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Soulcalibur IV
Publisher: Namco Bandai
Developer: Project Soul
Genre: Fighting
Release Date: July 29, 2008
Platforms: Playstation 3, Xbox 360
Reviewer: Eric
Gamers have been waiting for a new Soulcalibur game ever since the third game
came out on the Playstation 2 exclusively. When it was time to release the next
installment in the game it was good to hear that Namco Bandai was putting it out
on next generation consoles. Was it worth the wait for the fourth game in the
Soulcalibur series?
The Soulcalibur franchise has been around for quite some time now. Fans were
amazed to see a fighting game play this good and visually the game was amazing.
This is the same case for Soulcalibur IV, the game plays like a gem and it is
truly a next generation fighting game that is worth the entire buzz it is
getting. Despite the few problems this game may have it is still the kind of
fighters.
There are now more than thirty characters in the game, ranging from clones of
main characters to unique characters that stand on their own ground. Soulcalibur
has never been a series known for projectile movies or huge combos, but it is
still a fighting game that takes strategy to win. All of the characters have
their own path to win and now winning might be a little harder with the amount
of ways the developers put in. Pushing one button will not give you a win,
Soulcalibur IV is all about strategy.
Soulcalibur IV offers a different range of ways to play the game. Story mode
lets you choose from any of the characters, all of which have a motion ending at
the end. There are only five rounds in the story mode and at times some of the
loading times can get annoying, mainly since you only have five battles. You can
easily beat story mode in less than ten minutes, but what you get at the end is
well worth it. Namco Bandai has taken the time to give complete stories for all
of the characters and some of these endings will shock fans of the series.
Another new mode is the Tower of Lost Souls, a single player mode that has you
fighting numerous challenges. Each floor has you fighting against different
foes, which sounds just like any other mode. The key to the Tower of Lost Souls
is trying to figure out how to win that treasure. Namco Bandai might have made
it a little too challenging to figure out certain things, but you have a good
amount of time to collect all the treasures. Trust me when I say how worth it
this mode is, your creative character will thank you in the end.
When you beat all the floors you will open up a new option that lets you
descend the tower. This mode is hands down the most challenging part of the
entire game. The only possible way to win this is by having the right skills to
out think the computer opponents. Good luck, that’s the only advice I can give
you.
Character creations in Soulcalibur IV are amazing; words can not explain how
much detail you can put into these new fighters. You can either build new
characters or edit your favorites. There are numerous ways to earn new items for
your characters and some of the fun in this game is trying to unlock this
outfits. It might get tedious after the six hour mark, but when a fighting game
has more gamplay than an action game you know that the price for the game is
well worth it.
Each character has skills they can use in battle. Some of these skills are sort
of cheap, however it does open up a whole new door in the Soulcalibur Universe.
The longer you play the more skills you can unlock; the amount of time it takes
to fully beat this game is almost endless.
The strangest part about Soulcalibur IV has to be the arrival of Star Wars
characters. The Xbox 360 version has Yoda, who looks stunning. Yoda is a neat
character and everything, but why do we need him in this game? Not only that
Yoda is pretty cheap, you can throw him and his attacks seem to do more damage
than they should. It doesn’t help that Star Wars: The Force Unleashed’s The
Apprentice is in the game. His moves seem to be unfair, however you need to sit
down and learn how to use him before you manhandle everyone in sight.
This game might very well be the best 3-D fighter on the market. The controls
feel great on the Xbox 360; you can pick up the controller at anytime and get
right into the game. Pick this game up and see if you can try any of the new
features, like the Critical Finishers. These moves are amazing, plus you can do
them online without any lag.
Speaking of online play, Soulcalibur IV is perfect online. There is only a
few seconds added in the beginning of the loading time. Nothing of this is a big
deal when you consider how well this game plays. There is never any slow time
online, even with a ton of people online you can play a match without any
problems. Soulcalibur IV is the perfect online experience online.
Final Verdict
If you haven’t picked up a fighting game for awhile now then you better consider
buying Soulcalibur IV. This is the perfect fighting game on the Xbox 360 right
now, both off and online. I really hate how Namco Bandai added into Star Wars
characters, but at least we can beat the living hell out of Yoda if we want to.
Rating
9.50 out of 10
Soulcalibur IV Trailer
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