- "Hayate. Ayane… We've seen a scene like this before, the three of us..."
- —Kasumi to her siblings in Dead or Alive 6
Kasumi (Japanese: 霞[8]) is a nukenin ("missing shinobi") and former member of the Mugen Tenshin clan, who debuted in the first Dead or Alive back during the 1996 arcade release. One of the original eight characters, Kasumi became the main protagonist of the Dead or Alive series and is often viewed as the series mascot. She was the winner of the first Dead or Alive Tournament.
Originally second-in-line for the title of clan master within the Mugen Tenshin, Kasumi became nukenin, after she ran away from home in order to avenge her older brother, Hayate. She is also the half-sister and cousin of Ayane, as well as Honoka's cousin.
History[]
Childhood[]
Kasumi as a child
Kasumi is the daughter of Shiden and Ayame, who was born into the Mugen Tenshin's head family, making her second-in-line to the title of clan leader, after her older brother Hayate.
Before entering Dead or Alive tournaments, Kasumi and Ayane - unaware that they were related - were best friends, although the clan saw Ayane as "cursed" and didn't want Kasumi or any other children to be around her. Since childhood, Kasumi has been pampered and spoiled as she lived a privileged life full of expensive clothes, servants and the respect of the rest of the Mugen Tenshin clan. According to their mother, Ayame, Kasumi and Ayane used to have fun catching fish for the family. Her relationship with Hayate was also ideal, with the two playing games and training together happily.
However, once Ayane learned of her true heritage – a product of the rape of Ayame, making her Kasumi's half-sibling – Kasumi's friendship with Ayane ended due to Ayane's bitterness and envy over her mistreatment by the clan, centering her animosity on the "princess" Kasumi.
Running away and the First Tournament[]
When Kasumi was seventeen, her uncle, the rogue ninja Raidou, returned to the village to obtain the Torn Sky Blast technique; a ninpo spell used by the clan's leaders. Defeating even the prodigious Ayane, Raidou eventually managed to mimic the technique from Hayate, and rendered the boy both comatose and paraplegic before escaping. As Kasumi was not present during the attack and nobody told her what had happened, she was left clueless as to what happened until much later.
Due to Hayate's dire state and the unlikelihood of his recovery, Shiden chose Kasumi to become the clan’s eighteenth master. Her worry over her brother seemed to affect her training, but she managed to learn the Torn Sky Blast at least. Wanting to know the truth, Kasumi turned to Ayane, and believing that Kasumi would never become a great leader anyway, she told her that Raidou was the one who harmed Hayate.
Kasumi only managed to escape from the village alive thanks to Christie and good timing.
With the truth finally out, Kasumi decided to take possibly suicidal action and left the village without permission in order to find Raidou and take revenge on him for Hayate, although this meant she would become a nukenin and marked for death. The clan quickly found out about Kasumi's leave, and Ayane was ordered by Genra to find and kill her. Ayane tried to stop her on the bridge just out of the village, but Kasumi was saved when Christie appeared on a helicopter and separated the two shinobi with gunfire. Although Kasumi didn't know Christie, she jumped on the helicopter and they flew away from Ayane.
Now in the company of Christie and Bayman, Kasumi learned that Raidou was taking part in the Dead or Alive World Combat Championship, which was being sponsored by the Dead or Alive Tournament Executive Committee, the company they work for. They took her to the cruise liner Freedom Survivor, where the tournament would officially begin and Kasumi signed herself up.
While the start of the tournament is being officially announced, Kasumi finds Ayane in the crowd. Ayane tells her that she is there to avenge Hayate too, as well as kill her, under the orders of her foster father Genra. The girls quickly discover that Raidou is working with the head of DOATEC, Fame Douglas, but when Ayane tries to get him, even though Kasumi tries to stop her, the girl is beaten back. Fame then tells Kasumi that if she wants to face Raidou in battle, she has to come out as winner in the tournament.
Kasumi fights her way through the tournament, and does come out as the winner of the tournament, meaning that she will have to face Raidou in the Danger Zone. She manages to defeat Raidou, and was happy because she thinks she had avenged Hayate, but Raidou awakens stronger than before, with inhuman strength caused by DOATEC experiments. Their battle ends in a Torn Sky Blast duel, and with the help of Ryu Hayabusa from the sidelines, Kasumi overpowers Raidou in the end and he is finally killed.
Unfortunately for Kasumi, she is kidnapped by DOATEC, and is taken to their labs in Germany, so they can use her DNA for their experiments; as she managed to defeat their top experiment, they believe that she will be useful in their plans to create the ultimate fighter.
Escaping DOATEC and the Second Tournament[]
After being held captive for a while by DOATEC, Hayabusa manages to find her and sets DOATEC Germany on fire. During the chaos, Kasumi is helped out of her cell by Kasumi α, a clone created from her DNA. Although shocked by the sight of her double, she follows Alpha into one of the labs. Once there, Alpha tells Kasumi that they are "sisters", and Kasumi hasn't been a good sister because she keeps Hayate to herself, so now he belongs to Alpha. Realizing that Hayate had been taken by DOATEC, Kasumi fights Alpha. The noise leads one of the scientists, Lisa Hamilton to them and Kasumi demands to know where Hayate was. Lisa tries to silence her by threatening to shoot her, but Kasumi is saved by Hayabusa, who takes her after from the building, after Lisa and Alpha escaped.
While with Hayabusa and Irene Lew, they learn from stolen DOATEC data that Hayate was actually at DOATEC Germany at the same time as Kasumi. Worried about her brother's safety, Kasumi goes against Hayabusa's orders and runs off to find Hayate. Although Hayabusa sends Ayane after her, Kasumi manages to escape her.
Sometime later, Kasumi finds Hayate alive and well, but as Hayate is suffering from amnesia, he cannot remember her. Hayabusa appears before them and tells the two siblings to fight each other, as "once reunited in combat, fists which are bound by blood will revive the deepest soul of the shinobi", meaning that Hayate will remember his true self. During the fight, Kasumi is defeated, and Hayate remembers everything. While Hayate and Hayabusa have to fight Alpha and a brainwashed Ayane, set upon them by Genra, Kasumi presumably wakes up and runs away, as Hayate can't find her after the fight.
