 Review By: Andrew Joy |
Developer: | Project Soul |
| Publisher: | Namco Bandai | |
| Genre: | Fighting | |
| ESRB: | Teen | |
| # Of Players: | 1-2 | |
| Online Play: | Yes | |
| Accessories: | PlayStation Network (online play), HDTV 720p/1080i/1080p, In-game Dolby Digital | |
| Buy Now: |   |
Back in the mid-90’s, long before they ever added the Bandai, Namco started the Soul series. Even though it is often lumped alongside games like Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter, Soulcalibur (as it would soon come to be known) is actually a weapons-based fighter more akin to Samurai Shodown. Having started its life as a 3D game, one could argue that the series has always been ahead of the curve in graphics (not having been forced to evolve in quite the same ways as other games in the genre), but it is more likely its intense gameplay and intriguing story – that of two sought after swords: Soul Edge, an ancient weapon given life through years of hatred and bloodshed, and its counter, the titular Soul Calibur – that has helped it rise to prominence and kept it entertaining gamers for over a decade. My own experience with the Soulcalibur series has been limited, but fondly remembered. I played one game in the series – Soulcalibur 2 with Spawn – but loved absolutely every minute of it. My reasons for never picking up another game until now are complicated, though I think it was in large part to the fact that fighting games remained in my eyes a largely uncomplicated fare, worth playing if I come across it, but not really the sort of fulfilling experience that makes one seek it out. In fact, even today they are one of my least favorite (though that hardly means hated) genres, right alongside FPS and sports titles. Of course, in a situation like this, it could work to the reader’s advantage, giving them a chance to see in relatively unbiased eyes whether this blade has been honed to perfection over the years, or whether it is as dull and ineffective as fighting with spoons.
The basic goal of any match in the game – no matter whether it is online or off, story mode or arcade, etc. – is to K.O., ring out or, at the very least, inflict the most damage upon your opponent before the time runs out. To do this, you have a number of very basic attacks that, for the more advanced player, can be combined with deadly skill. For a Soulcalibur newcomer, learning the ropes can be a lesson in cryptography. For example, a horizontal strike is coded as A, a vertical strike as B, a kick as K and guard as G; in order to pull off a Critical Finish – a really flashy, character-unique skill akin to Mortal Kombat’s Fatality – the player has to initiate A, B, K and G simultaneously. There are a number of different control layouts, and you can even customize them, something worth the time to play with since moves you once pulled off flawlessly in training can turn out to be a bit more cumbersome than they seemed, thanks to the frantic nature of the gameplay. Of course, there are a few other instances when things seem to not work just for the hell of it. Again, take the Critical Finishes: even though you may have performed it with startling accuracy in practice, it often fails when put to the test, even when all the criteria are met and (by default) you only have to hit the front left trigger. Now, while that may be a foible the whole game enjoys, the more annoying ones are often those unique to individual modes.
Take for example, the Story Mode. While it may not be the premiere attraction of a game like this, it is certainly the one that longtime fans of the series will be drawn back for, in order to relish in the unique backgrounds of each character. However, consisting of just a handful of stages, the story mode will likely take you no longer than 15 minutes to beat with any given character. In fact, even for a beginner, it’s be best to start on the hardest difficulty, otherwise you’ll be able to simply throw your opponent to death (or ring out) for an easy and even more unsatisfying victory. For true fighting fans, the Arcade Mode is where players can get right down to the action without a lot of the fluff found in the other modes. It is also a bit more challenging – rather than the single ring out or K.O. it takes for each character in the Story Mode, it is best two out of three here and the characters themselves are much more difficult (Algol changes from a pushover to being able to mop the floor with you in a matter of seconds if you drop your guard). Of course, enduring the beating can be worth it since finishing Arcade Mode with each version’s special character unlocks the Apprentice. But, if you’re really looking for the most rewarding mode, that would have to be the Tower of Lost Souls, which unlocks quite a bit of content upon meeting certain (somewhat vague) conditions. A new mode, Tower of Lost Souls asks you to compile a team of usually two or three fighters and ascend some 60 floors (with checkpoints around every three) of essentially boss battles – though it can be of controller-smashing difficulty, this is where the real meat of Soulcalibur IV lies for single players. (There is also a helpful training mode where you can see, execute and perfect the arsenal of moves for each character.)
Of course, Soulcalibur is not really renowned for being a single-player game and, even if it means restraining and forcibly dragging them to the couch, the real fun of the series has come from delivering a crushing defeat to your friends. Soulcalibur IV is no different, only now we are in an age where online play is common place and desired – nay, expected with almost every title, whether it suits it or not. And, just as you might expect, both Xbox LIVE and the PlayStation Network are supported here (though you can still tackle your foes in person with the local multiplayer if you so wish). Unfortunately, when it comes to the online portion of Soulcalibur IV’s multiplayer, connecting is a bit of a crapshoot, since, after moments of waiting around, the game has been known to announce that the match it was trying to automatically connect you to is, in fact, all full up. And it will do this over and over and over again. Mind you, these problems aren’t exactly uncommon in this new, online-obsessed generation, but – just as we noted in our review of Unreal Tournament 3 – it is a hard thing to let slip by when one’s enjoyment of a title is relative to the quality of its multiplayer. It still works if you’re willing to host your own battle, but it really makes the quick match feature rather worthless. Of course, newcomers may be disheartened to hear that, even if you do finally make a connection, the matchmaking is horribly broken. Almost as bad as team killers, there are people (whom I like to call “squatters”) who will wait around online, standing there statuesque in the beginning only to break out some prodigal skill in the last round and completely devastate you, presumably for the sheer giggles of knowing that the person on the other end of that connection is scratching their head so hard they can now tickle their brain.
Posted: 2008-09-17 19:10:10 PST