Soul Calibur returns on the 360

The Namco Bandai 3D fighter Soul series began in 1996, with the release of the arcade game Soul Edge. The popularity of the series then quickly grew when Soul Calibur was released to critical acclaim--including a 10 from GameSpot--and continued to grow with Soul Calibur II and Soul Calibur III. Now it's about to expand again with the upcoming release of Soul Calibur IV for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on August 1.

Presumably because of this, Namco has decided to cash in on the anticipation and give fans something to do in the interim--play Soul Calibur via the Xbox Live Arcade. It will feature leaderboards for every mode and character, as well as local multiplayer in Versus mode. The game itself has been remade with high-definition graphics, HDTV support, and, of course, achievements.

Also coming to the Xbox Live Arcade this week are additional trivia questions and facts for the recently released Wits & Wagers quiz game. These 280 questions will provide up to 10 hours of additional gameplay and will be available in local and online games. In local games, the package will be used automatically, but while online, you will be matched up with other people who have the same question packs you do.

Both of these will be released on July 2 on the Live Arcade. Soul Calibur will be released at 9.00 a.m. GMT (1.00 a.m. PDT). It will be available for 800 Microsoft points and is rated T for Teen. The Wits & Wagers downloadable content will cost 320 Microsoft points.

Other downloadable releases this week include the highly anticipated PlayStation 3 puzzler Echochrome and two titles for the Wii. Echochrome will be downloadable via the PlayStation Network store from July 3. The 3D puzzle game has the player turning the camera angle around a series of mazes so that by using optical illusions, problems can be solved. Gamers will also be able to make, upload, and download user-made maps.

One title will also be added this week to Nintendo's Virtual Console on the Wii--Fatal Fury 2. Fatal Fury 2 is a fighting game based on the Japanese anime Fatal Fury 2: The New Battle. It was originally released by SNK for arcade machines along with the Neo Geo CD, Sega Genesis, SNES, and Game Boy platforms. Fatal Fury, the original, is already up for grabs on the VC. The sequel will cost 900 Wii points.

Also for the Wii is Magnetica Twist, which is a WiiWare puzzler which can be bought for 1,000 Wii points. Up to four players will be able to play using the Mii characters they have created.