SoulCalibur II

"....And Spawn was Kung Fu Fighting"

Concept: Make lots of money by creating a top notch cross platform fighting game that features a different special character for each system so people will buy each one like kids do on the different color Poke'mon games. Oh, and get or destroy a sword filled with evil destructive powers *shudder*

Graphics: 10/10
Top of the line! There doesn't seem to be any real fault here. Characters are bright colored and their animations run fluidly. The particle effects are very nice as well, it really looks like this is one of the few games that utilized the power of the Xbox. The attention to detail is very noticable as you see the character's hair blow in the wind, and of course the female ''bounce.'' The rings are also very well made. All the rings are about the same, but they don't look like it, with different settings and themes. Some are surrounded by water, some a steep fall, some only have one or two sides open to throw your opponent off of.

Sound: 7/10
I found this to be really lacking. Sure the characters each speak and the sound of the combat is really good. The ambience of the fights are really well done. Where the game loses points is the repitition. Sure, I know I'm playing a fighting game and will be doing fight after fight after fight, but due to the sound you'll really start to feel it. Let's take Ivy for example, she has 86 different phrases she says. Sure, this sounds like a lot, but half of them are battle noises like, ouch. After every fight if you lose she'll say one thing over and over, before a fight she'll say the same thing over there too. By the fifth fight you'll be screaming out ''This can't be,'' just like your character.

Controls: 9/10
The controls are pretty well done and pretty simple to pick up. There is a verticle and horizontal attack, block, and kick that you will mainly use. Combinations of buttons will get you more basic attacks, special move, or a parry. Much like other fighting games however you may occasionally find yourself in the middle of button smashing and have your character swinging at air when your opponent is behind you.

Playability: 8/10
Between a simple control setup and outstanding graphics this game is highly addictive and easy to get into. It contains several modes which include Weapon Mastery Mode(Story Mode), Arcade (which is like story mode except no still pictures that move along some worthless story and a 10th of the total battles, Team Attack, VS, Survival, and Extra modes for each of those. Extra modes, as I just mentioned are versions of the same game modes, however you must unlock these during Weapon Mastery Mode. During these modes you can use the weapons which you unlocked. These weapons do things like make Offense, Defense, Speed, or ability to break through an enemies defenses stronger or weaker. About the only beef I have with this besides the Arcade mode being a bare bones version of the Weapon Mastery mode would be that in Weapon Mastery mode, unless you've played Soul Calibur before, or played the other game types you won't know what your character's name is. That wouldn't be a problem if you didn't need to buy them their new weapons at the shop. Otherwise the Weapons Mastery mode is wonderful. It breaks up the repetitive fights with different rule sets for fights. Such as only being able to hurt an opponent if you parry his attacks, or the wind blows you towards the edges of the ring.

Multiplayer: 8/10
Exactly what you would expect from a fighting game, fighting. You can play Arcade, VS, and Team Attack, along with their Extra modes against another human.

Overall: 9/10
If you really want a fighting game this is the one to get. The insanly great looking graphics and several great modes of play make this a must play. The characters are wonderful, and a pretty good variety. Not to mention in the Xbox version you get to use Todd MacFarlane's Spawn, and kick a little butt with his axe. The Gamecube has Link and PS2 has a guy from Tekken, FYI. The unlockables are really nice and they don't hinder game play if you just want to pick it up and play instead of going through the story mode. Also the unlockables make sense and are useful, unlock Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance which has mostly crap. Available are costumes, weapons, levels, characters, modes of play, and a little bit of art.

Rent or Buy: Either, if you are into fighting games this is a must have, if you just like playing one every once in a while go ahead and rent it.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 09/01/03