Dead Or Alive 3 - The Moon Leads Her To (2001) 🌕🥊

Aquilla

Picture this

It's the early 2000s, and it's a typical weekend afternoon—nothing to do but chores and some errands to run.

Yet, all that is finished when it comes to the OG Xbox. Life is already too short as it is, so you might as well play the damn thing.

You turn on your CRT RCA TV, then power up the Xbox, and you decide to insert Dead Or Alive 3 into the drive. No hyper-adrenaline intro to amp you up; the game immediately takes you to the start menu.

You have your OG Xbox Foodstamp kit: Mountain Dew and some Nacho Cheese Doritos . The DOA experience begins.

Now, Dead or Alive is not really known for its music. There are a few mentions here and there. (Ex. Ryu Hayabusa DOA3 Theme - "Look Ahead " to name a few) However, the music is the franchise's most underrated aspect. There are some heaters left and right, especially in Dead or Alive's heyday (1999 -2006). One song that has continued to impress me years after its inception was merely an ending theme.

Dead or Alive's IT Girl: Kasumi, has a lot of narrative baggage. At her core, she is essentially a runaway ninja. It is not worth explaining, but the theme applies a lot to the characteristic. She has nowhere to live or hide peacefully, but the only thing left is her purpose.

It is perhaps the reason why her ending theme is called "The Moon Leads Her To". It's the moon she focuses on to give her a sense of direction.

Whoever composed this theme was attentive as hell. It's an ambient and Alternative fusion of sonics that creates something so hauntingly beautiful. The gritty, somber, drenched electric guitar and the hydraulic synth keys being pressed. Topping it off with melodies reminiscent of an ancient Min'yō vocalist. A very Dusk coded track I would say