The Third Tournament[]
Homesick and constantly hunted, Kasumi still wishes to see Hayate, but has to go into hiding from the Mugen Tenshin clan again. She spends some time in the geisha district of Kyoto during her running, and to cover up her shinobi identity, she dresses as a normal high school girl and acts like a normal civilian in public to get by. She appears to have become ill from running and living rough, because she develops a fever. When she is half-passed out on the road, she is found by a local maiko Kokoro, but refuses her help. When she sees Ayane, she panics and runs away again.
During the third tournament, Kasumi tries to find Hayate, who is, at this time, with Ayane and Hayabusa trying to track down Genra, who has turned against the clan. Kasumi crosses paths with Ayane, but apparently her sister is focused on taking down Genra, so she isn't going to kill her; although Ayame has previously asked Ayane to help Kasumi rather than be against her. Ayane lets Kasumi try to get to Hayate, but not before she fights her for her troubles.
When Kasumi finally meets up with Hayate, he is torn between the code of the clan to kill nukenin and his desire to see his sister again. He tries to save her, saying that they can pretend they didn't meet with each other, but Kasumi is prepared to fight her brother. After the fight, Kasumi escapes again and goes into hiding once more.
Zack Island[]
She was later given an invitation for a supposed Dead or Alive tournament that was going to be held at Zack Island. However, she discovered alongside the rest of the prior participants that it was a hoax, but decided to make the best of their situation for the two weeks on the island.
The Fourth Tournament and the Fall of DOATEC[]
During the time of the fourth tournament, Kasumi catches word of the Mugen Tenshin's plan to attack DOATEC and take their revenge against the company. Worried about everyone's safety, Kasumi risks her life visiting the outside of the village, and finds Hayate. As she tries to convince him to stop the war against DOATEC, Hayate remains quiet and Ayane arrives to interrupt them, providing enough of a distraction for Hayate to leave and continue on with his mission.
Although the attack is on the go, Kasumi pursues everyone to DOATEC's TriTower headquarters so she can still stop the chaos. There, she confronts Helena Douglas, the current head of DOATEC, and begs her to leave the shinobi alone. However, Helena tells her that DOATEC's latest creation - a modified Kasumi α, renamed Alpha-152 - is about to become active. Helena is about to shoot Kasumi, to stop her from being involved, but she is saved by Hayabusa, who is there helping Hayate, and Kasumi fights her way past Helena.
She then heads down to the lab to destroy Alpha-152. She fights her clone to her best efforts but in the end it appears Alpha-152 escapes in the chaos of the destruction wrought by the Mugen Tenshin invasion. After the match, having herself escaped the burning building, Kasumi is last seen watching Helena entering the blazing helipad. As Kasumi tries to stop her, Ayane prevents her from going after Helena, who by doing so saves Kasumi's life as the building starts exploding mere seconds later.
New Zack Island[]
Shortly afterwards, she continued trying to find Hayate, and eventually tracked his seeming last location to New Zack Island, although she ultimately decided to stay for the week despite not finding him. During her stay, she had a brief dream as a mermaid and being caught in a net while trying to pursue a fish only to wake up, an allegory to her freedom from the laws of nukenin.
The Fifth Tournament[]
At some point between the events of the fourth and fifth tournaments, it appeared that Kasumi went into hiding with the assistance of Hayabusa and his ally Muramasa, who made sure that no one knew where she was.
However, Victor Donovan had continued Project Alpha with his new origination MIST, and one of the clones produced managed to leave the facility - it's unclear if it was allowed to leave or it escaped. This clone believed that it was the real Kasumi and held the same desire to locate and destroy Alpha-152 as the original did. It turned to Helena for help, but turned away from her when the woman tried to get Hayate involved, believing that Alpha-152 would be too much for Kasumi to handle alone. The clone felt that it needed to face Alpha-152 by itself and left. Its behavior seemed to make Hayate suspicious so he ordered Ayane to follow.
While trying to keep away from her pursuers, the clone traveled to New York and asks Lisa where Alpha-152 was, but received no answer. After much travelling, the clone got fed up and returned to Helena demanding for Alpha-152's location. Helena reveals that Alpha-152 was hidden at an DOATEC-owned DIG oil rig, but she would be sending Hayate, Ayane, and Hayabusa there as well, much to the clone's dismay. After fighting her way past Rig and Lisa, Kasumi finds and defeats Alpha-152, but is soon found and attacked by the other shinobi, who had by then worked out that this Kasumi was a fake. The clone is slain, and the shinobi are attacked by MIST which led to Hayate's capture.
Hayabusa sent a message to the real Kasumi telling her of their problem and she finally comes out of hiding to aid them. She rushes to the oil platform and fights her way past Christie and Rig to get to Hayate, who had been forced into reactivating Project Epsilon. With Lisa's help, the shinobi succeeded in releasing him, however they are too late to stop Donovan from beginning Phase 4 of Project Alpha: mass production of the best clones. Following a long battle against Alpha-152, the clone and the lab is destroyed, with the shinobi managing to escape.
The next day, Kasumi thanked Hayate and Ayane for their help before taking her leave, swearing to defeat Donovan at all costs.
Back on New Zack Island[]
After her last mission, Kasumi returned to her hobby of fortune reading, that leads her again to New Zack Island. She wonders why it always leads her again to the island. In order to find out, she decides to spend some time on the island.
During the last day on the island, she found out that maybe she had come to the island in order to remember her life before running away. She wanted to stay longer, but unfortunately she had to go.
