Koei Tecmo just announced Dead or Alive 6 Last Round and teased a completely new game, bringing back the fighting legacy of the franchise under the spotlight.
The abrupt end of Dead or Alive 6 several years ago and the stubborn refusal from Koei Tecmo to bring to the West its island resort-based spin-offs made many wonder whether the franchise, or at least its fighting component, was dead.
As it turns out, it isn’t, and we’re back with another round, the Last Round, but that’s actually a white lie, because it won’t even be the last.
First of all, we get the announcement that a completely new Dead or Alive game is now in development, accompanied by a teaser trailer showing what appears to be Kasumi (even if we don’t get to see her face), fighting against Ryo Hayabusa.
It certainly appears that this time around, Team Ninja has its eyes firmly set on what the fans want.
As for Dead or Alive 6 Last Round, it’ll release for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S on June 25, 2026. It’ll include the definitive version of the original fighting game from 2019, optimized for the latest hardware, plus the five DLC characters: Nyotengu, Phase 4, Momiji, Rachel, and Tamaki.
Unfortunately, it won’t include the SNK collaboration characters, Mai Shiranui and Kula Diamond.
On the other hand, existing players will be able to carry over DLC costumes, premium tickets, and save data.
Speaking of costumes, select characters like Kasumi and Marie Rose will receive five costumes inspired by other Team NINJA titles like Ninja Gaiden 3 Razor’s Edge and Dead of Alive Xtreme Venus Vacation. And yes, if you’re wondering, the Western arms of Koei Tecmo actually acknowledged the existence of Venus Vacation in an official press release. That’s quite the event.
We also get the addition of a dedicated photo mode, including features like “character position” and “pose selection”.
If you’d rather not buy the whole game, the free-to-play Dead or Alive 6 Last Round Core Fighters will be available.
Marie Rose, Honoka, and NiCO will be playable at launch, and the offering will include Photo Mode and theonline modes DOA Quest and DOA Central. Basically, you get all the modes besides the story mode, which can be acquired via story unlocks DLC.
Below, you can enjoy the trailer celebrating the announcement, which certainly was not in my 2026 bingo card, even more so alongside a tease of a completely new Dead or Alive game. Will this be a story of redemption? I certainly hope so.
