane (with aid from Hayabusa and Hayate, as revealed in Dimensions), who later cremates him, taking his tokkosho. His appearances in the games are portrayed with his face obscured, usually with a wooden mask.

Raidou

Voiced by: Koji Yada (DOA,DOAU), Tetsu Inada (Dimensions - onwards) (Japanese), Michael McConnohie (Dimensions), Neil Kaplan (DOA5LR) (English)

Raidou (雷道, Raidō) is Ayane's biological father, Kasumi and Hayate's uncle, and Shiden's older brother. A power-hungry shinobi, Raidou seeks to master all of the Mugen Tenshin clan's techniques. He raped Ayame (Hayate and Kasumi's mother) who became pregnant with Ayane. As a result Raidou was banished from his village. He later returned to gain the clan's signature technique, the Torn Sky Blast, and confronts Hayate after easily defeating Ayane. Hayate uses the Torn Sky Blast to attack Raidou, but Raidou counters with his own version of the technique (despite only seeing it once) and defeats Hayate after a brief struggle, knocking him into a coma. Raidou 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. He is later returned in Dead or Alive 5 Last Round as a cyborg, becoming MIST's secret agent after Donovan retrieved his corpse and removed some of his memories.

In 2012, Cheat Code Central ranked him as the fifth worst "video game dad", calling him "a blight on virtual humanity" and adding that "we can all agree the DOA universe is better off without this power-hungry monster."^[8]

Shiden

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 boss and playable character in Dead or Alive: Dimensions.

Tengu

Voiced by: Osamu Saka (Japanese), Joel Swetow (Dimensions) (English)

Gohyakumine Bankotsubo (五百峯万骨坊, Gohyakumine 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. It is later revealed in Dimensions that Genra allowed him to escape to the human world.

Guest characters

Akira Yuki

Jacky Bryant

Pai Chan

Rio

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 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".

Sarah Bryant

SPARTAN-458

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.^[9] Team Ninja originally asked Bungie for permission to use the Master Chief, which proved impossible due to storyline restrictions.^[9] 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.^[9] 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;^[10] 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.^[11] 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.^[12] 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.^[13] 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.^[14] She is described as having great speed despite her large size.^[15] 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.^[16] 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.^[17] 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.^[18] 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.^[18] 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.

Other characters

Alicia Armstrong

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.

Ayame

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.

Chen

Voiced by: Bin Shimada

Chen (チェン) is Brad Wong's old drunken master and great teacher of Zui Quan. He sent Brad Wong to search for a drink named Genra. He can be seen in Brad's story mode in DOA3.

Fame Douglas

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.

Irene Lew

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. She also uses this alias as the codename for the operation of taking down DOATEC in Dead or Alive: Dimensions.

Lauren

Voiced by: Yuka Koyama (Japanese), Uncredited (English)

Lauren (ローレン, Rōren) is Leon's lost lover. Prior to the DOA tournaments, Lauren was a young thief, who met Leon in the Silk Road and fell in love with him. The two were in a loving relationship until Lauren's sudden, tragic death in the desert, shown in a flashback scene in DOA2. As Lauren died in Leon's arms, her final words were: "The man I love is the strongest man in the world." These words motivated Leon to enter the second and third DOA tournaments, by the end of which 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. Until DOAU, her name was mistranslated as Rolande.

Mei Lin

Voiced by: Yui Horie

Mei Lin (メイ・リン, 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.

Miyako

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 Dead or Alive 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. In Dead or Alive 5 it is revealed that she is the head of DOATEC Japan and is an operative for Donovan's new organization M.I.S.T., though Kokoro is unaware of this.

Muramasa

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 Leifang in the Sea Side Market. He also appears in DOA5 in which he is taking care of and/or watching over Kasumi throughout most of the game's story

Niki

Voiced by: Yuka Koyama (Japanese), Kari Wahlgren (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 girls 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.

Victor Donovan

Voiced by: Moriya Endo (Japanese), Grant George (Dimensions), Kirk Thornton (DOA5), Eric Roberts (live-action) (English)

Victor Donovan (ビクター・ドノバン, Bikutā Donoban) is the main antagonist of the Dead or Alive series. He 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 the 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 third Dead or Alive 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.

In Dead or Alive 5, which takes place two years after the fourth tournament, he sets up a new organization called MIST after DOATEC (now headed by Helena) disbanded its Military Division and Development Department, with Christie, Lisa, Miyako, and his son Rig as his operatives. At the post-end credits, he and his son have a chat, confirming that the fourth stage of Project Alpha can begin as planned.

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.

See also

• Characters of Halo (source universe for SPARTAN-458 Nicole)

References

Dead or Alive Main series Dead or Alive Ultimate 2 Ultimate 3 4 Dimensions 5 Plus Ultimate Last Round Xtreme series Xtreme Beach Volleyball Xtreme 2 Paradise Cancelled games Code Chronos Online Characters Kasumi Ayane Christie Helena Douglas Hitomi Leifang Momiji Tina Armstrong Rachel Ryu Hayabusa Related DOA: Dead or Alive (film) Halo series Ninja Gaiden series Rio: Rainbow Gate! Virtua Fighter series