The Sixth Tournament and Raidou's Resurrection[]
During her time on the run, she maintained contact with her mother via letters. However, while composing another letter, she stopped due to sensing a foreboding element. At some point, Mai Shiranui tracked down Kasumi, and announced her arrival by throwing a paper fan at her, forcing Kasumi to dodge by teleporting from her bench. Mai then asked if she was the strongest kunoichi, with Kasumi acknowledging Mai's presence. Mai, noticing her Mugen Tenshin symbol, deduced that Kasumi must be intelligent before requesting a spar to see who was the strongest in Japan. After the spar, Kasumi and Mai chatted, with Mai admitting that exercise always leaves her hungry. She also had a near run-in with Marie Rose and Honoka at her favorite shop, and overheard them talking about a ninja who frequented the location, with Kasumi deducing from Marie Rose's description that her half-sister Ayane had earlier encountered them.
Kasumi was eventually ambushed by Phase 4 clones of the Alpha project, although she was saved by Ryu. She then accompanied him so they could deal with MIST. Eventually, their travels took them to a ruined highway. After Ryu dealt with a robot made in her evil uncle Raidou's likeness, she received a butterfly familiar from Ayane requesting assistance, with Kasumi expressing shock that Ayane would actually sent her an SOS.
They then headed by chopper to MIST's lab with the help of Ryu's old CIA contact, Irene Lew, and upon rendezvousing with Hayate, they stormed the facility to rescue Ayane. Kasumi then encountered NiCO, the head researcher, who intended to dispose of Ayane and Honoka due to having successfully revived Raidou. While Hayate pursued a Phase 4 clone to retrieve Honoka, Kasumi was forced into a fight with her half-sister due to NiCO brainwashing the latter. After Ayane was subdued, Hayate returned with Honoka and reassured Kasumi that she was merely unconscious. Kasumi, alongside Ayane and Hayate, then engaged Raidou in a final showdown, eventually destroying him into nothingness via a joint effort. Kasumi then left, although not before briefly recalling her childhood.
Arrival on the Venus Islands[]
Similar to her earlier vacation at New Zack Island, she ended up headed to the Venus Islands thanks to a fortune telling her to go there. She then briefly pondered what the fortune meant until she stumbled upon the Owner of the island. Upon being informed of the Venus Island's local Venus Festival and being requested to help set it up, although she was reluctant, she ultimately agreed to do so.
Endings[]
Character[]
Kasumi in her trademark dress, as seen in Dead or Alive 2
Appearance[]
- See also: Kasumi's costumes
Kasumi is a slender, physically-fit, and petite young woman. She was designed to appear "soft" (based on the idea that Dead or Alive is softer in concept compared to Ninja Gaiden, thus making her symbolic of the series) so she was originally designed with a childlike and youthful appearance, with fair skin, a round face, small facial features and wide, amber eyes. For Dead or Alive 5, her design was slightly altered to appear more mature, so she now has an oval-shaped face and narrowed eyes. Her hair is also seen noticeably shorter when worn down, as it only reaches to her lower shoulders, rather than her hips.
Originally, her long hair appeared to be a chestnut brunette. However, since Dead or Alive 2, it has lightened over the years to a ginger or copper shade. To date, she has had the following different hairstyle options: a low or high ponytail, a low or high side ponytail, a french braid, or her hair down, along with two different colored ribbon options.
Her trademark outfit is a blue, side-tie dress with short puffy sleeves, white trim, her name (written in Japanese) stitched in gold on the back, and a light-colored phoenix pattern on the skirt, complete with stockings, low heeled sandals, blue & white leg guards and arm-guards. As well as this outfit - and variations of said outfit - Kasumi sports other shinobi costumes as well as modern casual clothes and Japanese school uniforms, suited for average, everyday girls.
In Dead or Alive 5 when she was under Muramasa's care, she was seen wearing a blue short-sleeved traditional kimono dress with a red rope tied on her back and white flower designs on her baggy sleeves. She also wears a black obi with two white leaf designs and white tabi.
As she infiltrates MIST, saving her older brother Hayate and fighting against Alpha-152 during Phase 4, she wears a black sleeveless v-neck skin-tight ninja suit with a blue bra underneath and four holes in each side on her top, matching black leg guards and boots. She also wears matching black long leather gloves and wears a blue choker on her neck. Kasumi's ribbon is now blue instead of yellow when she is tied in a high ponytail until she removes it in the end as her wakizashi sword on her back is tied in a blue rope instead of red. Her ninja suit resembles a catsuit as opposed to her trademark outfit.
In Dead or Alive 6, Kasumi receives a brand new default costume in the form of a predominantly black ninja bodysuit with white gloves and what looks like tabi with heeled kunoichi shoes, as well as sections with blue accents. Her suit is detailed with her name in gold Japanese Kanji on the back like her various ninja attire, armored pads on her arms, and shins, and she wears her sword on her lower back. She once again dons her blue ribbon in this outfit, and she has a small Sakura flower symbol on the front of the bodysuit as well. Like the other characters, she has other recolors of this outfit that the player will freely be able to choose, and she also receives a new outfit in the form of a long sleeved overall sweater dress with flower decals, thigh high leggings and leather low heeled boots with additional recolors.
Like the other fighters, if she is hit with a break blow, her ponytail will come undone letting her hair down. Her loose hair is noticeably somewhat thicker and longer than before as well, no longer being as thin as before.
Personality[]
Kasumi is portrayed throughout the Dead or Alive series as a more compassionate character than many of the other fighters. She is an honorable and kind spirit, and although a highly skilled kunoichi with deadly abilities, she does not enjoy or wish to fight. Many of the statements she makes in the game series before a round begins reflect her desire to avoid confrontation. Much of the reasoning behind this comes from the fact that in all appearances in the tournaments (with the exception of the first) her motive was not to fight or win but to meet Hayate.
Kasumi is shown to be a "soft" character; she is not afraid to speak her mind, but as a soft person, she is emotional, honest, and always helps people. She is a highly intelligent, caring, and gentle person. She is demonstrably family orientated and would like nothing more than to return home in peace. There were instances where she refused to show mercy, however, such as when she willingly goes to take revenge upon Raidou and subsequently kills him in the first game, and fighting her numerous evil clones throughout the series.
