(LAST UPDATE: 7/13/09)
Developer(s): Namco
Publisher(s): Namco
Designer(s): Hiroaki Yotoriyama
Platform(s): Arcade,
Dreamcast, Xbox 360 (XBLA)
Release: July 30th 1998 (Arcade), August 5th 1999 (JP Dreamcast),
September 9th 1999 (NA Dreamcast), July 2nd 2008 (XBLA)
Characters:
Mitsurugi,
Hwang,
Sophitia,
Siegfried,
Taki,
Voldo,
Rock,
Maxi,
Yoshimitsu,
Ivy,
Kilik,
Xianghua,
Nightmare,
Astaroth,
Lizard
Man, Sueng Mina, Edge
Master, Inferno,
Cervantes
Related Games: Soul Edge, Soul
Calibur 2, Soul Calibur 3, Soul
Calibur 3: Arcade Edition, Soul Calibur
4, Soul Calibur: Broken Destiny
Review: Namco completely
re-invented Soul Edge with an enhanced gameplay system that
runs at a silky smooth 60 fps. The new gameplay innovations (besides running
at 60 fps) include the "8-way run", allowing players to move in all
directions as they fight, and "guard impacting", one of the most innovative
defensive/counter systems to date. The home (Dreamcast) version offered a great improvement over the arcade, with cool extra options like creating
your own custom intro, and the inclusion of Theater mode where you
can watch awesomely fluid "katas" by all of the characters, check out official
art, or even listen to all of the character dialogue in the game (which is a
lot).
Most of the
classic characters from the prequel have returned with badass new looks, and
tons of new moves to boot, but still staying true to their original weapon fighting
styles. The brand new characters like Kilik & Ivy, each introduce innovative
weapon styles to the series and balance out the roster nicely. Through the use
of "motion capture", the characters of Soul Calibur move around
with some of the
most fluid animation seen in a video game to date, and look
equally as good. Characters also have vivid personalities, and actually say a wide variety of
quotes before and after gameplay!
The arcade
version of Soul Calibur lacked graphical polish, with lackluster
character renders & gritty textures, but the Dreamcast version really cleaned things up,
showing off some ultra-crispy graphics and practically looked like an all new game... It was actually the best looking
Dreamcast launch title, by far! Character models are ultra-detailed from
head to toe, and even have facial expressions / animations. Characters' mouths move accordingly to what they are
saying in real-time gameplay, which was an innovative step to fighting games
(and video games) at the time. Sparkling hit effects, weapon movement trails,
and highly detailed backdrops complete the graphical polish of this
unquestionably epic fighting game.
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- Review is for Dreamcast version of Soul Calibur - |
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10 / 10 |
Closing Comment:
The original Soul Calibur made a huge impact at arcades with it's amazing
fluidity, even
though at the time it wasn't the most popular fighter out there. The Dreamcast
version was really a "re-birth" of the game, and arguably the best
looking console game on the market when it launched. The thing was, not only did
it look amazing, it played like a gem.
Soul Calibur was one of the most technical & fun 3D fighting games
of it's time, and paved the way for some superb sequels. ~F.Yagami,
Webmaster
of TFG
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