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Leifang

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Leifang
Dead or Alive character
Leifang in Dead or Alive 5
First appearanceDead or Alive (1996)
Created byTomonobu Itagaki[1]
Voiced by
Portrayed byYing Wang (film)[5]
In-universe information
Fighting styleTai chi
OriginChina
NationalityChinese

Leifang (Japanese: レイファン, Hepburn: Reifan), often written as Lei Fang, is a fictional character in the Dead or Alive fighting game series by Team Ninja and Tecmo (Koei Tecmo). She was introduced in the original Dead or Alive in 1996 and has appeared in the series' subsequent installments. She is a Chinese college student and Tai Chi martial arts prodigy who competes in the Dead or Alive tournaments to prove her superiority over fellow combatant Jann Lee.

One of the Dead or Alive series' more popular characters, Leifang has appeared on series merchandise and the feature film DOA: Dead or Alive. She has received mainly positive public and critical reception for factors such as her sex appeal and in-game costumes.

Conception and creation[edit]

When developing the 1996 fighting video game Dead or Alive, lead developer Tomonobu Itagaki had wanted to include a woman that used kung fu early on. Named Long Lihua in the game's design document, as development progressed her concept was scrapped,[6] and the character Gen Fu was given a Tai Chi fighting style instead. However Itagaki wanted to include more Chinese martial arts into the title despite the development team being told not to include more than nine characters in the game. After a strong showing at the AOU Entertainment Expo in 1996 with a version of the game that only had three playable characters, Itagaki took a female character test model and applied the character Jann Lee's moveset to it. At location tests she became quite popular, and Itagaki joked as a result he had "tricked" the development team to include the "AOU-only character". As a result the Tai Chi fighting style was given to her instead of Gen Fu,[1] who was changed to use Xingyiquan instead.[7]

Originally they had developed Leifang's fighting style to use grappling attacks to help fit into the "rock paper scissors" gameplay mechanic of the franchise. However, with development on the Sega Saturn port they incoporated a wider variety of attacks that used direct strikes. Itagaki's design philosophy was that instead of removing gameplay the key to strengthening a character was to add more, changing her from "a character who can't win without using holds to a character who becomes stronger by using holds." In terms of personality and appearance they wanted to emphasize Leifang as "cute" but also innocent, with Itagaki describing her as a good example of how well the modeling team for the series worked when they created a character with love.[1]

Appearances[edit]

Leifang is a Chinese woman introduced in the 1996 fighting game Dead or Alive by Koei Tecmo. Considered a prodigy in Tai Chi, a martial art she picked up to be able to compete with local boys around her, she is the daughter of a wealthy family,[1] and earned a martial arts scholarship to Montana State University to teach the students.[8] One day upon encountering a boy being accosted by two thugs she intervened, she is taken by surprise and received a deep slash on her arm. The boy, Jang Lee, defended her and quickly dispatched the two before walking away. Taken aback by his impressive strength, she increased her studies and enters the series' martial arts tournaments in order to defeat him.[1] Through the course of the series she develops rivalries with other fighters as well, namely Tina and Hitomi.[9]

Stuntwoman Ying Wang played Leifang in a minor role in the live-action film DOA: Dead or Alive. The character makes several appearances at the beginning of the film, until she is knocked out by Gen Fu.

Promotion and reception[edit]

Several figures of Leifang were released by Bandai, Epoch, and other companies[10] like After Dark and Kotobukiya.[11][12] Other merchandise has included dakimakura body pillow cases[13] and 3D mouse pads.[14]

