Play Dead or Alive 6 for free with the new Core Fighters edition

Koei Tecmo has released a free-to-play version of Dead or Alive 6 called Core Fighters that gives players a "limited look" at the game with four combatants—Kasumi, Hitomi, Diego, and Bass—and support for online ranked fights, Versus, Arcade, Time Attack, Training, and Quest modes. 

Core Fighters will also unlock an "introduction" to the Story mode, and will provide access to DOA Central, "the hub for everything from wardrobe and music to the library and theater." That includes stuff like the news Happy Wedding Volume 1 pack, a collection of fine wedding dresses and tuxedos that the fighters can wear while they beat the holy hell out of each other, because that's how DoA rolls. 

Additional content for the free fighting experience can be purchased separately, including the full story mode, male and female fighter sets, and the full 20 character lineup. If you're thinking about doing that, though, you might as well just buy the full game: The story mode unlock is $20 and the full character set is $50, which adds up to $10 more than the regular Dead or Alive 6 purchase price. Koei Tecmo said all of the extra content could also be offered on a time-limited free trial basis at some point in the future.

Dead or Alive 6: Core Fighters is available from Steam, and in case you're wondering, no, I am not kidding about the wedding apparel.   

Andy Chalk

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.