Soulcalibur IV (Xbox 360)

The soul still burns, but where's the mythic story?
7/30/2008 7:08 PM | 1 Comments | Page 2 of 3

Sure, with each version of Soulcalibur, the graphics have become more and more elegant. But with SCIV, the intricate detail in the character art and animation is truly frightening. Nightmare, the series' most iconic antagonist, is just plain scary, with his glowing, soul-sucking torso and a heart that now looks more like a yearning maw protected by giant, jagged edged teeth. The graphical detail is just as impressive for all of the returning characters.

The opening cut scene, on the other hand, leaves something to be desired. I preferred SCIII's colorful, mysterious walk through the forest, which cut to the vicious battle with a legion of armored foes. SCIV's opening cut scene is a chiaroscuro-colored battle atop the castle that transitions into Yoda hopping around or Darth Vader hulking around. I was left wanting more awesome drama, to be sure.

The stages of battle have moving parts now: everything from marching knights to hungry, fork-wielding gnomes. In one stage, wooden carousel horses go 'round oddly in the background. The wide expanses of the stages are especially majestic and moody on an HDTV. They're so full of mysterious fantasy, you may want to leave the fight and explore the world beyond.

The biggest difference between the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions is the addition of Yoda in Microsoft's offering. The wise, winsome green one looks so real in the game's cut scenes that they could well have been scenes from the Star Wars movies. I'm bummed that there's no real attempt to integrate Yoda into the SC universe's story, though. The few paragraphs of story that do come up come directly from Lucas' movies, with the lame explanation that the Jedi Master is searching for a disturbance regarding The Force. In battle, Yoda moves like a kid who's drunk coffee for the first time. He seems fleeter of foot than most of the other characters, leaping up to the head like a flea to whack, whack, whack the slow-ish behemoths surrounding him. And boy, can he do damage.

There are rumors that Namco will bring Yoda into the PS3 version and Vader into the 360 via a downloadable content update. That idea makes sense; pitting the two against each other in Versus mode is a concept that even a nit-picker like me can warm up to. The question is: How much will it cost? Asking for $10 more is already too much for a game that will set you back $60, especially in these troubled times.

In both versions, load times can be appreciable in Story Mode, especially when you're battling three foes in a row without a break. You'll only be sitting there stewing in anticipation for a matter of seconds, but it still feels like too many moments.

The ensuing skirmishes themselves are worth the wait, though, especially because you can now focus on breaking armor or weakening the upper, middle or lower parts of your foes. Once you enfeeble your opponents and wear down their health, you can move into what's one of the most sadistically thrilling elements of the game, the Critical Finish. Press all four face buttons on the controller and you're transported to a fighting platform where you make your opponent suffer some melodramatic pain and embarrassment. These special finishers are so satisfying, yet so hard to pull off. It's a bit easier to perform a Critical Finish in Single Player mode than when playing with a pal. One more note on the fighting: Blocking too much tends to work against you, turning your power meter red and allowing some nasty attacks on the part of your opponent.