However, in Dead or Alive 5, in the last chapter of story mode, Kasumi's personality has changed drastically. She's still the caring person that she is, however, Kasumi is shown to be mentally stronger. She is shown to engage in battle when she needs to instead of avoiding it. An example of this is when she fights Christie, who was in her way. She also has a much stronger will as she was ready to destroy the Phase 4 project and defeat Victor Donovan at any cost. She is seen to be much happier as well and is finally at peace with both Hayate and Ayane. She also seems to have great maturity for someone her age. She still longs to return home however, and keeps in touch with her mother whom she also misses through writing letters.
The Xtreme series implies she is somewhat modest about revealing her body, as in Xtreme 2 and Paradise if she performs a pole dance, she admits feeling a little embarrassed about it. Likewise, in Xtreme Venus Vacation, she is shown to be embarrassed at having to wear an extremely revealing outfit, and it is also shown that it can be tough for her at first to talk with new and unknown people, but after a while she can show a happy and friendly side, and also being in a place without the constant pressures of her life she also can show a carefree attitude, without the worry of being pursued or having to engage in combat. The game also shows that Kasumi can be easily embarrassed by many things beyond revealing her body, like getting a gift she thought she didn't deserve or being praised for her beauty, among other things, showing her as very humble and down to earth to whomever she interacts with.
In Dead or Alive 6, it seems like Kasumi has fully grown into a willing fighter as she no longer shows any reluctance to fight, especially when seen in her intro pose against Raidou whom she harbors a strong hatred for. She still however questions her reason for fighting Ayane and Hayate. She overall appears to be at her peak in terms of mental and physical strength and shows no fear when it comes to protecting her siblings and those she cares about.
Etymology[]
The kanji used to spell Kasumi's name (霞) means "mist", a light fog. Mist and fog are often used as a symbol of isolation and loneliness, maybe alluding to Kasumi's isolation from her clan, forced to live alone. Mist can also represent unclear thinking, possibly reflecting Kasumi's personality who, as a compassionate, empathetic character, is powered by emotion and will react by her feeling rather than think things through first, such as her leave from her clan to take revenge for Hayate.
Mist could also be a physical link to her; just as mist cannot be easily contained, Kasumi has also been proven to be hard to "contain" and be captured by the clan's assassins and has been able to avoid them for a long time.
Finally, mist can be a symbol of the indeterminate phase in development, when things have yet to be defined. As she is a nukenin, Kasumi could be seen as living in an indeterminate state, unsure if tomorrow will bring her death or good fortune.
Relationships[]
- See: Kasumi relationships
Gameplay[]
- See: Kasumi gameplay
Appearances[]
Dead or Alive series[]
- Dead or Alive games (playable, 1996-98)
- Dead or Alive 2 games (playable, 1999-2000)
- DOA2: Hardcore games (playable, 2000)
- Dead or Alive 3 (playable, 2001-02)
- Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball (playable, 2003)
- Dead or Alive Ultimate games (playable, 2004-05)
- Dead or Alive 4 (playable, 2005-06)
- Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 (playable, 2006)
- Girls of DOA BlackJack (playable, 2009)
- Dead or Alive Paradise (playable, 2010)
- Dead or Alive Dimensions (playable, 2011)
- Dead or Alive 5 (5+) (playable, 2012-13)
- Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate (playable, 2013)
- Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate Arcade (playable, 2013)
- Dead or Alive 5 Last Round (playable, 2015)
- Dead or Alive Xtreme 3 (playable, 2016)
- Dead or Alive Xtreme: Venus Vacation (playable, 2017)
- Dead or Alive 6 (playable, 2019)
[]
Promotional poster for DOA: Dead or Alive, featuring Devon Aoki as Kasumi.
DOA: Dead or Alive[]
In the non-canonical 2006 feature film DOA: Dead or Alive, Kasumi is portrayed by Japanese-American actress Devon Aoki. As with most characters in the film, Kasumi's personality was changed to be cold and stern, as opposed to her more open and compassionate nature in the games.
Girls of DOA BlackJack[]
There is a Kasumi version of the game Girls of DOA BlackJack of the iPhone, in which she acts as the Blackjack dealer. She is not voiced in the game and her animation is limited but the player can unlock different costumes for her with their winnings, as well as pictures of her which can be used as backgrounds for the iPhone.
Ninja Gaiden[]
Kasumi as she appears in Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge.
Kasumi has made a couple of appearances in later titles of the Ninja Gaiden series, a long-running hack-and-slash series starring Ryu Hayabusa as the main character. Dead or Alive and Ninja Gaiden are considered "sister series" as some characters and other plot elements cross over into both series, more notably following the Ninja Gaiden re-boot in 2004. Kasumi appears in Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 in a cameo role and is a playable character in Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor’s Edge. She can be obtained either by downloading her free DLC pack (Wii U version) or completing the story mode (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch and PC versions).
Non-Dead or Alive appearances[]
The cover of Kasumi's combat book in the Queen's Gate series.
Queen's Blade[]
Kasumi has appeared as a playable character in the visual combat books series, Queen's Blade, published by Hobby Japan. Her player book is part of the sub-series Queen's Gate which, unlike the rest of the series which features original characters, uses licensed characters from video games and anime series, such as Lili from Tekken, and Mai Shiranui from King of Fighters. The overall plot of the Queen's Gate: Spiral Chaos game revolves around an interdimensional gate colliding dimensions and fighters joining together to destroy the evil and get everyone back to their home. Her gallery can be viewed here and she got a figure based on her appearance on this series. Unfortunately Kasumi was one of the few characters of the book series that didn't appear in the tie-in PSP game by Bandai Namco.
Bijin Tokei[]
To celebrate the release of Dead or Alive Paradise, Kasumi was featured as a place card girl on the Bijin Tokei iPhone digital clock application, from the 1st April to April 30th, 2010. She appeared at random times at least 10 times throughout the day, holding a placard with the current time written upon it.
