IronEvangelion wrote:My pre-order still hasn't shipped, by the way. I'll be lucky if I get it before the end of the month.

Patience is a virtue, my fellow member.

Don't forget to write us your impressions, after you play the game!

Dima wrote:Don't forget to write us your impressions, after you play the game!

Don't worry, I intend to play through Vacation Mode and Owner Mode a few times and give it a full review. I'll also be providing a menu function translation to the best of my abilities.

IronEvangelion wrote:I'll also be providing a menu function translation to the best of my abilities.

That's great. I wasn't aware that you know Japanese.

Dima wrote:That's great. I wasn't aware that you know Japanese.

Currently I only know a very small amount, not enough to do a word-for-word translation, but I can click on the options and write down what each one does.

Marie is a weird character to say the least.

Says she is 18, but her body says like 14. And her breast on the mouse pad say I got implants. They should've used someone else for it, like Tina.

Marie must have a lot of fun trying to see an R-rated film at a movie theater.
She actually reminds me of the whole "Curse of Eva" thing in Eva 3.33, because if Asuka was portrayed in a more realistic art style she'd look a lot like Marie Rose. Now imagine Asuka trying to convince people she's 28 when she looks like that.

Dead or Alive Xtreme 3 Breaks Sales Record at Play-Asia

http://www.dualshockers.com/2016/03/29/ps4ps-vita-exclusive-dead-or-alive-xtreme-3-breaks-sales-record-at-play-asia/

^ Awesome! That matches what I've been seeing on PA's website, it goes out of stock frequently. Speaking of which, my order finally shipped!

*Edit* MediaCreate sales from 3/21 to 3/27 list DOAX3 as selling 66,692 units in Japan for both versions combined in its first 4 days. Keep in mind that this doesn't include import sales or Asian sales. Interestingly, the PS4 version is the most popular despite the Vita's popularity in Japan (44,273 vs. 21,959 games sold).

http://gematsu.com/2016/03/media-create ... 2116-32716

Posting a link without comment is bad form, as is posting a link that's redundant with one posted just two posts above it.

Well in preparation for the arrival of my copy of DOAX3, I dusted off DOAX2 and did a couple vacation playthroughs recently. This was actually my first time playing it on my HDTV, and... the game has not aged well. There is no anti-aliasing that I'm aware of at 720p resolution, resulting in everything looking very jagged, especially the ladies' hair. The Itagaki-era plastic-y anime style character models have aged terribly, and their expressionless faces make them seem creepy and doll-like. The gameplay, of course, is still pretty good. I was definitely glad I decided to brush up on the volleyball controls before DOAX3 gets here, because I was badly in need of practice. I also brushed up on the minigames that will be carried over, such as butt battle and tug-of-war.

And I was finally able to accomplish a feat that had eluded me ever since I first got the game. No I'm not talking about unlocking the pole dance scene, I finally made it to the other end of that motherfucking demon-possessed water slide! If I could have, I would have framed a screenshot of Helena resting in that pool at the end of the slide and hung it on my wall. Now I can finally move on to DOAX3 without any regrets. I'm honestly glad they didn't put that damned water slide in DOAX3, good riddance. I will miss the slot machines, though, since from what I've heard they aren't in DOAX3 either. I'll have to find new ways of getting rich quick.

One thing I learned from this experience is that DOAX3 is automatically going to be worth its purchase price to me just for the new character models alone.

You still haven't received the game!? Well, at least you have the previous entry to play (though i thought you would have play it sooner, like as a preparation or something).

Monk Ed wrote:Posting a link without comment is bad form, as is posting a link that's redundant with one posted just two posts above it.

Maybe i am on his foe list and he can't see my posts?

Dima wrote:You still haven't received the game!?

Nope, the shipping option I selected takes 5 to 14 days. It should be here Tuesday at the earliest, or maybe it will come early and get here tomorrow. I hope it does come tomorrow, because tomorrow's my day off.

Well I still haven't received my copy. It's been stuck on "dispatched to the US" since the 8th, but it still hasn't arrived in the country. This is really starting to piss me off. Also, you'd think with a name like Airmail the package would bet flown over on a plane, right? Nope, apparently it gets put on a fucking cargo ship! Why the fuck is it even called Airmail?

In 5 days it will have been a month since the game released. If you order this game through Play-Asia, do NOT choose Airmail as your shipping option. That's all I can say.

^That sucks, I hope you eventually get it. Or at the very least a refund for everything you spend.

Sicarius VI wrote:^That sucks, I hope you eventually get it. Or at the very least a refund for everything you spend.

Thank you. Speaking of which...



'BOUT FUCKING TIME!!!


And as a special thanks for those who pre-ordered, Play-Asia includes... a DOAX3 bumper sticker of all things!



I stuck it on my laptop.

Of course the game would have to arrive at the worst possible time, right when I'm in the middle of a World of Tanks grinding session...

Ok I've completed just over 3 vacations now and I feel ready to write my review of DOAX3. First let me say that I have seen a lot of people who bought the game giving it either a 1/10 or a 10/10, as well as Destructoid giving it a 1.5. I can now say with confidence that it definitely isn't any of those.


