Soul Calibur IIII - In Need Of Soul Calibration
I can’t think of a finer example than Soul Caliber III. The game does feel rushed on the whole. Don’t get me wrong because there are a number of excellent high points, but the disappointments (though few and far in between) are so severe that the overall product suffers a distinct roughness.
Let’s begin with the pros:
- Graphics are excellent. Not quite as smooth as SCII but in the end, that is what further adds to the realism of it all.
- The selection of characters is outstanding (despite that you have to unlock the majority of them)
- The new menu interface looks superb. The dull neo-gothic steely still menu of SCII has been replaced by a smooth flowing ocean in the background (the water is beautiful. The menu selections are formatted like old books. It looks a lot cooler than it sounds
- The stages are so intense and animated. They’re beautiful to look at, but at the same time they aren’t distracting. My personal favorite is Cervantes’s sinking ship. The rushing and pounding waves in the background in the midst of a ship fight during a sea storm are simply astounding.
- Though most of them must be unlocked, the create-a-hero mode offers a decent selection with cool looking outcomes.
Now the cons:
- Those who rushed to get the game will become slightly irritated with not knowing where to look to unlock half of the stuff in the game. Which leads to another issue: so much to unlock. Some might consider this a good thing though.
- Remember how irritated fighting those cheap versions of Sophitia and Cassandra in Weapon Master mode (SCII)? The lack of an option to adjust difficulty in the story mode is extremely irritating because it leads to really cheap opponents (or seemingly so.) This is highly unfriendly to the new player. The character’s I’ve had the worst cheese experiences with are: Mitsurugi, Taki, Yoshimitsu, Maxi, Zalasamel, and Siegfried.
- Though the story mode is much more in depth, it becomes extremely annoying at some points. Though I do suppose the depth of being able to go through story mode multiple times with different results and actual unfolding plots makes for good replay value (instead of just a screen that says “VS. VOLDO”.)
Something somewhere loves this game to pieces. Still, the annoyance factor takes away from my original goal of buying games which is being to sit back and relax while enjoying myself. Bottom line: You can’t always expect perfection. This game does leave a bit to be desired and is quick to irritate. However, it’s just as hard to put down.
I'd still urge you to rent this one first. Being in love with SCII doesn't guarentee you'll find this one worth the $49.99 price tag.