Soul-Calibur
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Famitsu reveals new female Soul Calibur IV fighter
Our Famitsu friends just revealed a brand new character that'll making a debut in the upcoming Star Wars infused Soul Calibur IV and she (yes she) is feisty looking one.Her name is Scheherazade (pronunciation anyone?), she sports a saber-like weapon and comes across as a scantily clad swordswoman who loves the color pink and frilly outfits. That said, we're sure she could beat us down any day. No other Scheherazade details could be lifted from Famitsu's foreign pages, but we expect good old Namco to come to our informative-rescue and announce the entire Soul Calibur IV character list before launch. Until then, we'll try our darnedest to envision Yoda and Scheherazade going head to head in a battle to the death. Odd ...[Via EuroGamer]
Amazon sells its Soul (Calibur Legends) for cheap
Soul Calibur Legends wasn't seen as a favorable point of the Soul Calibur series -- as is to be expected from a Death by Degrees-esque spinoff of the fighter franchise -- so it's unsurprising that Amazon already has the November-released title marked down to $25.99, 35% less than its regular $39.99. While many of you might prefer to see the game discounted even more before picking it up, that price point is just high enough to push it into Free Super Saver Shipping territory.We feel guilty suggesting Soul Calibur Legends to anyone who isn't a hardcore fan of the series -- everyone else should probably avoid even loading the product page. In its 2-out-of-10 review, Edge Magazine described the game as being "an unrewarding trudge that doesn't have any ideas beyond the most primitive."%Gallery-3272%[Via CAG]
New Soulcalibur IV character revealed
In the latest issue of Famitsu, a new character for Soulcalibur IV has been unveiled. Her name is Scheherazade, and she joins the cast of fighters using a rapier for a weapon. A Raphael clone perhaps? One odd noticeable trait of Scheherazade is that she has pointy ears, almost looking elf-like. Her character portrait is also drawn in a different style from the other mainstay characters. We're not sure what that could mean, but we won't read too far into it. The name Scheherazade sounds familiar, especially to this blogger. One Thousand and One Nights anyone?
Soulcalibur IV box art: PS3 = dark side
Ooh, our comrades at XBF found these two uber-cool box arts for Soulcalibur IV. The cover art, minus the lightsabers, showed up on Gamestop's website. It appears that these pack shots play heavily on the Star Wars guest characters, Yoda and Darth Vader, creating a strong light-vs-dark theme. The box arts seen here could very well be just placeholder until the actual ones come out; however, they do look quite similar to Soulcalibur II's artwork that also featured guest characters.While we've definitely got the cooler guest character in Darth Vader, the 360 version has series heartthrob, Siegfried on the cover. They've also got the Soul Calibur sword and the new female character Hilde, while we've got Soul Edge and everybody's favorite buxom babe Ivy. Now XBF asked their readers which one do they think has the better design, and we're doing the same! So which one do you like better?[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]
Off the Grid reviews Universal Fighting System
Every other week Scott Jon Siegel contributes Off the Grid, a column about card games, board games, and everything else non-digital.Chun Li versus Seung Mina; Nightmare versus Morrigan; Akuma versus Tycho Brahe: Ultimate showdowns we're likely never to see outside of crudely-written fan-fiction and our own fevered dreamings. Luckily for us, Sabertooth Games has devised the Universal Fighting System, a collectible card game that allows players to mix and match licensed decks to create legendary one-on-one battles.There's one problem, or maybe I should call it a caveat: UFS isn't going to be for everybody. Beyond the gorgeous illustrations, and clear appeal to video game fans, this is most definitely a gamer's game; cards are littered with special icons, point values, and ancillary functions that dwarf the relative simplicity of CCGs like Magic: The Gathering and Pokémon. Of course, the reward for this technical complexity is depth, with an incredibly strategic experience waiting to be unlocked by the hardiest of players. Not to deter you, but let this be a warning: A casual card game this is not.
Sasaki: Ring outs evolve in SoulCalibur IV
We were all in for quite a shock when it was revealed that Darth Vader would be entering the tournament in SoulCalibur IV exclusively on the PS3. Now that the shock has worn away a little and we've had a chance to catch our breath, here comes a nice interview with the game's director Katsutoshi Sasaki, who talks about a myriad of topics ranging from the evolution of the game's ring outs to why the team included Star Wars' most popular character. To be perfectly honest, we were sold on the game after Ivy was *ahem* revealed, but with the newest addition and everything Sasaki said, we think we're starting to feel like those Star Wars guys who wait in line weeks to watch a new episode.
