Soul Calibur IV

THE GOOD:
- Gameplay is still amazing
- Visuals are amazing, characters and background
- Tower of Lost Souls

THE BAD:
- Online mode is riddled with bugs
- Shockingly short story modes
- No local mutli-player modes such as league or tournament

SUMMARY:

Despite that fact that a large quantity of my childhood gaming was absorbed by Tekken, I have always been open to try other fighting games, and I am ashamed to say that the fourth instalment of Namco’s Soul Calibur was my first pry into the series that has been around since the conception of the original Playstation. The question is: did Soul Calibur really make the desired impact, compared to other sequels and recent follow-ups?

The story is as it always has been in the series; one blade, a couple of dozen warriors want it, they will fight for it. Each character has their very own story mode in Soul Calibur IV, and this was the first mode I dived into, straight after making the purchase.

All I can say is that I was deeply disappointed with what the story mode had to offer. Each of the character’s stories would be given in bland text, and though the actual context of the writing was great, the actual presence of story-telling was complete missing. This was only thereafter dampened by the fact that the story mode is extremely short. Depending on which character you choose, the story mode can literally last five matches, and then you are greeted to a fair cut scene that marks the end of the specific character’s story. As someone walking into the series who had been informed of the previous instalments having bountiful story modes, this honestly made me regret buying the game, period.

Just like any fighter, Soul Calibur requires one combatant to reduce the enemy’s health bar to zero in order to win a round, or this can also be achieved via ring-out. Each character has their own moveset, comprised of both regular and special attacks. Upon entering the game, there will be no real tutorial as to how everything works; only leaving you to scrap with the combat dummy. Apart from both the story mode and training modes, there is also the online play, arcade mode and a new entry under the name of Tower of Lost Souls.
The online play in Soul Calibur IV is just what you would expect, but if you are hoping for minimal lag then you will be disappointed. Depending on the connection of both players, it could be a smooth and fair fight; if not, it could just be two static characters with noises and flashes around them.

The Tower of Lost Souls is mainly for those who simply want to take their favourite characters through an array of fights, in order to gain experience and Gold. Personally, taking my created characters through this mode was highly enjoyable and the game generates custom characters to play against, just to keep things fresh. Tower of Lost Souls can last you as long as you like, but for those looking for more won’t find it.

There is a roster of 31 characters in all, including the download Yoda character who was exclusive to the 360 version of Soul Calibur IV. Minor tweaks have been made to characters to balance things out, and now that I am playing both Soul Calibur II and III, you can really notice how much fairer Namco have made the game in multiplayer fights.

In terms of presentation, Soul Calibur is one of the best-looking fighters still one year after its release. Some character may lack style, but all models are smooth and detailed. For those interested, the breast physics are also in full flow, and with the addition of character creation, I am sure the more immature Soul Calibur players will find their thrills without actually fighting.
The backgrounds are all very interesting to look at, and are also great in graphical output. The scoring is another good point to pick out, but as nostalgic the announcer is to the game, I think his addition to the game can put a dent in the overall impression.

When I picked up Soul Calibur IV, I had no idea that it would be a much more watered down experience in comparison to the entries available on the Playstation Two. With a lacklustre story mode, buggy online play, and no real attention to local-multiplayer features, I would put it down as a bit of a disaster, only brought back into light via the Tower mode and the games fantastic visuals.