In the early days of 3D fighting, there were two main series which vied with each other for dominance: Sega's Virtua Fighter and Namco's Tekken. It wasn't until 1996 that a truly interesting new contender appeared on the scene, in the form of Tecmo's Dead or Alive.

Dead or Alive brought two interesting ideas to the table. First, it altered the standard Virtua Fighter controls by changing the block button into a counter button. Pressing counter when the opponent attacked would reverse the assault and put them on the defensive. This allowed for lightning-quick attack exchanges that would not have looked out of place in a traditional kung-fu flick. The second reason was the perverse attention to detail paid to the bosoms of the female characters -- they jiggled and wobbled about so much that it seemed like the poor women had unstable piles of Jell-O mounted to their chests. It was equal amounts sexy, amusing, and ridiculous, but if nothing else served to ingrain the game's name in peoples' minds. As gimmicks went, this was an interesting one. (A third reason that DoA was notable was that it was the first non-Sega game to use their Model 2 arcade hardware.)