First let's start with the negatives:

-Bass Island, the Jungle, the Accessory Shop, slot machines, the Radio Station, and Jet Ski Racing are all gone. This severely cuts down on variety in gameplay and gravure scenes, as well as removing 90% of the inexpensive gifts, the best way to make money fast, and doing away with custom sound tracks.
-Zack Dollars are now capped at Z1,500,000.
-Earning money in Owner Mode is very hard, since watching an activity only pays about a tenth of what playing it would get you.
-The game takes place on Zack Island AGAIN! They didn't even bother explaining how it got pulled out of the ocean this time. Would it kill them to give us a new setting after 3 games?
-Tandem gravure scenes are gone. No more rubbing sunscreen on your partner.
-There is an abnormal amount of hair clipping, but still not as bad as it was in earlier builds.
-Alternate hairstyles are no longer free, they must be purchased from the Sports Shop for Z1,000,000 each.
-Wearable accessories have met their demise along with the shop that once sold them.
-The gravure scene viewer is now locked behind the Owner Level system.
-The game just hasn't evolved since its 2006 predecessor. Sure it looks a hell of a lot better, but under the hood it's DOAX2 all over again right down to the user interface and the gameplay.

And now the positives:

+The new character models are a hell of a lot better than the Itagaki plastic anime doll style. This is a massive improvement since much of a DOAX game's appeal lies in its graphics.
+The new soundtrack is vastly superior to the dated, screechy '90s tunes that made up most of the previous games' soundtracks. All I miss is the Bob Marley songs, otherwise the new soundtrack does a superior job of setting the mood.
+There's still a lot more gameplay variety than the original DOAX, where you only had volleyball and pool hopping for outdoor activitites.
+Girls will no longer trash gifts they hate, they'll send them back. This is made even better by the next improvement:
+You can now re-wrap items after purchasing them or if they were sent back to you! Just take them back to the store and get them re-wrapped for a nominal fee.
+The new rock-climbing activity is fun.
+The water slide is gone. Good riddance, that thing was terrible. I would have preferred them to turn it into something less rage-inducing, but removing it entirely is almost as good.
+Owner Mode lets you watch the girls play activities and take pictures of them. The AI handles your girl while you're free to take pictures during the volleyball match or minigame.
+There are now 2 photo sessions with no time limit available at the poolside and in the hotel room.
+They got rid of the awful retro camera from DOAX2 and give you the equivalent of the state-of-the-art camera from the start. No more blurry photos or missing the prefect shot because you were busy fiddling with the camera settings!
+The girls now have full lip sync and facial animations during their arrival scenes, as well as being physically present in the hotel room.
+Unlocking the pole dance is no longer dependent on the casino. Just gift a girl 4 special tickets to unlock her pole dance. Keep in mind the tickets are universally hated by the girls, so it might take a little while.
+You no longer need to buy expensive tickets to unlock the activities, they're available from the start for free.
+High Owner Model levels unlock cool stuff, like the ability to freeze time during photo mode.
+Gifts are now much less critical to making the girls happy, they now actually enjoy playing activities with you instead of requiring daily presents.
+Zack of All Trades is now open from the start of the vacation, which is good since it is now your only source of non-swimsuit gifts.
+Volleyball difficulty no longer skyrockets to batshit insane during the last 4 days. You can now play right up to the end with a reasonable expectation of winning.
+Controls for Beach Flags have been simplified for the better. You no longer need to alternate between 2 buttons to run.
+Each girl now has a special ending cut scene that can be unlocked if you get her to 100% satisfaction. The closest I've gotten so far was 97% with Nyotengu.


Overall I'm giving the game a 6/10. It's a fun, well-made, enjoyable diversion, but nothing you'll put on a nostalgia pedestal and remember as one of the greatest games of all time. I will also say that it does have a lot more appeal than the score I gave it would seem to indicate, I'm having a lot of fun with it despite its shortcomings and don't regret spending $70 on it. But as a game it gets a 6 (Good). If you're a DOAX fan and want a graphically updated DOAX experience, I'd absolutely recommend it. But if you just want a great ecchi game and don't mind violence in your island vacation, I'd say pick up Senran Kagura: Estival Versus, which is superior as a game. There's not nearly as much game in DOAX3 as there is in SKEV. But then again, one doesn't really buy a DOAX game for the gameplay.

The F2P version has a release date: May 19th.

http://gematsu.com/2016/05/dead-alive-x ... y-19-japan

Those who are still on the fence about buying the full game may want to try this version and decide for themselves how much the game is worth. This version includes only Kasumi as a playable character and no casino. Characters can be purchased for 1,200 yen ($11.18 US) each on PS4 and for 1,100 yen ($10.25 US) each on the vita version. Casino membership (required to use the Casino) will be 2,000 yen ($18.63) on both versions. So to get everyone and the casino you'd have to spend $108.07 on the PS4 version or $100.63 on the Vita version. Needless to say, it's far cheaper to buy even the Japanese retail version if you want the full game.

At least this gives us an idea of how much new DLC characters are going to cost. Yeah it's high, so is all the other DLC. Individual DLC swimsuits are roughly $6 each right now (although you can buy most of them with in-game money as well if you want to grind).

Also, total sales numbers for March have come in, thanks to K/T's recent financial report for the fiscal year ending March 2016. In its first week, DOAX3 sold 190,000 copies across all versions and both regions.

http://gematsu.com/2016/04/atelier-soph ... s-revealed

Still not a lot, but it's a hell of a lot better than the previous Japan-only numbers for the same time period. I'm fairly confident the game will hit 250,000 in lifetime sales globally.

IronEvangelion wrote:Individual DLC swimsuits are roughly $6 each right now (although you can buy most of them with in-game money as well if you want to grind).

There's nickel-and-diming, but six-dollaring? That's ridiculous.

Monk Ed wrote:There's nickel-and-diming, but six-dollaring? That's ridiculous.

Agreed, and that's $6 per suit. In other words if you want to gift another of the same swimsuit to a different girl, you have to pay for it again. Originally there wasn't even an option to use in-game money to buy the DLC suits instead, and the Japanese userbase got so pissed off at the pricing that K/T added the option.