Esports in fighting games makes for huge business, with the likes of Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat and Smash Bros. hosting regular international tournaments where big prize money is at stake. One game that you seldom see reach the same highs? Dead or Alive, a franchise that has always had the potential to not only offer thumb-blistering competition, but spectacular matches for fans to watch as well. This year, Dead or Alive wants to get cereal.

Dead or Alive 6 aims to make players aware of its pedigree, not just by toning down the chesty physics, but also by heightening its action. To do so, the latest sequel is aiming to outfit its more buxom characters with outfits that would realistically create more restrictive movement up top so that characters can move more naturally.

Dead or ALive 6 recently unveiled two new faces to its roster: Diego and Rig. Taekwondo master Rig is an old face in Dead or Alive, a high-kicking master whose arsenal of roundhouses and leg-based offense is now even more versatile and acrobatic than ever before. As for Diego? This new face has no grace or style. He’s simply a rough customer, a street fighting prodigy who happens to be deadly when he closes the distance and gets within striking range.

The next Dead or Alive is aiming to emphasise its content over the usual best of the chest appeal that has driven previous games in the series. One aspect of Dead or Alive 6 that’s looking to draw in a new crowd? The inclusion of special moves that create a more cinematic breaking of bones that’ll look right at home on a TV screen or a big tournament. “

Whatever your stance, there’s no denying that Dead or Alive Xtreme 3 is showing a lot of skin for a game that’s all about whacking a ball around in the sand. And it's about to have even more with the return of pole-dancing.

Dead or Alive Extreme 3 has some weird ideas on unique gameplay mechanics, but they may have jumped the shark with this latest one.

Dead or Alive games are absolutely solid when it comes to nailing the fighting game experience. Everything from the speed of matches to the pacing of a thrown punch or a roundhouse kick is on par with the genre greats like Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat. It’s just a pity then, that Dead or Alive games have mostly tried to augment that experience with titillation over fisticuffs.

Prepare to put on your best bikini, because the Dead or Alive franchise is heading back to the beach! Volleyball! Voyeurism! Other activities that involve jiggly physics!