Monster Rancher[]
Kasumi Sprite in My Monster Rancher
Kasumi appeared as a playable "Sprite monster" in Monster Rancher 2 , Monster Rancher 4, My Monster Rancher and the two entries for the Nintendo DS, all of them games that are also produced by Tecmo and later Koei Tecmo. She must be unlocked by going to the Shrine and inserting the first Dead or Alive CD in the disc tray in Monster Rancher 2, and the Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore disc in Monster Rancher 4. Although the sprite is Kasumi, it has much shorter hair compared to her, tied into a spiky ponytail, and the skirt of the dress is shorter. The sprite also sports a pair of feathery white wings.
As a tie-in with Dead or Alive: Dimensions, the sprite Kasumi was made available in a limited time event for Tecmo's Japan-only mobile game, My Monster Rancher.
Warriors series[]
Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate[]
An update of Warriors Orochi 3 on the PS3, PS4, Vita, and Xbox One. She will be joining the cast along with Japan's mythical fox demon Mae Tamamo and China's heavenly dragon deity Yinglong. Her fighting style is based on her appearances in the Ninja Gaiden games.
Her in-game theme is Hitohira -DW SW MIX- which is a remix of her Dead or Alive 2 theme.
Warriors All-Stars[]
Kasumi is a playable character in Koei's hack-and-slash title, Warriors All-Stars, representing the Dead or Alive series alongside Ayane, Honoka, and Marie Rose. In addition, Kasumi's outfit is used as the DLC costume for a Dynasty Warriors character Wang Yuanji in this game.
In an alternate world that relies on a miraculous spring to sustain itself, the King who could control the spring's powers suddenly perished, leaving the world in turmoil. The Queen told her daughter, Tamaki, to summon otherworldly heroes to save their land, but the attempted summoning malfunctioned and left them scattered in different areas. Eventually, other members of this royal family are deemed eligible for the throne, dividing all the heroes into three warring factions.
In the game, Kasumi, along with Marie Rose and Honoka, is a member of Setsuna's force.
Nobunyaga no Yabou: Cat or Alive[]
The fake Cat or Alive announcement banner shown on the Nobunyaga no Yabou website for April Fool's Day, 2012.
Nobunyaga no Yabou, or Nobunyaga's Ambition, is a browser-based social game produced by Tecmo Koei. It is presented as a "cuter", more light-hearted incarnation of Nobunaga's Ambition, a more serious alternative history strategy series, with the added twist of recasting the whole cast as cats.
As an April Fool's joke in 2012, a fake announcement for Cat or Alive, a crossover with Dead or Alive was created. A headline banner for the Nobunyaga no Yabou website was published, showing a render of Ginchiyo Tachibana, a character from the series, dressed up as Kasumi. The banner was taken down the next day.
In 2011, there was a similar April Fool's joke made with a fake announcement for a crossover with Ninja Gaiden, entitled Nyanja Gaiden.
Hyakuman-nin no Ninja Gaiden[]
Kasumi is one of the three rare character cards included for the first Dead or Alive update in the Japan-only social game, Hyakuman-nin no Ninja Gaiden. The full title of her card is "Kunoichi of Destiny Kasumi".
The King of Fighters series[]
The King of Fighters XIV[]
Although Kasumi herself does not appear in the game itself, she is present alongside Mai Shiranui in a cross-series promotional wallpaper.[9]
The King of Fighters All Stars[]
Kasumi appears as a guest fighter alongside Honoka, Nyotengu and Marie Rose. In this game she wears her default costume from Dead or Alive 6 and a blue bikini.
Destiny Child[]
Kasumi in Destiny Child
Kasumi, alongside Marie Rose and Honoka, and later Leifang and Ayane, appeared in the app game Destiny Child as part of a collaboration between that game and Xtreme Venus Vacation.[10] She also got her own costume based on Eve in Xtreme Venus Vacation.[11][12]
Alice Gear Aegis[]
Kasumi, alongside Marie Rose, were added to the app game Alice Gear Aegis as part of a collaboration between that game and Xtreme Venus Vacation. She later reappeared during the game's second collaboration.
Senran Kagura series[]
Prior to her actual guest appearance in Senran Kagura series, her costume was used for Asuka during the Xtreme Venus Vacation event in Shinobi Master Senran Kagura: New Link, and was available to wear by all characters in Senran Kagura: Peach Beach Splash.
New Link[]
Kasumi in New Link
Kasumi joins Ayane, Marie Rose and Honoka in appearing in the game Shinobi Masters Senran Kagura: New Link as part of a collaboration between that game and Dead or Alive. Whereas Ayane has appeared in every Dead or Alive event, Kasumi is solely representing the Dead or Alive 6 event, while Marie Rose and Honoka are solely representing the Xtreme Venus Vacation event.
Azur Lane[]
Kasumi in Azur Lane
Kasumi appears as a Heavy Cruiser-class Ship Girl alongside Nyotengu, Marie Rose, Monica, Honoka, Nagisa, and Misaki in the crossover event between AL and Venus Vacation. On the title screen for the first run, she cosplayed as the shipgirl Atago.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIV[]
Kasumi was added to Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIV alongside Marie Rose, Ayane and Misaki as part of a collaboration with Dead or Alive Xtreme Venus Vacation.
Idle Huntress[]
Kasumi was added to this game alongside Marie Rose as part of a collaboration of it and DOAXVV. Kasumi's age was listed incorrectly as 18 years old in the japanese version, however before the collaboration ended this was fixed with an apology by the developers.
Outfit usages[]
Kasumi’s signature blue outfit is an unlock-able costume for of in Super Swing Golf DOAXVV.and Super Swing Golf 2. In the 2004 survival horror Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Director's Cut for the Xbox, the outfit also appears as an alternative outfit for Mio Amakura, one of the game’s two protagonists. Her costume is also available for character avatars for Koei's social browser game My GAMECITY. It can be used by both female, and male, character avatars. The outfit and Kasumi's hairstyles and accessories also were used in Phantasy Star Online 2 as part of a collaboration between that game and Dead or Alive 5 Last Round.
