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This thread has been linked to the game 'Soul Calibur IV'.
Soul Calibur IV is the fifth instalment in Namco’s series of weapons based fighting games (the first being Soul Blade a.k.a. Soul Edge ).As with any series reaching its fourth sequel it is very difficult to keep the game fresh and exciting.Soul Calibur IV could not possibly be described as original but it is certainly very impressive and a lot a fun.Namco have been helped to a certain degree by the fact there are precious few arcade style beat em ups available for the current generation of consoles.Xbox 360 launch title ‘Dead Or Alive 4’ was merely average while Sega’s ‘Virtua Fighter 5’ was technically very impressive but involved putting in some serious hours to master.This meant it had virtually no ‘pick up and play’ value to it.Soul Calibur IV (as if made by Ronseal !) does exactly what it says on the tin.
The graphics are amongst the best seen on a console game to date.The characters all look amazing,with superb definition and animation.The backgrounds are equally as good with the water effects on one stage looking particularly impressive.The animation is faultless and there is not a hint of slowdown to be seen.This is technically one of the very best games around at the moment.The other area where this game also impresses is in the sound.From the clashing metal from the blades of swords and axes to the sound of the lightsabre’s (when using the Star Wars licenced characters) this game sounds fantastic.The voice overs are as cheesey and annoying as ever,but they are as much a part of the Soul Calibur experience here as they have ever been.John Williams ‘Duel Of The Fates’ playing during the Star Wars licenced stages and the sound of passing Tie Fighters are also amongst the highlights of this game.
Where Namco have really come up trumps though is in the gameplay.They have managed to make this extremely user friendly.Even if you have never seen a Soul Calibur game before you will have got the basic hang of it within a couple of goes.As for long standing fans,there are some new features.The first is armour,you have high,middle and low armour that can only be destroyed by your opponents attack hitting the area where the armour is placed.Then there are the ‘Critical Finishes’,they work in a similar fashion to the finishing moves in the Mortal Kombat games.Each player has a ‘Soul Gauge’ and when hit it decreases.When it is seriously damaged it will flash red and then you can finish your opponent off with a very over the top finishing move.Each character has its own individual finishing move and to be honest it adds a lot of fun.They are however pretty difficult to pull off as they have to be timed to perfection.There is also an online mode for the first time in a Soul Calibur game which works very well.It is a straightforward one on one style experience which I personally don’t really like unless I’m playing against someone I know.There are a couple of negatives regarding the gameplay element of this game. With the Xbox 360 controller’s D-Pad being placed between two analogue sticks it is not ideal at all for fighting games and Soul Calibur IV is no exception.The Hori EX- 2 arcade fighting stick looks great for games like this but at around £50 they are pretty expensive.The other letdown is there is no Team Battle Mode.In multiplayer you can only fight one battle at a time.That was the mode in which I mostly played the last Soul Calibur game in.Hopefully there may be a download available at some point to include this as I know a lot of people are disappointed that it has been omitted.
As well as the original characters such as Taki,Voldo,Ivy etc. there are some new ones here to enjoy.The much hyped Star Wars licenced characters are OK.The Apprentice is over powerful and seems to have an unfair advantage,while Yoda is fun to play with for a while but is extremely annoying to play against.Most attacks go straight over his head and he cannot be picked up.There are other new characters but one worthy of mention is Hilde.She is a female knight armed with a small sword in one hand and lance type spear in the other.You can attack from a distance with her because the spear is very long,but she is deadly at close range as well.For me she is the best new character in this game.
Overall,Soul Calibur IV is a superb arcade style fighting game and for sure the best one of its kind currently available.It is nothing more than that though.If you liked the previous games or indeed beat em ups in general there is nothing to disappoint you here.However,if you are not a fan of this kind of game it is highly unlikely to make you one.For me though it was pretty much everything I hoped it would be and for that I can totally recommend it.
9/10.
The graphics are amongst the best seen on a console game to date.The characters all look amazing,with superb definition and animation.The backgrounds are equally as good with the water effects on one stage looking particularly impressive.The animation is faultless and there is not a hint of slowdown to be seen.This is technically one of the very best games around at the moment.The other area where this game also impresses is in the sound.From the clashing metal from the blades of swords and axes to the sound of the lightsabre’s (when using the Star Wars licenced characters) this game sounds fantastic.The voice overs are as cheesey and annoying as ever,but they are as much a part of the Soul Calibur experience here as they have ever been.John Williams ‘Duel Of The Fates’ playing during the Star Wars licenced stages and the sound of passing Tie Fighters are also amongst the highlights of this game.
