Itagaki creates his game characters by immersing himself in their roles and the games. This is a reason why he objects to the suggestion of Kasumi in the "Ninja Gaiden" universe, saying her 'soft' nature is conflicting with the 'hard-edged' nature of the game whereas Ayane perfectly fits in. It is this role immersion which helps him to develop and exclude guns from the moveset of the Spartan named Nicole in "Dead or Alive 4". However, immersing himself in the games' atmosphere has also failed him at times. The Butt Battle, and Tug-of-War of "Dead or Alive Xtreme 2" were heavily panned on the basis of minigame design. Itagaki defended those games as nostalgia comedic pieces, meant to make the player remember the celebrity games played on Japanese television.