Merchandise[]
Kasumi has received a lot of merchandise over the years, most notably multiple figures, starting with a decent sized and detailed articulated action figure by Epoch, as well as a doll produced by Ninie, both based on her appearance in Dead or Alive 2. Then she got multiple smaller and less detailed figures to promote the Xbox Dead or Alive games alongside other female fighters, until she finally got a big and highly detailed PVC figure by Good Smile, which later also got 3 color variations as well as a more detailed version over 15 years later in 2020. After that she has received other detailed PVC figures, like one which was part of a series of figures based on Xtreme 2 (which was later included in a special edition for Dead or Alive Paradise), 2 figures produced by Sega (one with her ninja outfit and another wearing a bikini), 2 others produced by Kotobukiya (following the same patterns), another based on her appearance in the book series Queen's Gate and one based on her more realistic Dead or Alive 5 look, produced by Griffon Enterprise. She also recently got a smaller but decently detailed articulated figure by Good Smile with a more classic anime style look.
Kasumi has also received around 5 adult oriented mousepads, a body pillow and a special edition Xbox console titled "Kasumi chan". Aside from these she has also received other less notorious merchandise or at least been in the cover of Dead or Alive related ones.
In popular culture[]
Kasumi in Dead Fantasy IV
Dead Fantasy[]
Also see: Kasumi on Dead Fantasy Wiki
Kasumi appears as a combatant in Monty Oum's CG movie series Dead Fantasy, where cast members of the Dead or Alive franchise fight those from the Final Fantasy franchise.
She fights with her wakizashi sword, utilizing her Tenjinmon style and ninpo abilities to battle the Final Fantasy cast. Her main opponent is Yuna from Final Fantasy X.
With Oum's death, the future of the series is uncertain.
Kasumi in Dead Fantasy I (remake)
Three years after Oum's death, an animator named Uiyahan created a remake of Oum's Dead Fantasy series as a tribute to him. Kasumi's appearance in the remake is based on her CGI render in Dead or Alive 5 and its updates.
Fighting quotes[]
- Dead or Alive/Dead or Alive 1 Ultimate
- Dead or Alive 2/DOA2: Hardcore
- Dead or Alive 3
- Dead or Alive 2 Ultimate
- Dead or Alive 4
- Dead or Alive Dimensions
- Dead or Alive 5
- Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate
- Dead or Alive 5 Last Round
- Dead or Alive 6
Music themes[]
The following are the music themes used for Kasumi throughout the series.
Note that both the Dead or Alive++ and Dimensions themes have no official names.
| Theme | Game appearances |
|---|---|
| "Ketsui no Toki" | Dead or Alive (arcade, 1996) Dead or Alive (Sega Saturn, 1997; Arcade Mode) Dead or Alive 1 Ultimate (Arcade Mode) Dead or Alive 5 Last Round (optional theme) Dead or Alive 6 (optional theme) |
| "ketsui no toki~pie-02 mix~" | Dead or Alive (PlayStation, 1998; Tournament Mode) |
| "Kasumi's theme" | Dead or Alive++ |
| "Hitohira ~reminiscent of ketsui no toki~" (or "Hitohira") | Dead or Alive 2 and DOA2: Hardcore games Dead or Alive 2 Ultimate Dead or Alive Online Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate (optional theme) Dead or Alive 5 Last Round (optional theme) |
| "Eternity" | Dead or Alive 3 Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate (optional theme) Dead or Alive 5 Last Round (optional theme) Dead or Alive 6 (optional theme) |
| "Kasumi (or Hitohira) Remix" | Dead or Alive 2 Ultimate (Ray House; as "Kasumi Remix") Dead or Alive 4 (Crash Club; as "Hitohira Remix") Dead or Alive 6 (optional theme) |
| "Purity" | Dead or Alive 4 Dead or Alive 5+ Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate (default theme) Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate Arcade Dead or Alive 5 Last Round (default theme) Dead or Alive 6 (optional theme) |
| "Kasumi's theme" | Dead or Alive Dimensions |
| "Hitohira -DW SW MIX-" | Dead or Alive 5 Last Round (optional theme) |
| "Playa Del Soul" | Dead or Alive Xtreme Venus Vacation |
Gallery[]
- See: Kasumi gallery
Trivia[]
- Kasumi is Tomonobu Itagaki's favorite character in the series.
- Kasumi's biggest trademarks are the sakura petals that blow in the wind around her, her wakizashi sword, and her blue ninja outfit.
- In the Japanese versions of the Dead or Alive Xtreme games, Kasumi's favorite color is cherry blossom pink (桜色[7] sakura iro, lit. "cherry blossom color"). However, in the English versions of the games, the color has been translated as either milky pink (Xtreme Beach Volleyball and Xtreme 2) or cherry pink (Xtreme 3).
- Kasumi has been ranked numerous times in many countdown lists created by game-based publications:
- Ranked #3 on TeamXbox's "Top Ten Xbox Babes" list in 2004.
- In the 2005 TV show Video Game Vixens, Kasumi won in the category "Dressed to Kill."
- IGN featured her in their "Videogame Babe of the Day" series in 2006.
- Ranked #38 on The Age newspapers' "The Top 50 Xbox Characters of All Time" list in 2008.
- Ranked #8 on GameDaily's "Top 50 Hottest Game Babes" list in 2008.
- Ranked #1 on VG Chartz's "Hottest Videogame Babes" list in 2009.
- Ranked #3 on UGO Networks's "Top 50 Videogame Hotties" list in 2010.
- Kasumi is seen in the 2002 film Run Ronnie Run. The character, Jerry Trellis (portrayed by E.J. De la Pena), is shown playing Dead or Alive 2 as Kasumi in two different scenes; the first scene shows Kasumi and Gen Fu fighting in Spiral, the second scene shows Kasumi and Jann Lee fighting in the Danger Zone. Near the end of the film, Jerry uses some of Kasumi's moves in a real fight.
