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There’s something I find a bit baffling about this series. Of course, a large part of DOA Xtreme’s appeal is obvious: watching gorgeous women frolicking around in skimpy bikinis has been a staple of men’s entertainment since the two-piece was invented. However, this game is amazingly out of step with most of the titles I play from month to month. As games like Gears of War continue to push towards new levels of tension and intensity, Xtreme 2 ambles along at a relaxed pace – it’s quite literally a day at the beach. However, under the fun and sun is a leering, creepy vibe that I find a bit disturbing. Most of the time, it barely feels like a game at all, rather a tropical vacation in a land where wearing a g-string qualifies as being “fully clothed.” You can pursue the various activities available to you at your leisure, whether it’s playing some beach volleyball, riding jet skis, or just watching the pretty ladies sun themselves by the pool. The volleyball, although it has been erased from the game’s title, is still the most accomplished and deep part of this fairly slight gameplay package. There is no career progression per se, although trying to woo new partners with gifts and flattery is a game all unto its own. The basic mechanics and feel remain fluid and satisfying. My only complaint is that when the camera shifts to your opponents’ side of the net, you sometimes can’t see your character in the backcourt, making it hard to get into position. Last time around, there wasn’t a whole lot to do except ogle the talent and play volleyball, a concern that Team Ninja has addressed by adding some new minigames like Tug-o-War, Beach Flags, and (believe it or not) Butt Battle. In addition, there is a mode devoted to jet ski racing that clearly takes its cues from Nintendo’s WaveRace series. The pool-hopping game and the casino from the first game also make appearances. While all these add a bit of variety, none of the gameplay offered enough to keep me interested over the long term, meaning that the core of the experience is still basically volleyball, gift giving, and babes. The babes themselves, unsurprisingly, look gorgeous. Team Ninja creates some of the best graphics in the business, and Xtreme 2 is no exception. Everything is rendered beautifully, and the water effects in the Jet Ski races are a sight to behold. One thing I found a bit odd, however, were the…ahem…breast physics. They’ve been taken to the “next level” – a level at which normal human breasts seem to be sentient beings hell-bent on escaping the confines of their host body. All of this points out my biggest problem with the game, which is that the characters – despite the level of depth that there is in the subtleties of gift giving and partnering up – aren’t really women at all. Aside from the obvious problems with presenting such unrealistic body images, there’s something disappointing about the way these hypersexualized characters are portrayed as childish, vacant, silly, and vain. They either like the gift you gave them or they don’t, and have little to say other than snippy put-downs or chirpy compliments. Now, I’m not against eye candy for eye candy’s sake, but there’s something that feels cold and voyeuristic about Team Ninja’s games that, quite frankly, bothers me. That said, this is a well-made if not extremely ambitious title that will definitely please its fans. I’m just not sure I’m one of them.Read full review
I seriously didn’t think I’d love this game so much having already been a fan of the first DOA Xtreme Beach Volleyball thinking “oh it’ll just be more of the same with slightly better graphics and water racing”. Originally I was disappointed to find that the first game WASN’T backwards compatible with the Xbox 360 (making it an original Xbox exclusive) meaning I could never play it again and so I bought Xtreme 2 merely out of desperation and thinking once more “it just wouldn’t be as good as the first game has those charming early generation DOA character models/ physics”. Not only do I think Xtreme 2 surpasses all my initial expectations and doubts, but I feel as though it outright replaces the first game, improving on every little aspect while still keeping the same amount of charm that hooked me to begin with. If you ever see this game either in store or on eBay and want something to help with your day to day stress, buy this game IMMEDIATELY, trust me you won’t regret it.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
When purchasing this game, I was expecting to pop the disc in the xbox, navigate the main menu to play some volleyball and have some fun, but that's not how it happened at all. When first beginning, the main menu is replaced by a welcome screen which immediately starts a story video when you advance. The video is long and contains a typical DOA idea. When the video is finally finished, you play a practice volleyball game. The gameplay is realistic, but the camera angle is bad: from the side, like in football/soccer/hockey, and doesn't fare well when guessing where the ball will coming at you to. A much better camera angle would be from behind and heightened to get a better idea of where the ball is going. Otherwise, it's quite realistic and fun to play. I've been looking for a volleyball game that's realistic, and this seems to fit. The only other problem is that after you finish this practice game, it's difficult to play again. Instead of a main menu, you are presented with different places to go on the island you're at, to do different things - a store to buy stuff, the ocean to jetski race, etc. You can only do three things a day, and then you must go to bed and wake up again. You have the option to give presents and persuade other girls to play volleyball with you, whom all seem to be rude and noncompliant. I am yet to play another volleyball game, the one reason why I actually bought this video game.Read full review
