fantasy

Please pick up the Nov. issue of the official XBOX magazine. It has an awesome video for Ninja Gaiden and a wonderful Dead or Alive Extreme Beach Volleyball music video. One word. Delicious. OK, OK, OK. Besides all of the half naked women running around, I do believe this will be a great game. A great game that revolves around half-naked women, but great nonetheless.

Story: What a great story!!!! With his DOA tournament winnings, Zack goes to Vegas and hits it big gambling, and with his newfound wealth, he buys an island. He then sets up the lovely DOA ladies to come to his tropical island getaway by making them believe a DOA4 tournament is being held there. When they show up and realize there is no tournament, "Hahaheehee" they laugh it off and spend a summer on the tropical island playing volleyball in bikinis. Delicious. But that's not all. There's a new character named Lisa who joins in on the fun. Yah!

Gameplay: Tecmo makes great games and this will be another solid title. It will have solid volleyball action, playing out with simple button actions. It will be very user friendly. But don't let that fool you. So was Tennis 2K2. Easy to learn, but the real joy will be in mastering the game. Timing bumps and sets will be vital in becoming a DOA Xtreme beach volleyball champion. The multiplayer will be great too. 4-player volleyball is going to rock. And the one player story/career mode will actually be pretty deep. You can build relationships with other potential volleyball team partners. You can buy a potential partners a gift, and she may wear it during a match or even buy you something in return. Sounds like the sims. But regardless, it will be an important part of the game for strong relationships off the court will lead to better tag play in the matches. Sega had a simialar aproach early this year with Beach Spikers. (Which by the way is a solid volleyball game also) Also, on the relationship aspect, past DOA grudges will come into play, and rivals will not play as well when paired together, so you'd better know your DOA!

Features Features Features: This is where the game gets good. 100 swimsuits and 50 accessories to choose from. Playing games will earn you points to buy new items. Just like Tennis 2K2 on Dcast and PS2. There will be tons of patterns and styles to choose from or even use your artistic skills to create your own! (This feature may or may not be in the final version) See-throughs here we come!!!!! Ok what would an Xbox be without the use of the hard-drive. Not only will the game have a 20+ song soundtrack, but you can use your own custom soundtrack! (Make sure to pick up the "Top Gun" and "Cocktail" soundtracks with your purchase) And you can record volleyball matches to the Xbox's hard drive, then watch them later or show them to your friends! "Remember that time I destroyed you in DOA Xtreme Volleyball? Don't remember? Well, I have it right here!!!" Hahaha.

Not just Volleyball going on: Not only will there be extreme volleyball going on, but extreme partying. You can explore Zack Island's night scene. The island casino features many favorites like blackjack, roulette, slots and poker. An arcade even lets you play a DOA 3 mini-game. Speaking of mini-games...

Mini games: Lifeguard drill, a dance competition, and a beauty contest. My my my. Delicious.

This game is just that: Delicious. I really don't have to tell you there will be half-naked girls running around on the beach, because you probably already know. But aside from that, It will be great game. Pick it up.

This game is, in essence, just a series of mini-games. The beach volleyball that is supposedly the center of the game is just an afterthought. It is a poor simulation, with only one terrible camera angle and simplistic control. You can't judge depth, thereby eliminating all strategy from the game. The real "game" is to earn as much money as possible by winning games, playing in the casino (another mini game) or doing this stupid jumping mini game that never changes. Once the money is acquired, you can buy more swimsuits for the girls, as well as nail polish, hats and what have you. That's it.

The graphics are stunning, and the animations are really, really well done. The sound is pretty good, with a nice soundtrack. The game, however, is not translated, so you have to deal with ridiculously overacted Japanese chatter and English subtitles. The infuriating thing is that you have a free roam camera during replays (to better observe your girls', ahem, shot), but the gameplay is hurt by a single sideways camera angle that only shows one side of the court at a time.

Bottom line, you should check out BeachSpikers on the Gamecube. It's a much, much better volleyball game, and the girls are just as hot, and have just as many customizable swimsuits, if that's what you're after.

Tecmo's little bundle of gravity-defying hit the beaches in their latest title which ships tonight. The game offers deep game mechanics which are surprisingly hosted on a two-button layout. One button controls setting while the other handles spiking, both of which are pressure-sensitive and their effect varies on how hard you press on the button.

Each girl's abilities and your position on court will determine the outcome of your shot, whether it will follow-in deep or come up short forcing the opposing pair to take the game close to the net. This amazingly brings a difficult and deep form of strategic gaming. But these are only half of the sweetened packaged. There's an entire island to explore.

The in-game store offers new swimsuits, CG movies, gifts, accessories and other goodies to further lengthen the game length. Some items are exclusive to the casino where the games are truly based on luck and require you to take a chance every now and then. Items can be distributed as presents to other girls and increase in-court relations, even between rivals such as Ayane and Kasumi. Both for fun and advancement, they're nice additions.

The graphics push the Xbox to its limits. Only contending with few games such as Halo 2 and Panzer Dragoon Orta, the game really shows an original appeal. The girls are highly-detailed, if you drop your view from their "assets", if possible for some of the audience, you will notice muscle lining and the bone structure's appearance on the flesh. The limbs and individual fingers/toes are also well-animated and detailed. Very highly polished, indeed.

Scenery and the motion taken place during matches is sadly often missed since the main focus is both the girls and the action taking place. Foot-prints in the sand, the water rushing to the coast, tropical plants and many other things seen in the environment are so well blended into the entire tropical theme, and they look simply amazing.

As you select your character certain attributes are listed in their profile images. These are crucial to completing the game, listing favorites can help you determine what type of present would suit each girl. Team Ninja did their part on packing the game with an array of mini-games for fun and to test/improve your volleyball skills. Testing pressure applied to the buttons while also keeping up to a certain pace, they are helpful if not fun.

The mature appeal is, as I had always defended, nothing more than half of what offered in the game. A deep game engine, beautiful graphics and tidbits to bring the player back time after time make this a surprising hit. Let's hope the gaming community will look past its semi-perverse nature and discover the enthralling and rewarding game play.