Before we go anywhere I should make one thing abundantly clear. Dead or Alive: Ultimate is not just a simple retread of DoA 3 with Live bolted on. What you get here is the supreme incarnation of the Dead or Alive series, with the bone-crunching of the Saturn game DoA 2, (an Xbox-upped version of which is included on a separate disk) wedded to the sumptuous visuals and ballettic animation of DoA 3.The fighting system is more akin to DoA 2 then the defence-heavy third game. Yet the most magnificent quality of DoA2:U is in the total integration with the Live service. If you don't have Live you'll still have a beautiful and exciting beat-em up to contend with, but you'll only be getting three quarters of the value from your purchase.

Saying that, for Liveless gamers there's plenty to get your fists into. Naturally there is a story mode which flows along nicely thanks to a wisely minimalist plot. You can set up Team Battles where you pick out a roster and go out and try and re-arrange some dental work. The Time Attack mode tests your ability to kick, punch and throw your way to victory in the which loosely forms the basis of the Story mode. If you find yourself having difficulty getting to grips with the pumped-up range of character-specific moves and the smattering of specials, there's a fully configurable Sparring mode. Then there's what I found to be the most compelling mode, Survival. This pits you against a constant stream of foes with a new one jumping down from the edge of the ring each time you win a bout. There's a special ring for Survival - a colourful lift descending an endless shaft - which has explosive points circling its edge. Smack an opponent into one of these hard enough and you enter Damage Reach which allows you to really dish out the pain and rack up the points. Crush your foe into the side again and you it's Double Damage Reach time. As well as these point scoring opportunities, each character has three objects to collect from their vanquished foes. Dropped in a random nature they give big point bonuses and health boosts. Along with these character-specific objects there are four common rewards, along with a rare prize, a prototype Xbox. If you manage to collect all of these different objects, and collect the medal that drops from the 50th defeated enemy an extra page in the Collection window opens up. Now you have to fight away with each of the characters until their new rare object gets dropped. Collect all of these and you will unlock all of the costumes for the various characters, plus some other goodies. The only problem with this is you must have a save from DoA 3 to unlock one of the three bonus characters, and without his objects you can't complete the collection. Quite cynically clever on Temco's part, I was glad a friend had a copy so I could try and battle my way to the very end.

Once you get over the impulse to mash the buttons and flick the stick like a porn star's tongue you can then appreciate the instinctual qualities of the controls. And you do have to be in control to make your really perform. To excel you have to have a good set of reflexes and sense of timing. But you must also become familiar with the range and timing of the various fighters and their repertoire of moves. There's plenty of fun to be had just bashing away against some mates or the AI, but as you learn the finer points of the game the strengths of the fighting engine become progressively more apparent. There aren't really any cheap moves you can spoil fights with and the skill needed to pull off the counters and specials is more focused than in DoA 3. The thrill of pulling off a string of impressive moves, or the one beauty at the right time, is made all the more intense for this. The environments also deserve a special mention. You can do combat in an inner-city basketball court, an African plain complete with rhinos and lions, a rich temple with a deep central shaft to tumble down and a host of other varied locations. Many of the levels have multiple layers and cause damage to players kicked or thrown over the layer boundaries. Finishing off some poor sod with a swift kick to the head after they've bounced down a flight of steps or crashed through a neon wall sign is so satisfying it hurts.