Ayane (Dead Or Alive)

is a video game character in the '' Dead or Alive'' and ''Ninja Gaiden'' franchises by Team Ninja and Tecmo (Koei Tecmo). She debuted as a hidden character in the PlayStation version of the fighting game '' Dead or Alive'' in 1998, and has appeared in all of its sequels and spin-offs so far, including as the main protagonist of ''Dead or Alive 3''. In the games, Ayane is a teenage master of ninjutsu and is characterised by her complex relationship with her half-sister Kasumi, the lead character of the ''Dead or Alive'' series.

She is also prominently featured as a recurring supporting character in the ''Ninja Gaiden'' series since its revival in 2004 and has made multiple guest appearances in other games, in particular in the extended ''Dynasty Warriors'' franchise. Ayane is one of the most popular Tecmo characters and is one of Koei Tecmo's mascots, but has been a subject of controversies regarding her age and sexualization.

Character

Ayane is officially one of the "faces" of '' Dead or Alive''. In the series' back story, Ayane was conceived and born as a result of the evil ninja Raidou's rape of Ayame, Kasumi's and Hayate's mother and wife of Shiden, leader of the ninja clan. The Mugen Tenshin villagers allowed Ayane to stay, but disliked and looked down on her. Deemed a cursed child, she was forced to live in the shadows. Since they were children, Ayane and Kasumi were best friends. Ayane also secretly admired Hayate as a way of increasing her self-esteem. Hayate is portrayed as fond of her in return. Ayane never knew she was related to them until the truth was revealed to her by Ayame. Ayane's ire focusses on Raidou who both created and ruined her life, but she also became hatefully jealous of her half-sister Kasumi and her privileged upbringing. Ayane's belligent envy towards Kasumi is similar to the hatred Raidou displayed towards his brother Shiden.

Depicted as quiet and reserved, Ayane has honed her skills in an attempt to make others see her as more than a "child of evil". Her deadly fighting style has given her the nickname "Female Tengu". With the death of her foster father and master, Genra (Omega) at the end of ''Dead or Alive 3'', Ayane becomes the strongest ninja of Mugen Tenshin's shadow clan, the secretive , and pledges her existence to assist in Hayate's task of destroying the Dead or Alive Tournament Executive Committee (DOATEC). Through most of the series, Ayane was a bitter rival to Kasumi. Ayane has a tsundere type personality, is fiercely loyal to Hayate,''Dead or Alive 4'' manual, page 16. and admires Ryu Hayabusa, the protagonist of the ''Ninja Gaiden'' series. She later became one of the lead characters of ''Ninja Gaiden'' herself.

Design

Ayane is the youngest girl to appear as a playable character in the ''Dead or Alive'' series, having been introduced at the age of only 16. She stands at 5'2" and weighs 104 lbs, with a bust size of 93 cm (37"), and has one of the most distinctive appearances out of ''DOA'' women due to her unusually colored purple hair and red eyes. Her face changed slightly between ''Ninja Gaiden II'' and ''Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2''. As in the case of other ''Dead or Alive 5'' characters, her face and general aesthetics are noticeably different in this game, due to a more detailed realistic design style in comparison to a more cartoonish style of the previous ''DOA'' games. Team Ninja leader Yosuke Hayashi said "Ayane and Hitomi retain their signature spirits while by a new look that reflects amazing beauty, grace, and a strong sense of presence." ''DOA5'' director Yohei Shimbori said the developers received a strong if surprising fan backlash from their initial attempt at Ayane's breast reduction in this game, resulting in them reverting this change. Shimbori described Ayane as "extremely serious, but when she starts to interact like Zack or Marie Rose, she changes a little bit."

Ayane's fighting style is very different from the Tenjin Mon style of Kasumi and Hayate,The Babes of DOA
, IGN, March 26, 2010. being more flamboyant and based on pirouetting and spinning attacks. Her signature weapons are a pair of twin short swords named . Kasumi's clone Phase 4 uses some of Ayane's fighting style. Team Ninja founder Tomonobu Itagaki described Ayane's character and personality as much "harder" than Kasumi's, making her fit better in the "very hard-edged" universe of the ''Ninja Gaiden'' series. His successor Yosuke Hayashi said the image of Ayane covered in her enemies' blood can symbolise the intensity of ''Ninja Gaiden''. Hayashi later requested for Ayane to appear in the ''Fatal Frame'' series.

