I am not the biggest fighting game fan, but the unexpected one that happened to break through for me was Dead or Alive 4 on Xbox 360. It was an early title for the new console, it inexplicably featured a Halo Spartan as an optional fighter at the height of my Halo fandom, and – arguably most importantly – I was living in a college dorm when it released and it was the easiest multiplayer game to pick up and play with others. Both myself, my roommate, my neighbor, and a few other folks on the same floor, all really got into it. I got skilled at pulling off Ryu Hayabusa’s most complicated moves, and have always loved its satisfying counter system that could get you out of your opponents’ combos and specific moves as long as you knew the right input.
To this day, it is still my favorite traditional fighting game, and it was also the last series entry Tomonobu Itagaki directed. I was saddened to hear of his passing and had missed his bombastic quotes over the last few years. I wish his family and friends well and am redownloading Dead or Alive 4 on my Xbox right now in remembrance of his work.
