The Dead or Alive series is as well known for its female characters’ anatomies as it is for its fighting, but director Yohei Shimbori said an effort was made to subdue the gratuitous fan service in Dead or Alive 5. At least, until fans saw it.
“We were getting feedback from the overseas offices to tone down the sexuality — to tone down the sexiness of the game, and of the characters,” Shimbori told Gamasutra. “We actually got a lot of feedback from people who were playing [a demo for the game included with Ninja Gaiden 3], saying, ‘We want bigger breasts. Make the characters more like that.’ That was kind of surprising.”