TOKYO--While Tecmo has said before that it plans on releasing Dead or Alive 4 as an Xbox 360 launch game, it didn't say if it meant the game would hit shelves day-and-date with the system or if it would merely make it into the three-month launch window Microsoft's Peter Moore referenced when he said there would be 40 games available for the system "at launch."
Tecmo removed all doubt today when the company announced during the Tokyo Game Show that Dead or Alive 4 will hit stores in Japan, together with the next-generation console, on December 10. Tecmo hasn't announced a firm American release date for the game yet, but it seems likely to hit the Xbox 360's launch window, if not the November 22 launch itself. Online retailers don't agree on a shipping date, but the consensus is that the game will arrive before the system. EBgames.com and Amazon.com list the game as shipping on November 15, with GameStop.com expecting it November 1.