Leifang was well received upon debut. Dreamcast Magazine describer her as "a Chinese beauty in all senses of the word" and an "elegant fighter if there ever was one", but also a character that proved to be "a bit of a femme fatale at the same time".[15] Vietnamese newspaper Thanh Niên meanwhile stated she stood out amongst th Dead or Alive cast due to her intelligence and character background, additionally praising how she always held "an optimistic and loving attitude towards life" while being portrayed in outfits that were both cute and complimented her physique.[16] Hilary Goldstein of IGN described her as having "the most recognizable braided pigtails in all of video gaming", further stating that the website's staff enjoyed the character due to the fact she "dresses with some elegance" and the visually impressive nature of her attacks.[17] Liyun Fei of 3DM meanwhile praised her as one of the more popular characters of the franchise, describing her as having a toned physique with a "bit of masculinity" that they felt was enjoyed by players and complimented well by her in-game outfits.[18]

The staff of Kakuchopurei named her their favorite character in the Dead or Alive franchise, calling her "the underdog who somehow keeps making it in every entry and adds pizzazz to the already-stellar cast". They further praised her outfit selection, feeling it suited her "to a tee", and they felt her appearance was superior to every younger female character amongst the game's cast. Additional praise was given for her character's story, which featured her as not only wanting to surpass her Jan Lee but also rivalry with characters like Hitomi, stating "You know you’ve got it made in the fighting game world when you’re front and center in the game’s story with strong rivals with different martial arts philosophies."[9]

Author Nnedi Okorafor in a thesis published for the Michigan State University's Department of Journalism examined several video game characters and how they were portrayed through media such as gaming manuals, including Leifang. While the drew issue with how text for the character's backstory described her as a "vixen" solely because she was portrayed as "aggressive and 'beautiful'", Okorafor also praised how the character's backstory emphasized her placement in an overseas scholarship program. She felt details such as this helped Leifang to be portrayed as more than "just a female character whose breast can be set to bounce profusely", while also helping to add context to her character in a way that made more more realistic in a real world sense rather than just a virtual one.[8]

Regarding representation and stereotypes[edit]

Leon Hunt in the book Kung Fu Cult Masters used Leifang as an example of how fighting games often lack authenticity in how they portray certain techniques, stating that while in cutscenes she used actual Tai Chi moves, her in-game fighting style instead demonstrated more on "the 'soft', flowing idea of an 'internal' style of Tai Chi".[19] George Joerz of Chinese website Sina however argued that Leifang's portrayal of Tai Chi was in line with its 14th century usage as "Practical Tai Chi", a subset of boxing as a martial art that focuses on internal damage instead of physical. He noted that some aspects of her fighting style deviated due to the nature of fighting games,[20] with the website staff in another article specifically citing her use of kicking attacks. Even with this they felt it enhanced her appeal particularly when taking into account cultural outfits such as the cheongsam that gave her the flexibility for such motions.[21] Joerz meanwhile felt Tecmo's approach kept the fundamental concepts enough to illustrate the fighting style, and further stated that her portrayal combines a difficult martial art "with the implicit feminine beauty of China."[20]

