Team NINJA executive producer Tomonobu Itagaki first burst into prominence with Dead or Alive; the original entry became notorious for the size and mobility of its female characters' breasts as much as its Virtua Fighter-baiting gameplay.

Since then, his development studio has increasingly gained relevance. He surprised the world by throwing his weight behind Microsoft in 2000 with the release of Dead or Alive 3 exclusively for the Xbox; in 2004, Ninja Gaiden reinvigorated action gamers with its polish and punishing difficulty.