Where Namco have really come up trumps though is in the gameplay.They have managed to make this extremely user friendly.Even if you have never seen a Soul Calibur game before you will have got the basic hang of it within a couple of goes.As for long standing fans,there are some new features.The first is armour,you have high,middle and low armour that can only be destroyed by your opponents attack hitting the area where the armour is placed.Then there are the ‘Critical Finishes’,they work in a similar fashion to the finishing moves in the Mortal Kombat games.Each player has a ‘Soul Gauge’ and when hit it decreases.When it is seriously damaged it will flash red and then you can finish your opponent off with a very over the top finishing move.Each character has its own individual finishing move and to be honest it adds a lot of fun.They are however pretty difficult to pull off as they have to be timed to perfection.There is also an online mode for the first time in a Soul Calibur game which works very well.It is a straightforward one on one style experience which I personally don’t really like unless I’m playing against someone I know.There are a couple of negatives regarding the gameplay element of this game. With the Xbox 360 controller’s D-Pad being placed between two analogue sticks it is not ideal at all for fighting games and Soul Calibur IV is no exception.The Hori EX- 2 arcade fighting stick looks great for games like this but at around £50 they are pretty expensive.The other letdown is there is no Team Battle Mode.In multiplayer you can only fight one battle at a time.That was the mode in which I mostly played the last Soul Calibur game in.Hopefully there may be a download available at some point to include this as I know a lot of people are disappointed that it has been omitted.
As well as the original characters such as Taki,Voldo,Ivy etc. there are some new ones here to enjoy.The much hyped Star Wars licenced characters are OK.The Apprentice is over powerful and seems to have an unfair advantage,while Yoda is fun to play with for a while but is extremely annoying to play against.Most attacks go straight over his head and he cannot be picked up.There are other new characters but one worthy of mention is Hilde.She is a female knight armed with a small sword in one hand and lance type spear in the other.You can attack from a distance with her because the spear is very long,but she is deadly at close range as well.For me she is the best new character in this game.
Overall,Soul Calibur IV is a superb arcade style fighting game and for sure the best one of its kind currently available.It is nothing more than that though.If you liked the previous games or indeed beat em ups in general there is nothing to disappoint you here.However,if you are not a fan of this kind of game it is highly unlikely to make you one.For me though it was pretty much everything I hoped it would be and for that I can totally recommend it.
9/10.
Still want this game. Might trade my PS3 copy of GTA4 for it and keep the 360 version.
Thanks Emmie,yeah its wierd we reviewed the same things twice and in both cases gave them the same scores.I have found a way of getting my beloved Team Battle Mode back.I played it with 2 of my mates at the weekend and we wrote our overall scores down on a piece of paper !.Not really what I expected to have to do with a new console game to be honest but it sort of did the trick.Also found out its not the best game to play after beer.Tried that last night and was useless at it,also I can't feel the fingers on my right hand this morning either !.Maybe I could invent a condition called 'Soul Calibur fingers' and sue Namco for my symptoms !!!!.
Nice Review Pete_21, the funny thing is that we seem to give the same games the same scores, i didnt even read your review until after for both this and the dark knight lol
Soul Calibur IV is the fifth instalment in Namco’s series of weapons based fighting games (the first being Soul Blade a.k.a. Soul Edge ).As with any series reaching its fourth sequel it is very difficult to keep the game fresh and exciting.Soul Calibur IV could not possibly be described as original but it is certainly very impressive and a lot a fun.Namco have been helped to a certain degree by the fact there are precious few arcade style beat em ups available for the current generation of consoles.Xbox 360 launch title ‘Dead Or Alive 4’ was merely average while Sega’s ‘Virtua Fighter 5’ was technically very impressive but involved putting in some serious hours to master.This meant it had virtually no ‘pick up and play’ value to it.Soul Calibur IV (as if made by Ronseal !) does exactly what it says on the tin.
The graphics are amongst the best seen on a console game to date.The characters all look amazing,with superb definition and animation.The backgrounds are equally as good with the water effects on one stage looking particularly impressive.The animation is faultless and there is not a hint of slowdown to be seen.This is technically one of the very best games around at the moment.The other area where this game also impresses is in the sound.From the clashing metal from the blades of swords and axes to the sound of the lightsabre’s (when using the Star Wars licenced characters) this game sounds fantastic.The voice overs are as cheesey and annoying as ever,but they are as much a part of the Soul Calibur experience here as they have ever been.John Williams ‘Duel Of The Fates’ playing during the Star Wars licenced stages and the sound of passing Tie Fighters are also amongst the highlights of this game.