- The reason Kasumi, Ayane, Eliot, and Kokoro don't have listed ages in western versions of the Dead or Alive games from the first Dead or Alive to Dead or Alive 4 is because they were under 18 years old. Tecmo decided to give them undefined ages to avoid the risk of a moral backlash from western countries.
- During the event episode "My True Self", Kasumi expressed some reluctance to accept a drink from Shandy to help her sleep, with the latter promptly reassuring her that it was non-alcoholic. In Japan, the legal age for drinking is 20.
- Kasumi is the only character in the series to still retain two of her default costumes since the first game. Her blue ninja costume and white ninja costume have appeared in all of the Dead or Alive games in the main series.
- Interestingly, in Dead or Alive 5 Kasumi's loose hair is thinner and shorter than when worn in her ponytail since realistically her hair down would be about bottom length. Her braid also is shorter but possibly as a throwback to her Dead or Alive original appearance, and her side ponytail is also shorter possibly to prevent clipping.
- Kasumi's Dead or Alive 4 ending caused some confusion due to it being considered out of place (depicting Kasumi having a dream about being a mermaid). Itagaki eventually explained that the idea behind the ending was that, since Dead or Alive 4 was intended to be the last game in the franchise, at least while he was in control of the series, he wanted to give an abstract allegory that she had been freed of the Mugen Tenshin law mandating her execution for being a Runaway Shinobi, especially when he regretted how he ended up permanently dooming her in the ending of Dead or Alive 3.[13]
- This was eventually given an in-universe acknowledgement in Dead or Alive Xtreme Venus Vacation, more specifically after her photoshoot in her year 2 birthday episode "Keep Watching Over Me", where she explains that she always had a dream of being a mermaid and how she longed for her freedom.
- In the original treatment of Dead or Alive 5 by Itagaki, Kasumi was to reunite with Ayane in a snowy field shortly after the events of the fourth tournament. Kasumi initially believed Ayane was coming to try and kill her and protested that they just stopped DOATEC and that everything was over, but Ayane revealed that she was actually coming to warn Kasumi that DOATEC was still around and that their village was destroyed by the DOATEC-Asia group. Ayane then collapsed into Kasumi's arms, although not before telling her that she will kill Miyako. However, this story treatment got rejected when Dead or Alive 5 changed hands.[14]
- In Dead or Alive 2 Kasumi is the only character whose ending cutscene comes after the credits.
- Kasumi was originally supposed to be a male shinobi before being changed to a female during development.
- Despite Kasumi being highly representative of the main fighting series and leading the marketing in most of the entries, the Xtreme games have not focused on her nearly as much, to the point that she has not appeared in the front and center of any of the games' box art other than a special edition for Dead or Alive Paradise.
- Owing to Kasumi's fortune telling hobby, she is shown to be well-versed in identifying the origin of various tropical zodiac signs in Xtreme Venus Vacation, as she explains the origin of her personal zodiac Pisces when the Owner asked her zodiac sign on her birthday. She also told Nyotengu the origin of Scorpio around the time of the latter's special day, and it is implied that she may have told Hitomi about the origin behind Gemini around the time of the latter's birthday.
- The North American box art of Dead or Alive for the Playstation features Kasumi with white hair for unknown reasons.
- For years all the entries where Kasumi was the focus of the box art in the Japanese versions were altered to remove the focus from her in the North American releases, with the first Dead or Alive shifting the focus to Leifang, the Dreamcast version of Dead or Alive 2 to Ein and the PS2 and Ultimate version of the same game having a generic cover with the logo of the game. Dead or Alive Dimensions was the first game that didn't remove the focus from her.
- Kasumi was one of if not the first female character to star in and represent a long running fighting game series with both male and female characters. Morrigan Aensland from Darkstalkers came first but she shares this role with Demitri Maximoff.
- Kasumi is the only character that has been present in every entry of the series, being the only one that appeared in the spin off Girls of DOA BlackJack, but even outside of that out of the original 9 playable characters she is the only one that has appeared in every entry in both the main and Xtreme series, because Leifang was absent in Xtreme 3 Venus, Tina was absent in all standard versions of Xtreme 3 and Zack is absent in Venus Vacation (not counting his statues).
- On the English page for Tecmo's old official site for the first game, it was mentioned that Kasumi's hobbies included, among other things, "playing Angel Eyes", referencing an arcade game Tecmo had released around the time Dead or Alive was made, titled Tōkidenshō Angel Eyes. The game is not mentioned on her original Japanese page. Interestingly, the English page mentioned the game despite Angel Eyes never seeing a release outside Japan.[15]
External links[]
Notes and references[]
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 http://www.gamecity.ne.jp/doa5/lastround/top.html
- ↑ http://teamninja-studio.com/doa5/lastround/uk/top.html
- ↑ http://deadoralive.wikia.com/wiki/File:DOAP_Calendar_Feb.jpg
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YbcSngvIOk
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUJmPkW3YIk
