Soul Calibur

Genre: 3D Fighter
Platform(s): DC/Arcade
Allegiance: Namco
Vintage: 1999
Rating: T
Intelligence Agency Report by: Phate
Enter a world of souls and swords, where everyone is trying to get their hands on the infamous Soul Edge. Some call it the Ultimate Weapon; others call it a new hope, while others just want to destroy it. Choose from a cast of characters with their own intentions of what they want to do with the evil sword. Will you choose to bring peace, or bring about a new era of darkness?

Weapons Expert Report by: Phate 
Story/Premise
Gameplay
Impact
Visual
Audio
9.00
9.25
9.50
10.00
9.75
Overall 9.50
(not an average)
Version Reviewed: Dreamcast 

I’ll admit, I’m not the biggest fan of fighting games, but after playing a demo for this game, I just couldn’t go without getting the full copy. Rarely do I play a game that does so well in all the right places. Fellow gamers, here’s one right here. 

Where do I start? Soul Calibur is one of, if not the greatest 3D fighting game I’ve ever played. Almost everything you could ever want is right here. There are the obligatory different modes of fighting including survival, battle etc., and then there’s the unlockables. No doubt there are lot of them, unlocking everything will definitely keep you playing the game for quite some time. 

You’ll notice while playing the game that a lot of the things you unlock will be unlocked in the Mission Battle mode. A mode in which you go from battle arena to battle arena fighting different enemies, but there’s always going to be a certain condition you have to fight under at the different stages. For example, at one stage you could be fighting an opponent and you must beat him/her in the allotted time, or your character is poisoned, etc. After beating a stage, you’ll get a number of points for beating the stage, which you then use to purchase different images of the characters (most of them drawn anime-style). Sometimes a purchased image will unlock something such as a new stage or costume for a character. There are also many other things you can unlock, but I’ll not mention them. 

Visually, Soul Calibur is breathtakingly beautiful. The different stages are truly a sight to behold, with every one of them being visually appealing in their own way. It’s not just about the stages though, and you’ll notice just how eye-popping each of the characters, their weapons, and even their attacks, are. If you want beauty, then here’s your game. 

Gameplay-wise, Soul Calibur is all that, and then some. Everything goes incredibly smoothly, and is nearly flawless. Each character has his/her own array of moves and attacks (trust me, there are a lot), including unblockable attacks, which can cause a heavy amount of damage. However, not all good things can last, and where Soul Calibur shows this in its characters’ fighting styles. While the first half of characters (and a couple more) you come across have their own style, a little less than the other half have recycled styles (e.g. Kilik’s fighting style is the same as Seung Mina’s). This especiall apparent in the two characters Edge Master and Inferno, both of which just randomly use the fighting styles of other characters; Inferno being different by a few of his own trademark moves. 

Still, with all things considered, Soul Calibur is a fantastic fighting game. No doubt one the best, I recommend this one to anyone with even a slight fancy for fighting games. And those that aren’t a big fan of them, you might just find something to love here, too.