What is Venus Vacation Prism? – Dead or Alive Xtreme explained

Venus Vacation Prism: Dead or Alive Xtreme is the latest instalment of the Xtreme spin-off series by Koei Tecmo.

Interestingly, Venus Vacation Prism: Dead or Alive Xtreme will be the first in the spin-off series to not include a sports element. Historically the Xtreme series has included volleyball and other beach sports. However, Venus Vacation Prism: Dead or Alive Extreme is described as a "Immersive Romantic Adventure Game". The game was announced at TGS 2024.

Venus Vacation Prism will essentially be a dating sim. Players will explore date locations with one of five initial female characters, and be able to interact and take photos during the dates using a photo mode. Your chosen kawaii date will be able to feed you, flirt with you and of course laugh at your jokes.

However, that kind of undivided attention won't come for free. The dating sim is expected to include gacha elements. It's predecessor, the free-to-play Venus Vacation: Dead or Alive Xtreme offered multiple gacha outfits for different characters such as swimsuits or evening dresses. Expect more details to arrive regarding outfits at launch in early 2025.

In the modern world of gacha games which prominently featuring female characters, Venus Vacation Prism won't look too out of place. Games such as Shift Up's Goddess of Victory: NIKKE and Stellar Blade, as well as MiHoYo's Zenless Zone Zero all adopt this strategy with immense success. However, the graphics of Venus Vacation Prism: Dead or Alive Xtreme leave much to be desired.

The Dead or Alive franchise was a popular 3D fighting series in the early noughties. It existed alongside the likes of Virtual Fighter, Soul Edge and Tekken 3. Dead or Alive was also the first Japanese fighting game series to offer online multiplayer, even featuring at the World Cyber Games. However, the only fighting likely to happen is by players over which character to spend their draws on.

Despite being a Dead or Alive game, you'll be disappointed to know that Kasumi and Ayane are nowhere in sight... for now at least. The initial roster will include six female character, only five of which have been revealed; Honoka, Tamaki, Elise, Fiona and Misaki.

Fans of Dead or Alive may recognise Tamaki from Dead or Alive 6, the last fighting-game focused entry in the DoA franchise back in 2019. Tamaki was added as a DLC character in March 2020.

Another recognisable face is Honoka, who made her debut in Dead or Alive 5 Last Round but became a key character in Dead or Alive 6. Meanwhile Elise, Fiona and Misaki are all new characters from the previous game. Misaki seems to be a favorite of the developer, being the poster girl for both titles.

Venus Vacation Prism: Dead or Alive Extreme will be available on the following platforms:

The Japanese game is set to be released in Japan and Asia with English language supported.

Venus Vacation Prism: Dead or Alive Xtreme is actually the sixth instalment of the Xtreme spin-off series. Following the release of Dead or Alive 3 in 2001, the DoA developers decided to create a spin-off beach volleyball game. The game was called Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball and launched in 2003.

The developers were under no illusion that this was anything other than fan service. Now for Venus Vacation Prism: Dead or Alive Xtreme, it's seems they're comfortable with being more direct.

By the time of its release in early 2025, it will have been six years since the last Dead or Alive title.