SoulCalibur II

"A game about ghosts drinking beer? Oh wait, that's Soul Kaliber"

Soul Calibur 2 marks the emergence of new, highly exciting concept into games- three consoles, three games, three exclusive characters and three groups of rabid fanboys arguing over which version of the game is best. The bottom line is that, whether you prefer a bomb-throwing elf boy, an old Tekken reject, or a goofy comic book hero as your character of choice, Soul Calibur 2 is ****ing fantastic.

For those of you unfamiliar with the history of Soul Calibur, let me explain. Soul Calibur was originally released for Sega's Dreamcast (RIP) and featured graphics so beautiful, even your grandparents were impressed by them. Luckily, the gameplay was equally superb and the game lasted for ages, thanks to a large variety of game modes and unlockable features. But it's been four years since Soul Calibur turned the fighting game world on its head- can its shiny new sequel possibly hope to emulate the original's success?

Soul Calibur 2 opens with the kind of great video sequence that developers Namco are famous for- like when Tekken 3 was released for the Playstation and Sony pretended that was how the game would actually look. Oh, how naive we were back then. After your eyes are massaged for a while by the introduction, you'll be eager to get torn into the game. The good news is that unlike Tekken 3's cardboard-box-o-vision (TM), Soul Calibur 2's graphics are nearly as good as its video sequences. While it doesn't have the same impact that the original game did in 1999, characters look fantastic with almost lifelike animation. The myriad of fighting arenas look just as good, too- they have far more detail than in the previous game, where they were just platforms floating in the middle of nowhere. In Soul Calibur 2, you can fight inside castle walls and in cages, or on the edge of a ruined windmill. More than just mere eye candy, the environs play an integral part in the gameplay, but I'll go into more detail on that later.

Like the original game, Soul Calibur 2 has been enhanced for its home release- Xbox and Gamecube owners are treated to luscious graphics that take full advantage of the hardware available. Playstation 2 owners aren't as fortunate due to hardware limitations, but it still looks pretty impressive. While I could spend the rest of this review comparing the various games to each other, this would be a) pointless, because noone wants to read that sort of thing, and b) incredibly stupid, because I've only played the Xbox version and a small portion of the PS2 game.

For the sequel, Soul Calibur's roster of characters has been improved... well, sort of. Joining the original cast are newcomers Yunsung, Cassandra, Necrid, Raphael, Talim, Charade and, of course, Spawn. The only problem with these new characters are that some of them aren't new at all- Yunsung is a variant of Soul Calibur's Hwang, Cassandra is the same as Sophitia (who's also in the game, incidentally) and Charade uses every character's weapon like Edge Master in Soul Calibur 2. On the other hand, Talim and Raphael offer radically different styles from the other fighters and make a welcome addition to the line-up. Necrid is the exception to the rule- he's a bit crap, really.

Spawn is the Xbox version's exclusive character. Wielding a one-handed axe, he strikes a balance between the brute force of the moronic Astaroth and the finesse of the dainty Xianghua. Spawn is a nice addition to the game, as he fits in reasonably well to the atmosphere of Soul Calibur and plays differently from everyone else. However- and this is more a flaw on Namco's part- Spawn's full potential hasn't been utilized. There are no moves using his other powers, specifically his chain. Spawn lacks in long-range attacks, which stops him from dominating everyone else.

Soul Calibur 2's gameplay isn't a massive overhaul of the original- It keeps a number of the features that made Soul Calibur so enjoyable and adds new ones to boot. The 8-way run allows you to manoeuvre around the stages with pinpoint precision and dodge incoming attacks. The Soul Charge powers up your moves, providing you don't get attacked while charging up. (Believe me, it happens.) The Guard Impact system separates button-mashing idiots from people who know what the buttons do- more experienced Soul Calibur players can play opponents moves against them, setting them up for a counterattack.

As mentioned earlier, the stage you're playing on greatly affects your playing strategy. Some levels are fully enclosed by wire cages- you can batter your opponent up against them, Dead or Alive style. Other areas have little room to move around, where you'll have to be clever to avoid falling off the edge of the level. Alternatively, try and knock your opponents off for an easy, if slightly cheap win. Whatever your strategy, the wide variety of arenas breaks up the repetition that hampered Soul Calibur.

Soul Calibur 2 has a large selection of modes for you to kick the crap out of your opponents in- you can relive the action of the Arcade game, play Survival and see how long you can last, or create a team of characters and square off against the computer or a friend. One of the best features of Soul Calibur has always been its multiplayer- Soul Calibur 2 doesn't disappoint in this area. As you're continually unlocking new levels, characters and weapons in Weapon Master mode, the VS play stays fresh long after the rest of the game has grown stale.

Ah yes, Weapon Master mode. In Weapon Master, your character of choice travels the globe fighting in all kinds of situations. It's here that you spend the majority of your time in Soul Calibur 2- you'll have to, as when you first start playing most of the features are locked and Weapon Master is the only way to unlock them. You start Weapon Master as a Newcomer (Internet Slang Translation: ''n00bie'') and have to work your way up through the ranks to become an Edgemaster and conquer the game.

It's through Weapon Master that Namco show why Soul Calibur 2 is more than just an average fighting game. In one situation, you'll be poisoned and have to fight multiple opponents before your health drains away. In another, you'll have to hit your enemy twenty times before they can do the same to you. In yet another, fierce winds will blow you off the stage if you don't rise to the challenge. Weapon Master never runs out of ideas- some are so easy it's insulting, others are so hard it's criminal, but they're all damn good fun. As well as the satisfaction of progressing through Weapon Master and unlocking new levels and characters, you can purchase new weapons in the shop. This is a genuine improvement over Soul Calibur, adding yet another layer of sponge to this delicious cake of a game. With nearly 200 weapons to collect, it's clear that you'll be spending a lot of time trying to complete this one.

Part of what adds to the classic ''Soul Calibur Experience'' is the whole atmosphere of the title. With the graphical styles, stunning presentation and epic soundtrack, it feels like you've gone back to medieval times with the sole intention of kicking the **** out of everyone. If I went back in time, I know that's what I'd do. While the music is suitably atmospheric, sometimes the sound effects can grate a little. The English voiceovers are awful, but can be remedied by the trusty old Japanese voices. I'd recommend that you'd do so, although it's worth playing through once to have a laugh at Spawn. Another sound effect that is particularly annoying is the noise when you complete a stage in Weapon Master- you'll know it when you hear it. My ears are still ringing.

Soul Calibur 2 is less of a straight sequel and more of a polished add-on pack to the first game. That's not necessarily a bad thing, though- borrowing from games like Dead or Alive 3 and Virtua Fighter 4, Namco have refined Soul Calibur to create the undisputed heavyweight champion of the fighting genre. What stops it from earning a 10/10 and sex with the celebrity of its choice is that it's ultimately more of the same, and also slightly inaccessible to newcomers. Casting those niggling flaws aside, you'd be hard pressed to find a better fighting game than Soul Calibur 2.

Overall

As you may have already suspected, Soul Calibur 2 is bloody brilliant and well worth buying, no matter what console you own. Deep, difficult-to-master gameplay and a huge variety of options to play through make Soul Calibur 2 the best fighting game ever made... well, until Soul Calibur 3, that is.

I'd also like to add that Spawn rocks. Thank you.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 09/30/03