Podcaster Joe Rogan has just praised the Dead or Alive franchise. Dead or Alive is best known as a series of fighting games developed by Team Ninja and has been around as early as 1996. It has had six main titles and a few spinoffs which feature its famous female characters playing Volleyball and other minigames.
Meanwhile, Joe Rogan is a former UFC commentator and avid martial arts fanatic. He has spent multiple years acting as a host and commentator for the UFC and has also been a solid fixture in the MMA community. He has also appeared in three different UFC video games, even becoming a playable character in EA Sports UFC 2 and EA Sports UFC 3.
During Joe Rogan's podcast, he stated that he enjoyed "that karate game," referring to Dead or Alive. This seems to come out of nowhere since, previously, Joe Rogan said that he doesn't play video games anymore. He mentioned that he had been playing against his daughter in a losing effort and added that it was a great game since it allowed players to select from multiple characters. In the game, each character uses a distinct style of martial arts and plays differently, creating a dynamic similar to an MMA bout.
In addition, Rogan also expressed his admiration for the character his daughter was using—Marie Rose. While he didn't immediately name the character, one of his assistants pulled up a screenshot of Marie Rose and Bayman from Dead or Alive trading blows, and he instantly recognized her and declared how "hot" the character was. Rogan seemed amazed at both the character and the fighting style, with Marie Rose utilizing a martial art known as Systema. He even detailed the maneuver that was used against him — a fast move where Marie Rose spun around and kicked her opponent — which caused him to lose three times.
While Rogan has expressed criticism of video games, he seemed to have enjoyed his time playing Dead or Alive. He added that combat sports enthusiasts could use some martial arts strategy if they knew the techniques being used in the game. With his years of experience calling fights in the UFC, it's no wonder that he would enjoy a franchise such as this, especially with how similar a lot of the styles and movements are. Perhaps Rogan's familiarity with different combat techniques gave him a deeper appreciation of the portrayal of in-game maneuvers.