Soul Calibur III

Written by Adam Woolcott  on September 27, 2005

Final Glimpse: It's time for the return of Taki and her giant boo... err... weapons.

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Namco has definitely taken the road less traveled with the Soul Calibur series. Instead of porting over the arcade version of the Soul Edge/Blade sequel to the PlayStation, or waiting a while to release an enhanced version on the PlayStation 2, the company saw fit to fix it up for the Sega Dreamcast launch, and it wound up being the finest launch title, and one of the best games period, for Sega's last console. For the sequel, they went an unusual route of not merely 'porting' the game from the arcade to the three systems Ц instead, each version of Soul Calibur II contained one exclusive character, which drove some gamers nuts, though the game was a huge success on every console Ц even the GameCube, thanks to inclusion of some guy named Link. Some of you might have heard of him. Because of this multiplatform success, it's bizarre, even downright bonehead, for Namco to make Soul Calibur III a PlayStation 2 exclusive...at least for now (who knows if there's plans for an enhanced Xbox 360 version, which is always a possibility). Regardless of that decision, SC3 is coming to PS2, and from the looks of things, it could be the top fighting game of the year (though certainly games like Tekken 5 and the forthcoming Dead or Alive 4 could have something to say about that).

In the console conversions of Soul Calibur games, Namco has traditionally thrown in a special mode of play to tide over fighting game fans who either get tired of the main arcade game or gamers who just want something deeper. With Soul Calibur III, they're taking it to the next level with Chronicles of the Sword. Previously in Weapon Master, you traveled from place to place on a grid, and fought different types of battles with all sorts of strange restrictions Ц it was fun, but it could only last so long. Chronicles of the Sword, however, is a whole different beast. Instead of a dot-to-dot system, your character (as well as a host of others who join your cause) instead moves around a map, strategy game style, to duel with enemies, using the same sort of restrictions/requirements as previously seen. Obviously in order to win, you've gotta clear the map of enemies before moving on.

While this is somewhat standard (and is much deeper than you might think), Namco has done something few fighting games have gone for Ц customization. In other terms, Soul Calibur III lets you create your own fighter, and use Chronicles to train them for battle, though I'm not 100% sure you can use them in the standard arcade ladder. Though it probably won't be as robust as games like WWE Smackdown (the closest thing we have to a fighting game with such a creation setup), There's going to be a great deal of options to customize a unique fighter, be it a serious samurai or just some goofy looking dude. It's a shame that Namco has again failed to included an online setup, as this would go hand in hand perfectly. It even looks weirder to lack online due to all the neat Tournament options offered for offline multiplayer. Oh well, maybe next time.

If that doesn't interest you, Soul Calibur III still has the standard arcade setup. All the characters from SCII make their return (aside from the console-exclusive ones and Necrid, another SCII newbie), and have a trio of new characters Ц the geisha-girl like Setsuka, a 'ring-blade' wielding Tira, and Zasalamel, with his nasty scythe...he's like Death Jr., only really awesome. All the standard modes should be there Ц time attack, survival, ladder, etc. New to SCIII is the Soul Arena, which has those goofy 'event' fights with weird requirements like getting a ring out, winning before your poisoned body gives out...stuff like that Ц there's even a fight with a giant Greek statue. Also new is Tales of Souls, which functions like the old Weapon Master game, so those not into Chronicles of the Sword can still wander around from dot to dot and battle.

Though the game mostly won't have many changes from the 2nd , Namco is making some adjustments, putting more emphasis on guard breaks, air attacks and counters (you now can shift your weight and counter with special attacks), and ring outs. Ring outs are vilified by many, but you better be ready for them in SCIII, as the stages are much smaller (though not teeny or anything) and more complicated, meaning there will be more of them, unless you're really good at dodging and evading. Other than these bits of fine-tuning, Soul Calibur III will be the same graceful, gorgeous fighting game with a baffling storyline, just ramped up another level. For some, this will be great, for others, it won't win them over.