Today's crossover video: Soul Calibur Star Wars
We hoped it was a joke, but trailers don't lie, do they? Sure, the best part of that one Star Wars was when Yoda flipped out and killed people. (Actually, it was probably the best part of all three.) But a Yoda-and-Darth cross-over to Soul Calibur IV? We're not sure if we should feel bad for Star Wars or Soul Calibur.But here's the trailer. Watch it with your splayed fingers covering your eyes after the break. Or drink from the HD faucet at GameTrailers.
Soul Calibur IV's secret characters: Darth Vader and Yoda
Is it April already? A quick glance at our calendars confirms that it's still January, and an extended glance at 1UP's reveal of Soul Calibur IV's secret characters does nothing to evaporate the reigning feeling of utter confusion. The lineup of saucer-eyed assassins, scantily clad combatants and bizarre pain fetishists in Namco's anticipated fighter is set to be joined by the Sith's darkest lord and the Force's most diminutive master. Our little green friend can almost manage to fit in to Soul Calibur's ye olde fantasy trappings, but poor ol' Vader appears to have gotten lost and disoriented after leaping over some sharks on his space jet ski.Even better news can be found in 1UP's suspicion that even more Star Wars characters will waltz into Calibur's cantina, possibly via downloadable content. An interesting idea, but we reckon you'd save money by simply buying a copy of Masters of Teräs Käsi off eBay.Update: Gamespot reports that Darth Vader is reserved for the PlayStation 3, while Yoda will be included in the Xbox 360 version.[Thanks, Antonio]
Darth Vader and Yoda join Soulcalibur IV [Update]
Yes, this is quite possibly the strangest gaming news we've heard of in a while. Star Wars characters Darth Vader and Yoda have joined Namco Bandai's PS3 fighter, Soulcalibur IV. We could possibly write something funny to describe this situation, but we're confident that you guys will do much better than us.The franchise has been home to other non-canon characters, such as Link from The Legend of Zelda. What do you think about this Lucas-flavored addition to this fighter?Check out all the images at 1UP. [Update: Movie is now embedded.][Thanks, David C.!]
The breast video game boobs to haunt our mammories
It's been a while since we noticed a gaming site go straight for the Maxim demographic full force, but boy did GameDaily ever do it with its "Boobs through the Years" pictorial. Twelve pictures of boobs (eleven women and one man) from the last 30 years of gaming litter this feature. The Soul Calibur IV breasts, which are certainly the most gratuitous in recent memory, get the feature bouncing along. Once again, the piece is so base, but the site sure did get creative with some of the descriptions. For example, Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 (pictured) is described as having mammary glands where each have their own "mother brain." And don't forget about Rachel from Ninja Gaiden's "heaving mounds of fury." Oh mercy, time to go make a donation to the Girl Scouts on GameDaily's behalf.
Fresh Soul Calibur Legends footage, screens
Namco Bandai laid down the law, proclaiming that we need post these two new trailers. Not only that, but they're forcing us to post these new screens. We don't want to, because we derive a sick pleasure in depriving you of things that may interest you, but sure enough Namco Bandai emerged from the darkness clad in white armor. So, consider yourself saved ... for now. For the new screens, hit up the gallery below. For the other trailer, head past the break. Oh, and sorry for the lack of sound in the above trailer, the file we snagged from them was without it. The trailer past the break has sound though, we assure you. %Gallery-3272%
Questionable Soulcalibur Legends for Wii goes gold
When we first took remote in hand to try out Soulcalibur Legends for the Wii at E3, the whole incident compelled us to throw away our clothes and take a shower while trying to wash ourselves clean of the experience altogether. But the filth would not come off. Granted, this was of an early build, but given the state of things, our hopes for the fighter-made-action game were left irrecoverably gutted.Now, however, Namco Bandai sends word that the game has gone gold, and while we have trouble caring, Wii owners on the lookout for something original (regardless of quality) can look forward to getting dirty themselves November 20. Just don't say we didn't warn you.
Soul Calibur Legends goes gold
Namco Bandai hit us with a press release today, declaring that upcoming spin-off title Soul Calibur Legends has gone gold and is on schedule to release to retail on November 20th. With 10 different stages in Quest mode, as well as a variety of different characters, we're interested in seeing how this whole thing turns out. We still wake up late at night in a cold sweat screaming from nightmares of Death by Degrees, so let's hope this doesn't turn out the same way. %Gallery-3272% [Via press release]
Tales of Soul Calibur-ia
GamesRadar has posted a load of new Soul Calibur Legends screens, revealing the (probably) playable Lloyd much more clearly than those scans the other day. He's got a bunch of cool-looking moves, including ... some ... uh, thing with some, like, wings, and ... look, we didn't play Tales of Symphonia, okay? This is one particular bit of Namco cross-pollination that doesn't really affect us that much. As a new character, he looks pretty neat, but being generally clueless about the Tales RPGs, seeing Lloyd doesn't really set off any fanboyism for us. We're just lucky that he's a sword guy, and thus will probably be an interesting character even to non-Tales fans. Although, now that we think about it, we wouldn't mind the 'wacky' approach-- bring in all the Namco characters you can fit on the disc, guys! We'd love to play through an action game as Mr. Driller, or Pac-Man, or one of the Galaga ships.
