Once in a while, I like to relax and give out my little bleats of wisdom on such things as animes and video games. This goes in a monthly cycle- 1 reviewed item that lasts a month and then changes (usually).

And now, one of the new, fresh beat 'em ups on the block!

Soul Calibur 2 (2002).
Made By: Namco!
Released: 2003.
Consoles: PS2, X-Box and Gamecube

Yes! I finally got the game! Thanks to the lovely people at Hype Council. I thanks you all ^^

But anyway, what's Soul Calibur 2 about? Well, putting it plainly, it's a sequel to the Dreamcast smash hit, Soul Calibur- which itself is a much better sequel to Playstation sleeper hit, Soul Edge (also known as Soul Blade). Few people, especially me, expected Soul Edge to expand to be honest. At the time, it was overshadowed by another Namco fighting game around the time it was released. Now, I wonder what game that was...

....nope, can't remember that game.

But Soul Calibur was definitely one of the games that established the Dreamcast as a new Mega Drive and simply not another Sega Saturn- along with Shenmue and Crazy Taxi.

The characters themselves were interesting right from the first one- with female ninja Taki, Grecian warrior Sophitia, German Nutcase Knight Siegfried, and samurai Mitsurugi/English Knight Arthur (in countries that don't approve of samurai references, Mitsurugi was changed to Arthur). But, when Soul Calibur came about, the character designs got a polish- as well as introducing some fantastic new characters. Kilik- the yari jutsu master, Astaroth, the giant demon of a man, Maxi- a kind of nunchuku master Elvis lookalike. Even Yoshimitsu from Tekken got the Soul Calibur treatment! Not to mention the lovely form of Ivy Valentine, daughter of the boss from Soul Edge, Cervantes.

But now, let's focus on this latest installment- I bring you, Soul Calibur 2: The Review.

Now, this game still keeps the classic characters- even more so than the arcade version, heralding the return of Lizard Man, Seung Mina, Hwang, and Rock amongst others. As well as some new characters, like European swordsman Rafael, Filipino kali-stick girl Talim and the mysterious Charade- who if I guess correctly, is the fighting embodiment of the Soul Edge- the weapon of which the warriors in the game fight to either grasp it and take in its powers (see Cervantes) or destroy it (see Taki, Sophitia, etc) for the past 3 games. The story to this game is rather long and complex, so we'll stick with that small summary. I know, I'm starving you of detail there, but you'll get into it- believe me.

It also involves some special characters, one character exclusive to each different version for each separate console. The Gamecube will get Link from Legend Of Zelda (armed with his traditional sword and shield), The Playstation 2 gets Heihachi Mishima from the Tekken series (in his T3/TTT pants, armed with special armbands), and most interestingly, The X-Box gets Todd Mc Farlane's most famous comic creation- Spawn(armed with a circular axe). Namco worked out a deal with Mr McFarlane and managed to get Spawn for the X Box, as well as a character called Necrid.

The game itself is very interesting. Soul Blade had rings where you could guarantee victories by pushing your opponent out of the ring, like in Virtua Fighter. But by Soul Calibur, they got rid of the rings and replaced them with free roaming arenas like that within the Tekken series. In Soul Calibur 2, the graphics improve to add more detail, realism and roaming ability. The characters themselves look mind-blowing within the game as well- slightly improving on the looks of the first Soul Calibur.

So, it looks pretty. But does it play as well as it looks? well, for those new to the gameplay system (like yours truly), it consists of a horizontal slice, vertical slice, kick and Guard - other buttons combine both horizontal and vertical slice (like L2 on the PS2) and horizontal slice, vertical slice and kick (like R2 on the PS2) for moves purposes. As well as 8 playable modes to try your slashing techniques out in. From the traditional Arcade, Vs, Time Attack, Survival, Team Battle (along with a separate Vs Team Battle mode), and Practice Mode- there's also a return for Soul Edge's Weapon Master mode- where you collect numerous weapons and clear various missions as you travel around the world. A very interesting mode to say the least. Very solid gameplay, though Tekkenites take heed- with SC2 Heihachi, the moves commands will be different, so trying to do u/f+X, O won't work.

Like Tekken, the movement and throws have similar commands and abilities- including the throw escape, not to mention the varying positions you can hit your opponent- from low to mid to high and unblockables, and the neutral guard (automatic attack blocking). But it ISN'T Tekken. What sets it aside from Tekken (except the time period and story) is that it also includes its own unique features- like special mid attacks, strikes combined with throws, the 8 Way Run: where you can run in various directions- unlike the 4 way movements in Tekken (forward, backwards, side to side)- you can go in all directions. Though Jumping is trickier than just pressing up- it involves holding the guard button and then pressing up, since simply pressing up would just make you run to the sides thanks to the 8 way run feature. You can also control the landing point in juggling attacks, use the opponent's impact against your guard to parry the opponent's attack or make them stagger, and recover from your stagger in case this trick is used against you- not to mention a reverse guard impact after being parried within a guard impact (stay with me here, I told you it was a complicated game). As well as attacking when getting up and rolling against walls. With the gameplay, all the loose ends are tied up- it is very solid gameplay. Rivalling Virtua Fighter.

Yet it's not perfect- but its faults are minute. People complain it plays too closely to Soul Calibur for example- but then, what would you expect? It IS a Soul Calibur game! It is a game you shouldn't miss out on- with over 200 weapons to get in Weapon Master mode, along with unlockable new characters, new costumes and new arena's- as well as the extra disc of Namco special features that comes with it. It breathes more freshness into the fighting game genre and hopefully will become one of the best games ever for all 3 major consoles.

Graphics: Perfect, just sweet- 10/10
Gameplay: Solid as Solid Snake - 10 /10
Sounds: Thrash Bang Wallop Slice WAHEY! - 8/10
Lifespan: It will last a long time, especially with a friend -10 /10

Overall Verdict- 10/10

If you don't have it already, then you're either waiting for the Platinum edition, or just plain crazy.

If you liked this, you may just enjoy-
Soul Edge/Soul Blade (PSX),
Soul Calibur (Sega Dreamcast),
Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance

You definitely wouldn't enjoy-
Not having enough money to buy this game
 

Next Month- Wings Of Honneamise? FFVII? you'll find out soon enough

Extra: Please visit The Hype Council- it'll be worth your while- honest!