Dead Or Alive 5 Pre-Order and Collector's Edition Announced

After a six year absence, the Dead Or Alive franchise will return with its fifth installment on the 25th of September for North America and on the 28th of September for Europe. In preparation for the release, Tecmo Koei Europe and Team Ninja have announced the goodies gamers will receive if they pre-order Dead Or Alive 5 and what will be included in the Collector's Edition. The original article from Tecmo Koei can be found here. Whilst that article is for Europe, I believe the North American versions will be identical. Firstly, to the pre-orders. Anyone who pre-orders DOA5 will be able to choose between two pre-order bonuses based on: in-game bunny-style swimsuit sets. The first set is called 'DOA Angels' and features white swimsuits for Kasumi, LeiFang and Hitomi. The second set is called 'DOA Devils' and features black swimsuits for Christie, Tina and Ayane. These look like they will be retailer dependent, however no information regarding specific retailers has been announced yet. The Collector's Edition on the other hand features both tangible and in-game items that will supposedly 'enhance the gaming experience' according to the article. The Collector's Edition will include:

- The Dead or Alive 5 game, - a set of premium swimsuits for the full cast of playable female characters, - an exclusive hardcover art book detailing the game€™s rich imagery, - the CD soundtrack and - a full-colour poster of the DOA5 cast, - all in a high-quality embossed metal case!

It isn't clear if the premium swimsuits included in the Collector's Edition are the same as the pre-order swimsuits, however my guess from the way it's advertised is that the swimsuit sets are different. It would be nice if that was made clearer. There hasn't been an official price-tag put on the Collector's Edition either, so be on the lookout for that later on if you fancy that version of the game. From my perspective, the Collector's Edition looks decent. At least gamers get some tangible items, where other games seem content selling collector editions with only in-game bonuses. It's a small incentive that will hopefully be reflected in the final price. As for the pre-order extras, retailer specific bonuses are an annoyance to gamers. For the die-hard collector, trying to get their hands on every piece of pre-order bonus can be a hassle. Hopefully Tecmo Koei will release all bonuses as DLC after some time (perhaps free!). DOA 5 will be released on the 25th of September in North America and on the 28th of September in Europe