Tales of Symphonia's Lloyd gets around
Now that we can see the Tales of Symphonia: Knights of Ratatoskr trailer without taking Dramamine first, we can clearly see Tales of Symphonia's protagonist Lloyd in the final shot there. So he'll be making a cameo appearance, at least, in the new game. Siliconera pointed out the cameo, using the skill of maybe having played Tales of Symphonia. But that's not the only Bandai Namco game Lloyd is wandering into. Via an appearance as what looks like a playable character in Soul Calibur Legends, Lloyd will instantly double the series' foppish dandy quotient (FDQ). But hey, having more Namco series characters in Soul Calibur Legends brings us one step closer to our dream of fighting as the Prince of All Cosmos.
4 minutes of Soul Calibur Legends gameplay footage
Even though this game might have the potential to be the next Death by Degrees, we're still interested in getting our hands on it. The graphics may look dated at times, but the action looks spot-on. And we still think each of the characters have had their fighting styles and moves transitioned into the new game well. What do you guys think? Does it have potential or is it just a pointless spin-off? %Gallery-3272%
A video of swords and souls, eternally replayed
We hunger for a real action game on our Wii, and we desperately hope that Soul Calibur Legends is it. We're putting all of our faith in the one positive preview and discounting all the negative ones, just because we really want to believe-- much like Siegfried believed that picking up a gigantic living sword with a freaking eye was somehow a good idea. We can be heartbroken later. While the graphics in this Famitsu video (which we could not embed) are still jarring compared to the amazing visual quality we're used to from Calibur, we're starting to think that the action is there. The moves look pretty entertaining-- seriously, when Siegfried picks up the guy with his sword, and sort of drags him around, that is awesome-- and the fighting looks appropriately hectic. As long as the controls aren't a mess, we could see ourselves taking some baby steps onto the stage of Wii history.
TGS07: The story of Soulcalibur IV
Click to see high-res image. Namco Bandai has managed to sneak a little bit of story into all of its Soulcalibur fighting games. Ultimately, they provide little reason as to why these characters seem to enjoy beating the c**p out of each other -- but it's good fun for us, nonetheless. The story of the upcoming Soulcalibur IV ties in the fate of the Soul Edge and the Soul Calibur and is presented in its now-trademark melodramatic style.A fun drinking game to play while reading the Prologue is to take a shot every time the word "soul" is used. Let's see if you can survive!%Gallery-7829%
New and improved Soul Calibur Legends
1UP recently got a chance to go hands-on with the latest build of Soul Calibur Legends, and things are looking up after the title's E3 showing. Not only do they report improved framerate and textures, but they make the gameplay sound like something worth waiting for as well. The folks at 1UP got to try out one of our favorite characters, Taki, and though apparently her damage output is still being adjusted, her famous speed continues to be a strong asset. It's good to hear that each characters' individual style of play -- one of the things we've always enjoyed about the franchise -- has a real bearing on how you approach challenges, and the "team of two" aspect that allows you to keep two fighters in your party at all times for different situations really sounds like it could be a lot of fun. 1UP has gotten us excited about Soul Calibur again, and we can only hope that Legends lives up to the franchise name. %Gallery-3272%
Namco considering motion control in Soul Calibur IV
While the chances of us getting platform-specific characters, like Spawn, aren't very likely in Soul Calibur IV, Namco is hard at work at offering other bonuses. In an interview with 1up, Katsutoshi Sasaki, the game's director, said his team at Project Soul is looking into the possibility of including Sixaxis motion control. He said it's "something that we're considering, but we'll have to come up with some good ideas for it first." But that's not all. In the same interview, lead programmer Masaaki Hoshino said they're also hoping to give gamers the ability to save their custom characters to the PS3's memory card and take it to a friend's house to do battle.Although it seems like it would be difficult for the developers to include any sort of motion control that would make sense, toting your custom characters on a memory card would be pretty handy. All we care about, though, are Ivy's friends and finally some Soul Calibur online action!