Where Namco have really come up trumps though is in the gameplay.They have managed to make this extremely user friendly.Even if you have never seen a Soul Calibur game before you will have got the basic hang of it within a couple of goes.As for long standing fans,there are some new features.The first is armour,you have high,middle and low armour that can only be destroyed by your opponents attack hitting the area where the armour is placed.Then there are the ‘Critical Finishes’,they work in a similar fashion to the finishing moves in the Mortal Kombat games.Each player has a ‘Soul Gauge’ and when hit it decreases.When it is seriously damaged it will flash red and then you can finish your opponent off with a very over the top finishing move.Each character has its own individual finishing move and to be honest it adds a lot of fun.They are however pretty difficult to pull off as they have to be timed to perfection.There is also an online mode for the first time in a Soul Calibur game which works very well.It is a straightforward one on one style experience which I personally don’t really like unless I’m playing against someone I know.There are a couple of negatives regarding the gameplay element of this game. With the Xbox 360 controller’s D-Pad being placed between two analogue sticks it is not ideal at all for fighting games and Soul Calibur IV is no exception.The Hori EX- 2 arcade fighting stick looks great for games like this but at around £50 they are pretty expensive.The other letdown is there is no Team Battle Mode.In multiplayer you can only fight one battle at a time.That was the mode in which I mostly played the last Soul Calibur game in.Hopefully there may be a download available at some point to include this as I know a lot of people are disappointed that it has been omitted.
As well as the original characters such as Taki,Voldo,Ivy etc. there are some new ones here to enjoy.The much hyped Star Wars licenced characters are OK.The Apprentice is over powerful and seems to have an unfair advantage,while Yoda is fun to play with for a while but is extremely annoying to play against.Most attacks go straight over his head and he cannot be picked up.There are other new characters but one worthy of mention is Hilde.She is a female knight armed with a small sword in one hand and lance type spear in the other.You can attack from a distance with her because the spear is very long,but she is deadly at close range as well.For me she is the best new character in this game.
Overall,Soul Calibur IV is a superb arcade style fighting game and for sure the best one of its kind currently available.It is nothing more than that though.If you liked the previous games or indeed beat em ups in general there is nothing to disappoint you here.However,if you are not a fan of this kind of game it is highly unlikely to make you one.For me though it was pretty much everything I hoped it would be and for that I can totally recommend it.
9/10.
The graphics are amongst the best seen on a console game to date.The characters all look amazing,with superb definition and animation.The backgrounds are equally as good with the water effects on one stage looking particularly impressive.The animation is faultless and there is not a hint of slowdown to be seen.This is technically one of the very best games around at the moment.The other area where this game also impresses is in the sound.From the clashing metal from the blades of swords and axes to the sound of the lightsabre’s (when using the Star Wars licenced characters) this game sounds fantastic.The voice overs are as cheesey and annoying as ever,but they are as much a part of the Soul Calibur experience here as they have ever been.John Williams ‘Duel Of The Fates’ playing during the Star Wars licenced stages and the sound of passing Tie Fighters are also amongst the highlights of this game.
Where Namco have really come up trumps though is in the gameplay.They have managed to make this extremely user friendly.Even if you have never seen a Soul Calibur game before you will have got the basic hang of it within a couple of goes.As for long standing fans,there are some new features.The first is armour,you have high,middle and low armour that can only be destroyed by your opponents attack hitting the area where the armour is placed.Then there are the ‘Critical Finishes’,they work in a similar fashion to the finishing moves in the Mortal Kombat games.Each player has a ‘Soul Gauge’ and when hit it decreases.When it is seriously damaged it will flash red and then you can finish your opponent off with a very over the top finishing move.Each character has its own individual finishing move and to be honest it adds a lot of fun.They are however pretty difficult to pull off as they have to be timed to perfection.There is also an online mode for the first time in a Soul Calibur game which works very well.It is a straightforward one on one style experience which I personally don’t really like unless I’m playing against someone I know.There are a couple of negatives regarding the gameplay element of this game. With the Xbox 360 controller’s D-Pad being placed between two analogue sticks it is not ideal at all for fighting games and Soul Calibur IV is no exception.The Hori EX- 2 arcade fighting stick looks great for games like this but at around £50 they are pretty expensive.The other letdown is there is no Team Battle Mode.In multiplayer you can only fight one battle at a time.That was the mode in which I mostly played the last Soul Calibur game in.Hopefully there may be a download available at some point to include this as I know a lot of people are disappointed that it has been omitted.
As well as the original characters such as Taki,Voldo,Ivy etc. there are some new ones here to enjoy.The much hyped Star Wars licenced characters are OK.The Apprentice is over powerful and seems to have an unfair advantage,while Yoda is fun to play with for a while but is extremely annoying to play against.Most attacks go straight over his head and he cannot be picked up.There are other new characters but one worthy of mention is Hilde.She is a female knight armed with a small sword in one hand and lance type spear in the other.You can attack from a distance with her because the spear is very long,but she is deadly at close range as well.For me she is the best new character in this game.
Overall,Soul Calibur IV is a superb arcade style fighting game and for sure the best one of its kind currently available.It is nothing more than that though.If you liked the previous games or indeed beat em ups in general there is nothing to disappoint you here.However,if you are not a fan of this kind of game it is highly unlikely to make you one.For me though it was pretty much everything I hoped it would be and for that I can totally recommend it.
9/10.