966th played so far

Genre: Fighting
Platform: Playstation 3/Xbox 360
Year of Release: 2008
Developer: Project Soul
Publisher: Namco Bandai Game

I had a bit of a discussion on what fighting game to leave until last, and between SoulCalibur and Street Fighter, the latter seemed more appropriate – even more when you consider our first covered game was already from the SoulCalibur series. That means that today we’re covering a fighter that includes several Star Wars characters in its roster as guest crossovers, as well as a 3D field rather than a 2D scroller.

It also means it’s been a decade since I touched the series, so good luck to me?

Our Thoughts

I might actually be feeling the effects of playing more fighting games over the years, butย Soul Calibur IV felt quite accessible compared to what I was expecting. It’s a game that plays a lot more slowly and more deliberate than other focus, in part because you’re dealing with deliberately slower equipment, but that allows you that extra time to think, plan and be ready for the attack. It meant that, on the existing save file I was playing, the normal story mode was quite easy. The characters were powered up, sure, which meant that some lesser used fighters were harder, but even so the game wasn’t extremely difficult to get through.

It also helped me see some of the more bizarre characters – even beyond the presence of Darth Vader and Yoda, the gameplay of a character like Ivy or Voldo feel strange and interesting, where I had to get used to a lot of it. It’s been a fun journey that way, with quite an accessible start.

Final Thoughts

I quite enjoyed Soul Calibur IV. Perhaps that’s because the existing save game helped me, but I had a lot of fun playing through the different stories and other modes, even if the later endurance modes got harder. The visuals match this, with some lovely and dangerous looking environments in places (even if some of the beauty shots lasted a bit too long).