Graphics: The graphics in this game are completely wonderful. Obviously this is about the women mostly, and the women are about as hot and good looking as they can possibly get on a Xbox 360 videogame console. The water when you are playing is just fantastic looking (the water is the ocean because you are playing on an oceanside beach on a lovely, fantastically beautiful island called "Zach Island"). 10/10 Sound/Music: The sound in this game is pretty good. The girls voices are very sweet and they make you smile inside (in twisted pleasure with a hint of tease). The music is very good. I heard that a lot of the songs in this game were in the previous, but this one has some new songs, and they are just awesome to listen to when you play (especially if you had not played the former in depth). The music makes it seem like you are actually there watching and controlling some girls playing beach volleyball. I actually burned the music onto a CD so I could listen to it in the car and at work. 10/10 Gameplay: Volleyball The gameplay in this is so cool. The volleyball itself is not very hard to get the hang of. When you do, you just can't put the game down. Me and my friends played this all night for countless nights on the weekends when we don't have school, and it is seriously just so fun. One of the bad parts is I wish you could play in rain and have it affect the gameplay, as well as be able to control the score to win. 9/10 Gameplay: Side Games There is also another aspect to this game other than volleyball. There are multiple more games such as jumping games, tug o' war, jetskiing, flag races, casino, and butt bumping. Tug o' war and butt bumping seem easy, but with experience and practice, it takes a lot of skill to win. The casino one is my favorite, because if I say so myself, I'm a gamblin' man. Jet-skiing is also super fun, especially online. The controls are very nifty on these babies, and racing against someone else online with your girl on the jetski, her hair blowing in the wind, nothing beats that. The others are alright, tug o' war being alright as well. 9/10 Overall: Overall, I don't know what more I could ask for. I got MUCH more than I ever anticipated of getting when I bought it. A definite must buy. 57/60=.95=A near perfect 10. This game is well worth a 10 if you are looking for a fun game you can play with by yourself or with othersRead full review
Anyone remember Dead or Alive Xtreme 1?It was a great game featuring volleyball,pool hopping and addictive collecting.O yeah it also has something else,great looking girls in bikinis. Zack some how manages to trick the lovely ladies of DOA into coming to a restored Zack Island yet again.But this time around its pumped with steroids and tons of fun,even if the game is generally basic.All the girls return to the Island including the addition of Kokoro from DOA4. You have a lot to choose from now which was one thing critics complained about a lot in the last game.There is Vacation Mode and the main games there are Jet Skii Racing and Volleyball.The Volleyball is pretty basic but its a challenge this time and more lovely to watch.B and A are gonna be your main buttons so its not all that complex,but like I said before it is indeed fun.Jet Ski is another mode which is completely new,and that is also a lot of fun.It plays a lot like wave race but you can do a lot of entertaining tricks and you get extra speed boosts if you manage to stay between the lines perfectly,so no crashing!And there are other things to do on the Island as well such as but bumping,tug-of-war,water sliding and races,which are all very basic but fun games to play around with.There is also another casino in this one,which is yet again basic. This game clearly looks amazing.The girls look wild,there boobs indeed do jiggle frequently,but none of that is bad right?Some people are gonna complain about the hair,but thats just the way it is now so people need to get over that.The Island looks amazing,the water is very pretty and everything thing else you see in this game looks spot on. The game has a good soundtrack that fits the game well,but some of the songs really suck.So its a blessing that you can make out your own custom tracks to fit the game to your liking. There is a ton to do in this game.Lots of addictive collecting yet again.Loads of swimsuits and tons of gifts to give girls to.The achievements in this game are hard to unlock and take dedication.But if you are an insane player you will get points and a nice pictorial mode for each swimsuit set you collect. Overall DOAX2 is a fun relaxing game that DOAXVB could have been.So its nice to see the series pump itself up with lots more to do.If your into DOA or the games girls,go out an buy it don't let the critics make you think differently,this game is better than what people are going to say.Other people who are not all that interested in DOA should maybe just stick with a rent.Read full review
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