I like portable fighters a lot, currently playing a bunch of UMvC3 on Vita and have MK Vita pre ordered. This is $20 new at a bunch of stores near me and I was wondering if this is a good introduction to DOA? If so which characters are good for beginners?

*ahem*

Dead or Alive Dimensions is a pretty good introduction to the series. in fact, i'd probably say it's the best place to start. it tells the story of all four Dead or Alive games with more detail than before which, you know, makes the events kinda make sense. the story mode also serves as a lengthy tutorial that helps you perform things like grabs and counters all the way to explaining advanced combos and the triangle system.

it's a lot of fun, and DOA works pretty well on a handheld considering it's not a six-button game like Street Fighter. there's a nice amount of content. 10 Playcoins can be used to unlock costumes and figurines (there are 1000 figurines to collect) and there's a decent amount of survival and game modes. i've put a bunch of hours into it and they continue to support it every week with AI challenges based off ghosts of the Team Ninja staff. there's also online play and all that jazz.

the game looks great, the gameplay is fast and simple (although can be complex if you want it to be) and there are a ton of characters. who you should start off with is dependant on your playstyle. Kasumi is a beginner favorite because she has fast strikes, powerful moves and she's kinda button-mash friendly.

soo.. YES BUY IT RIGHT NOW

edit: shameless review plug

lol

Yes, it was mine. The storyline cane be hard to follow sometimes. But it teaches you every move very well. As well as concepts such as jugling.

Any of them are a good start since none of them so far have really gone much past the Rock, Paper, Scissors system.

Yeah, I'd say so. The story mode is a bit convoluted, but it does a good job of summarizing the plots of the first four games and leaves a cliffhanger in place for what I assume will play into DOA5. It also features every character in the series other than the female Spartan that was in DOA4 (for obvious reasons). The online mode is sparse in its design (and the last time I checked, it's population), but if you want a jumping in point for DOA, Dimensions is a good place to start.

@AjayRaz: Just wanted to say your review really helped me decide to purchase the game. The Best Buy near me didn't have any copies but I ordered it online and it should be here by Friday. For $20 this will be a good introduction to the series and a good fighter for the bus.

@msavo: i'm glad i helped. i would change a couple of things around in that review considering i've spent a bunch of time with it, but it's still a pretty great portable fighter. i hope you enjoy it!

Plenty of DoA games out there, I'm sure you can find some of them but if unfamiliar with playing much in the franchise I'd definitely rent/demo some first to see if it's something to dive into deeper.