While lecturer Fanny Lignon cited Leifang's attire as an example of gender stereotype reinforcement in fighting games,[22] Christopher B. Patterson in the book Open World Empire meanwhile cited her as an example of how the Dead or Alive series "depicted the 'cultural fragrance' of racial identities through a kawaii minimalism" via elements such as her cheongsam outfit and queue hairstyle, and that elements like sexualized attire tied into character backgrounds illustrated the characters' racial identities as an "explicit pleasure" for players to enjoy.[23] The staff of Chinese website The Paper used her as an example how over-present the use of cultural identifiers such as martial arts and cheongsam outfits are in video game character design to help players "understand" that a character is Chinese are, and questioned the necessity of them.[24] The staff of Cina's 17173.com on the other hand argued these aspects were well received by players, and elements such as her hairstyle which would normally be seen as "immature" instead received praise. They further argued as a whole she was seen "vivid portrayal of Chinese, but also of all Asian female fighters", citing the impact of her cheongsam design on male players in particular.[25]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e Ujiie, Masanori (2004). Dead or Alive History: Team Ninja Freaks (in Japanese). Enterplane. p. 146. ISBN 9784757719798.
  2. ^ a b "Lei Fang Voices (Dead or Alive)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
  3. ^ "yamionthetrap! on Twitter: '@SoCassandra One of my favorite voice actress who never cease to amaze me with her vocal range! The voices as Kyubey, Taiga, Leafa, Lei-Fang, Aoi, Angie, Morgana and Ritsu are nailing in the spotlight! Wish you luck for the potential in future roles!'". Twitter. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  4. ^ "Yumi Toma Profile". Metacritic. Retrieved January 1, 2016.
  5. ^ "Ying Wang". Rotten Tomatoes. December 15, 2015. Retrieved January 1, 2016.
  6. ^ Ujiie, Masanori (2004). Dead or Alive History: Team Ninja Freaks (in Japanese). Enterplane. p. 20-21. ISBN 9784757719798.
  7. ^ Ujiie, Masanori (2004). Dead or Alive History: Team Ninja Freaks (in Japanese). Enterplane. p. 157. ISBN 9784757719798.
  8. ^ a b Okorafor, Nnedi (1999). Virtual Women: Replacing the Real (Masters thesis). Michigan State University Department of Journalism. pp. 56–59. doi:10.25335/ft1d-e786.
  9. ^ a b "Ranking The Dead or Alive Waifus From Hot To Scoville-Breaking Smokin'". Kakuchopurei. February 27, 2019. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  10. ^ "Lei Fang ‹ Characters ‹ Encyclopedia - MyFigureCollection.net (Tsuki-board.net)". MyFigureCollection.net. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  11. ^ "Lei Fang Statue Lacks Graceful Pose". Kotaku.com.au. November 7, 2007. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  12. ^ "Lei Fang Statue Lacks Graceful Clothes". Kotaku.com.au. January 25, 2008. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  13. ^ "Dead or Alive 5 pillow cases coming to Japan - GamerTell". TechnologyTell. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
  14. ^ "『デッド オア アライブ 5』レイファン、こころ、ティナのマウスパッドが登場！ この弾力、体験してみる価値あり！！ - ファミ通.com". Famitsu.com. January 29, 2013. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
  15. ^ "Dead or Alive 2: Alive and Heaving". Dreamcast Magazine. No. 5. January 2001. p. 36.
  16. ^ "25 nhân vật nữ khiến các game thủ nam "mất tập trung" nhất | Đánh giá - Phóng sự". Thanh Niên (in Vietnamese). March 8, 2015. Archived from the original on July 1, 2015. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  17. ^ Goldstein, Hilary (May 20, 2012). "Girls of DOAU: Lei Fang". IGN. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
  18. ^ 对比有真相亮瞎众人眼！火舞春丽等Cos各种蛋疼. 3DM (in Chinese). September 7, 2012. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
  19. ^ Hunt, Leon (2003). Kung Fu Cult Masters. Wallflower. p. 196. ISBN 9781903364635.
  20. ^ a b Joerz, George (October 11, 2019). 《生死格斗Online》- 太极拳. Sina (in Chinese). Retrieved June 21, 2024.
  21. ^ 熊猫会功夫！日式游戏中的中国元素盘点. Sina Games (in Chinese). November 12, 2014. Retrieved June 21, 2024.
  22. ^ Lignon, Fanny (December 2013). "Des jeux video et des adolescents : à quoi jouent les filles et garçons des collèges et lycées". Le Temps des médias (in French). 21 (2): 212. doi:10.3917/tdm.021.0143.
  23. ^ Patterson, Christopher B. (April 14, 2020). Open World Empire: Race, Erotics, ant the Global Rise of Video games. NYU Press. pp. 55–56. ISBN 9781479802043.
  24. ^ 中国女英雄“美”小胖妞形象惹争议：外国人的刻板印象何时变. The Paper (in Chinese). July 20, 2016. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
  25. ^ 生死格斗OL偶像档案：太极撼天地 雷芳. 17173.com (in Chinese). March 28, 2008. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
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