#Soulcalibur iv character select series#

Such reports are anecdotal, mind you, but rest assured there are already experts on the case in the form of FAQ authors and tournament-level players. I’ve been hearing reports of people like Ivy and Raphael being toned down from previous installments. Xianghua is still unpredictable and juggle-happy, and does more damage than she used to-in exchange, she’s been given more recovery time on her moves (using the stun generated off her spin-kick to get an easy grab on an opponent just isn’t a viable tactic anymore thanks to added recovery time), and her old juggle tactics are tougher to pull off. My personal mainstay, Seung Mina, plays a lot like her Soul Calibur 1 counterpart, with a few extra power and combination moves added to make her more versatile and less of a Kilik clone. In addition to these overall engine changes, many characters have been enhanced or rebalanced from previous years, making some more versatile, some more badass and just plain more fun to use, and some less nerve-wracking to fight against. However, somewhat controversial is the fact that the game now moves at a slightly slower fighting pace, presumably to ward off lag in online bouts. This is very helpful since throwing is now not the only way to deal with turtlers, and the threat of being insta-killed forces chronic blockers to further utilize the game’s 8-Way-Run and Guard Impact mechanics. Once a fighter’s guard bar is broken via excessive blocking, it’s easy to lose the entire match outright if the player on the offensive is quick enough.

The two main additions to the game engine are the ability to destroy pieces of clothing and armor (with wonderful fanservice-laden results), rendering them more vulnerable a la Sega’s Fighting Vipers, and the Critical Finish, which stops massive turtlers cold.

#Soulcalibur iv character select series#

Many move motions have been reset to their SC1 and SC2 versions, nullifying the jumble-thon that was Soulcalibur 3, and allowing people who’ve learned legacy games in the series to shine once again. Soulcalibur 2’s skittishness and ability to ring-out someone simply by breathing on them is gone. Right off the bat, the fighting feels much improved from the previous games. It’s a shame it’s not really finished (we’ll get to that later), but what’s here still impresses. Fortunately, in terms of playability, Soulcalibur IV is one of this year’s pleasant surprises.

Thus, no test locations, no playability info, no high-level character analysis. To find any news on the game’s actual feature set and engine, you had to dig a mite deeper, and even then, there was no way to fully know what to expect, since, like Soulcalibur 3, this game is debuting on consoles rather than arcades.

The 'hype' centered around it certainly wasn’t pretty for me: giant chests (no!), Star Wars characters (why?), seemingly random (not unwelcome, really, just random) contributions from Japanese guest artists and designers, and the director of the game inexplicably feeling proud of himself for 'managing' to create a fully clothed female character (who you can strip to her skivvies using the character creator if you wish, but it’s far too early in this review for biting irony).

It still feels strange for me to say this, because up until I played it at E3, I was sure I’d hate it.