Arguably, Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore is the best-looking fighting game on the market right now. Tecmo has created some of the most detailed and expressive character models ever featured in a 3D fighter, and the animation is as smooth as butter. The first time that you start up the game, the “wow” factor of Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore is right on up there with the best of them, and the complex interactive 3D environments that encompass the surroundings are as impressive as they are large. And by interactive, that doesn’t just mean that you can toss characters into the walls, it means that walls will explode and reveal new rooms, and characters will fall through windows or off of ledges and fall onto new fighting arenas. This adds an entire new dimension of depth to the gameplay, since getting caught near a wall means more than being cornered, it might toss you down another level and cost you a fourth of your life bar. There are also arenas where the walls are “danger zones”, where being tossed into it can cause an explosion that nips away at health. The arenas are great to look at, as well; trees are blowing in the wind, gears alternate positions and waterfalls splash against the ground.

The Dreamcast version of Dead or Alive 2 had enough choices to keep players busy, and Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore on the PlayStation 2 only adds to the pile. Compared to the effort in the rest of the game, the Story mode is somewhat awkward, simply because there really isn’t any story to speak of, and what plot points there are don’t make any sense. Some characters have endings that take place after defeating the end boss, while others skip right over to the credits. Out of all of the game’s characters, there are probably around two that actually have a semi-coherent story surrounding them. Otherwise, Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore offers a Time Attack (defeat computer opponents as quickly as possible), Versus (person versus person), Tag Battle (four character simultaneous battles), Survival (battle as many opponents as possible before dying), Team Battle (teams of several characters played in tournament-style format), Sparring (practice character’s moves), Watch (view two computer controlled opponents fight), UPS (create a unique ID that records battle scores and other records) and Battle Record (fight a match, direct the camera angles and then save the replay). Phew! Basically, there’s an enormous amount of options available in Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore, and gamers who complained the Dreamcast version lacked single player options won’t have room to complain here.

Some have said that Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore is a button masher fighting game, pure and simple. Those are the types of people who have only tried the game for a few moments, and haven’t had the chance to discover the depth that’s sitting beneath the surface. Button mashers will have fun with the game, since the fighting moves do lend themselves to be pulled off with random effort, but any person who takes the time to glance at the game’s manual will discover the counters that will allow them to react to any type of move in the game. There are high, middle and low counters, and each one will automatically stop an opponent’s move and turn it against them for more damage than a normal hit. When two skilled players enter into the arena, many times it ends up waiting to see who will strike first and if the person is quick enough to pull off a counter in time.

If you happen to have a multiplayer adaptor at your disposal, one of the most enjoyable parts of Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore are the four player tag battle elements, since as nuts as the two player matches might be, when you factor in another two people, things just start to get out of hand. Physical punches start flying through the air when someone does a high counter instead of a mid counter, and button mashers raise their heads high as skilled players are unable to combat their offensive and it becomes insanely fun.

There are enough me-too fighting games flooding the market as it is, and while Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore is merely a cash-in on a popular title on another platform, Tecmo has gone the extra mile by including tons of extras in addition to the already spectacular gameplay and graphics that was already there.