Ayane's appearance of a "sweet girl" is misleading and hides her "devious nature".Hilary Goldstein
Girls of DOAU: Ayane
, IGN, September 23, 2004. She wears a variety of mostly purple and black female ninja suits and other attires (including a schoolgirl uniform and a Carnival of Venice-style costume), often coming with a miniskirt or tunic and often featuring a butterfly motif (later even on her weapons). Among about 20 Ayane's outfits in the 2004 compilation game ''Dead or Alive Ultimate'',DOA Ultimate Preview
1UP.com, 07/23/2004. one was inspired by the character Millennia from '' Kagero: Deception 2''. One of her alternative costumes in ''Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2'' also pays homage to Sun Shangxiang (Lady Sun) from Koei's ''Dynasty Warriors'' series.Jim Sterling
Ninja Gaiden invades Dynasty Warriors
, Destructoid, 09.23.2009. Her other wardrobe in ''Last Round'' includes outfits designed by Tamiki Wakaki, a destructible green dress in 2014 and a purple armor in 2016, as well as downloadable costumes based on the Clockwork Princess Millennia from Tecmo Koei's '' Deception IV: The Nightmare Princess'', Fie Claussell from Nihon Falcom's '' The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II'', Satoka Sumihara from Square Enix's ''School Girl Strikers'', Cocona from Tatsunoko's ''Nurse Witch Komugi'', Nene from ''Samurai Warriors'', and Yukino Aguria from ''Fairy Tail'', among others. Her default costume in ''Dead or Alive 6'' is to feature an ''Assassin's Creed'' style hood, described as "a cool new look but keeping things as punk and pink as ever."

Gameplay

Ayane is often regarded as a top-tier character in many of the games she is playable in, especially in the ''DOA'' fighting games where she was noted for being very unpredictable and confusing for the opponent as well as fast and hard to counter. In 2016, Jeuxvideo.com included her among the ten most frustrating characters to play against in any fighting game due to her potential for "very destabilizing" quick attacks.

Previewing the original '' Dead or Alive'' for the PlayStation, ''Computer & Video Games'' opined she "has an unusual floaty kind of fighting style, but has some great moves. Her quick punches make stringing combos together easy, and her throws are great for hitting people into the Danger Zone" (an interactive feature within some arenas). In Prima Games' official guide for ''Dead or Alive Ultimate'' (a remake version of ''Dead or Alive'' and '' Dead or Alive 2''), Eric Mylonas declared Ayane the "tougher of the two siblings" as she "brings strings of blindingly fast combos into play and has devastating holds and throws." Ayane has a major weakness in that she can not stop moving without becoming "an easy prey," and she may not be favored by those who prefer "huge, over-the-top moves," but for a "more patient sort, there's probably no better character in the game."Eric Mylonas, ''Dead or Alive Ultimate (Prima Official Game Guide)'', Prima Games 2004 (p. 72). According to GameSpy's guide to ''Ultimate'' by Andrew Alfonso, Ayane's key moves include her high kick—which is "a lot" better than Kasumi's—with another move so powerful "it's almost unfair to use it." He noted how she can be actually more effective with her back turned towards her opponent, despite the fact that the characters cannot block when facing away from an enemy. In his guide to ''Dead or Alive 3'', he wrote Ayane is a very unpredictable and quick attacker, even more than in the previous games in the series, and should be played primarily for her backwards position, hers being the best such stance of all the characters in the game. Ayane's speed and deceiving attacks make her a "pretty good" partner for slower fighters for tag team battles, but her primary partners are other ninja characters.

In Prima Games' official guide to ''Dead or Alive 4'', Bryan Dawson wrote that while in the previous games Ayane has been "one of the easiest characters to use and was very difficult to fight against," in this game she "now requires much more skill in high-level players, as her best attack as nowhere as dominant as they were in the past." She was rated overall 7/10. On the other hand, for Daniel Wilks from '' Hyper'' Ayane in ''DOA4'' seemed "to have the edge in nearly every battle due to their staggering speed and ability to put together easy multi-leveled combos." According to GameSpot's guide by Matthew Rorie, Ayane is "one of the more devious characters" of the game, "capable of devastating speed and some ingenious little fake-out animations," but she requires "a lot more practice than is apparent at first glance." In GameSpy's guide, David McCutcheon wrote that "widely regarded as the ''Street_Fighter''_characters">Street_Fighter.html"_;"title="'Street_Fighter">' 'Street_Fighter''_characters">Street_Fighter.html"_;"title="'Street_Fighter">'Street_Fighter''_charactersKen_Masters">Ken_

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