This is why Ed Boon has managed to change the game with MK franchise. He knows how to balance the audience needs aka, give the gamer what they really want, and guess what, it pays off. What separates him from the Japanese companies is that the Japanese are still stuck in a mentality where they believe that aesthetics is what sells a game. Getting you to believe that if you see certain characters like for example Kasumi that you'll invest in that character no matter what because why? It's Kasumi. Same thing with Ryu or Chun-li from SF. (I don't fall into this trap thats why a lot of those companies fall to the waist side eventually as far as sells go) They are the faces of those franchises so what do the Japanese companies do? limit their creativity with the character because that's what people are used to liking, just SEEING those characters. But eventually a lot of these type of people are the same ones that hinder the depth of the game. Because all they have left to be focused on, is the fighting mechanics of the game...
No offense, but MK sells just as much on its aesthetics as DOA does. It's camp gore instead of camp boobs, but it's a similar principle.
Now, what you're implying here if I understand you correctly is that Ed Boon "gives us what we really want" (when DOA implicitly does not), and this could mean two things: 1) "Content" and 2) Gameplay (as most other things can be lumped into aesthetics).
1) Both DOA5U and MK9 has plenty of nice, useless extras features. Watch Modes, Test Your Might, Combo Challenges, Stages, Unlockable costumes, Story Modes, yadda yadda. DOA has the added bonus of all the move properties and frame data being in-game however, and it's tutorial mode is much more complete and exhaustive. So for me, DOA has it better.
2) If you like MK9's gameplay better than DOA5U's that's fine I guess, but both do what they set-out to do: evolve their franchise's fighting system while also keeping it true to the style that fans fell in love with to begin with. Now if we're talking a balance thing, oh my lord. I may complain here and there about DOA's balancing, but MK9's is insane! At least DOA doesn't have any 9-1s.
Anyway, I just don't get why some people like to ride Ed Boon's dick so much. Same thing applies to Itagaki. Both headed some great games and they deserve respect for that. But they're not untouchable messiahs. They both fuck up and they actually fuck up quite often.
In my personal opinion, if Ed Boon is no more or less capable of giving they audience what they want (or as you strangely worded it: "needs") than Tecmo/TN with DOA.