- ↑ http://deadoralive.wikia.com/wiki/File:DOAP_Guide_Kasumi.jpg
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 https://www.gamecity.ne.jp/doax3/chara_03.html
- ↑ http://deadoralive.wikia.com/wiki/File:DOA2_Kasumi_Render.png
- ↑ http://www.dualshockers.com/heroines-dead-alive-5-last-round-king-fighters-xiv-join-lovely-wallpapers/
- ↑ https://twitter.com/GamerNeJp/status/1050325418228690944
- ↑ https://twitter.com/doax_vv_staff/status/1052922338252021760
- ↑ https://twitter.com/doax_vv_staff/status/1052840189813436416
- ↑ https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/boards/835976-dead-or-alive-5-last-round/72165309
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/notes/tomonobu-itagaki/shed-luster-on-the-game-industry-why-did-we-stop-to-create-dead-or-alive-5/1552844841646295
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/19970427131214/http://www.tecmo.co.jp/product/doa/doa_ehom.htm
[]
| v · e · d | |
|---|---|
| Characters | |
| Playable | Kasumi • Hitomi • Helena Douglas • Leifang • Christie • Lisa • Tina Armstrong • Ayane |
| Non-playable characters | Niki • Zack |
| Terms | |
| Games | Beach Volleyball • Blackjack • Poker • Pool Hopping • Roulette • Slot Machines |
| Other terms | Gift Giving • Swimsuits • Zack Dollars |
| Locations | |
| Zack Island Accessory Shop • Bass Island • Casino • Hotel • Jungle • Niki Beach • Poolside • Private Beach • Radio Station • Sports Shop • Zack of All Trades | |
| Music | |
| "Brazilian Sugar" • "Bitchism" • "Come On Over (All I Want Is You)" • "Do It" • "Fe Real" • "Give Me A Reason" • "How Crazy Are You?" • "If It Don't Fit" • "Is This Love" • "I Want Your Girlfriend To Be My Girlfriend" • "Jesse Hold On" • "Me Gusta" • "Move It Like This" • "Lovin' You" • "Pegaito" • "Sweet And Deadly" • "The Kids Don't Like It" • "This Is It" • "Turn It Up" | |
| Archives | |
| Costumes • Item Collection Datasheet • Merchandise • Promotional Artwork and Wallpapers • Swimsuit Merchandise | |
| v · e · d |
|---|
| Characters |
| Main characters |
| Supporting characters Ayane • Ryu Hayabusa • Max • Victor Donovan •
Weatherby • Zack • Bass Armstrong • Hayate • Bayman • Leon |
| Minor characters Brad Wong • Eliot • Fame Douglas • Gen Fu • Hitomi • Jann Lee • Leifang • Pirates |
| Terms |
| Acupuncture • Central Intelligence Agency • Dead or Alive World Combat Championship • DOATEC • Donovan's Glasses ID Bracelet • Katana • Nanobots • Needle • Ninja • Nunchaku • Runaway Shinobi • Shuriken • Volleyball |
| Other terms Character Relationships |
| Locations |
| Ishikari Mountains • South China Sea • Hong Kong • DOA Island • Buddha • Waterwheel • Bamboo Forest • Forbidden Square • Gray Steps • Lab Complex • DOA Compound • Tina's Yacht • Ninja Clan |
| Music |
| DOA: Dead or Alive Original Soundtrack |
| Archives |
| Promotional Artwork |
| v · e · d | |
|---|---|
| Characters | |
| Playable | Kasumi |
| Terms | |
| Album • Blackjack • Swimsuits | |
| Archives | |
| Costumes • Promotional Artwork and Wallpapers | |
| v · e · d | |
|---|---|
| Characters | |
| Playable | Kasumi • Tina Armstrong • Hitomi • Helena Douglas • Leifang • Christie • Lisa • Kokoro • Ayane |
| Unlockable | Rio |
| Non-playable characters | Niki • Zack |
| Terms | |
| Games | Beach Flags • Beach Volleyball • Blackjack • Butt Battle • Poker • Pool Hopping • Slot Machines |
| Other terms | Bijin Tokei • Gift Giving • Girls Guide • Pole Dancing • Precious Memories • Private Paradise • Swimsuits • Venus Clips • Zack Dollars |
| Locations | |
| New Zack Island Accessory Shop • Bass Island • Brilliant Jungle • Hotel • Niki Beach • Poolside • Radio Station • Sports Shop • Tranquil Beach • Zack of All Trades | |
| Music | |
| Dead or Alive Paradise Kossori Namaroku Voice & Soundtrack CD "Paradise!!" • "Sensational Fantasy" • "Beach Bomb" • "Coconut Groove" • "Nitro Funk" • "Violet Eyed Beauty" • "Rewind!" • "Curiosity" • "Boogie Circuit" | |
| Archives | |
| Costumes • Item Collection Datasheet • Promotional Artwork and Wallpapers | |
| v · e · d | |
|---|---|
| Characters | Kasumi • Momiji • Hitomi • Helena Douglas • Marie Rose • Honoka • Nyotengu • Kokoro • Ayane • Misaki (DLC) • Leifang (DLC) • Zack (NPC) |
| Terms | |
| Games | Beach Volleyball • Blackjack • Butt Battle • Poker • Pool Hopping • Tug-of-War • Beach Flags • Rock Climbing • Roulette |
| Other terms | Gift Giving • Pictorial Scenes • Pole Dancing • Stats • Swimsuits • Virtual Pictorial • Zack Dollars • Girl Mode • Owner Mode |
| Locations | |
| New Zack Island Casino • Hotel • Niki Beach • Pool and Poolside • Sports Shop • Tranquil Beach • Zack of All Trades | |
| Archives | |
| Achievements • Costumes • Downloadable Content • Item Collection Datasheet • Merchandise • Promotional Artwork and Wallpapers • Transcripts | |
| v · e · d | |
|---|---|
| Starting Characters | Kasumi • Momiji • Hitomi • Helena Douglas • Marie Rose • Honoka • Nyotengu • Kokoro • Ayane • Misaki |
| Post-launch Characters | Luna • Tamaki • Fiona • Leifang • Nagisa • Kanna • Monica • Sayuri • Patty • Tsukushi • Lobelia • Nanami • Elise • Koharu • Tina Armstrong • Amy • Shandy • Yukino • Shizuku • Reika • Meg |
| Minigames | Beach Volleyball • Blackjack • Butt Battle • Pool Hopping • Rock Climbing • Roulette |
| Terms | Gift Giving • Pictorial Scenes • Stats • Swimsuits • Virtual Pictorial • Zack Dollars • Girl Mode • Owner Mode |
| Venus Islands Locations | New Zack Island • Hotel (Owner's Room) • Casino • Nikki Beach • Pool and Poolside • Private Beach • Jungle • Bass Island • Accessory Shop |
| Transcripts | Year One • Year Two • Year Three • Year Four • Year Five • Year Six • Extra Episodes |
| Miscellaneous | Soundtrack • Costumes • Item Collection Datasheet • Collaborations • Merchandise (Official 4-koma Manga) • Nagisa True Colors Webmanga |