Product Description

The world's premier weapon based fighting game franchise returns to deliver a true next generation fighting experience. Set to finally reveal the origins of the Soulcalibur saga, Soulcalibur IV features both new and familiar faces from across the galaxy, seeking the rival swords for vengeance, honor and salvation. In a monumental alliance, legendary Star Wars icons, Darth Vader and Yoda invade the Soulcalibur IV continues the series' tradition of reinventing, enhancing and breaking new boundaries. Now the world's favorite fighting game redefines the entire genre for the next generation of both new, and fiercely loyal Soulcalibur fans.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #420 in Video Games
• Brand: Namco
• Model: 11007
• Released on: 2008-07-29
• ESRB Rating: Teen
• Platform: PLAYSTATION 3
• Dimensions: .57" h x 6.71" w x 5.70" l, .30 pounds

Features

• Unleash the Force: Iconic Star Wars characters, Sith Lord Darth Vader and Jedi Master Yoda challenge the Soulcalibur fighters for the future of the powerful swords. Experience the legendary Soulcalibur level of graphics now in 720p HD resolution for the fi
• Take the Fight Online: For the first time ever, fight opponents around the world online in multiple versus modes.
• The Ultimate Roster: Battle with classic Soulcalibur character, exciting newcomers or customize your own unique fighter.
• New Fighting System Elements: Exciting new fighting game elements including the Active Matching Battle System and the ability to execute devastating critical strikes.
• Multiple Gameplay Modes: Experience Soulcalibur with Story, Arcade, Tower of Reminiscence, Training Practice, Character Creation, and Museum View modes.

Amazon.com

The Classic Fighter Returns

Return to witness the epic struggle between the spirit sword, Soul Calibur, and the cursed sword, Soul Edge, in Soul Calibur IV. Warriors from far reaches of the galaxy battle to control the powerful swords and use them for their own goals. Should these fighters succeed, they will face the ultimate judgment. The ongoing story continues with new revelations, exciting new gameplay features and stunning visuals. And perhaps most exciting of all, a character from the Star Wars universe will also make an appearance.

Key Features Newest addition to the Soul Calibur series features thrilling next-gen graphics brimming with intensity Continues the struggle between the spirit sword, Soul Calibur, and the cursed sword, Soul Edge Features the infamous Darth Vader as a guest character Expanded customization options let you give your character a personalized look and specific abilities Take both customized characters and original favorites online for the first time Exclusive Special Characters Revered and feared Star Wars Sith Lord Darth Vader appears as a guest character in the PlayStation 3 version of Soul Calibur IV. In addition to that thrilling fact, you'll also discover expanded customization options that let you bestow your character with a personalized look and specific abilities. And, for the first time, you'll be able to take both customized characters and original favorites online to challenge an entire world of fans. Completely reinvented but with the same intensity you've come to know, Soul Calibur IV provides an adventure that never disappoints.

Thrilling Next-Gen Graphics View Image Online Challenges! View Image

Customer Reviews

Put some clothes on!
I'm not much of a video game reviewer, and I'm certainly not a "serious gamer" but I do enjoy blowing off an hour or two every once in a while playing games. Up until we rented this on gamefly I had never played a Soul Caliber game before. I enjoy fighting games provided there are some speedy characters involved. My Hubby and I enjoyed this game enough to pay the extra loot to "keep the game" so we are now the proud owners of Soul Caliber IV.

What I liked:
1) I didn't have to hit 40 sequential buttons to get the character to do something cool, in fact my inner button masher was quite happy with the moves that I was able to do right off just by smashing in patterns.

2) The graphics are good, the surrounding areas are cool to look at and you can smash up your surroundings, which is always fun. The playable characters come in a wide variety and all look fairly good (some of the women are ridiculously proportioned but whatever). They have a variety of weapons that are quite fun and all look great.

3) The characters level, meaning the more you play with one, the more options you get with them.

4) The online option is interesting, but for some reason the pairing doesn't seem up to snuff, I mean why would the computer match up a level 1 with a level 41? It seems that it should be a bit more balanced as to who it sets up against who.

5) The tower is a blast, and it's HARD! basically you have to fight different groups of baddies on each level of the tower to ascend to the next one... we're on level 20 or so now and it's no walk in the park! The good thing is that each level has a way for you to unlock another article of clothing to use in your character creation.

6) Character creation, this can be quite fun, and I'm really bad at it. My hubby can spend over an hour tweeking his dude... I just slap some clothes on them and go.

7) The other options are your standard Arcade mode and the story mode, both of which allow you to unlock different playable characters.

What I don't care for:
1) When you are either beating the tar out of someone or they are laying the smack down on you, armor can break... effectively leaving your character almost completely in the nude. Now I'm not sure who gets their jollies from video game semi-naked people, but I'm not one of them.

2) It would be great if the female characters weren't trapsing about with their boobs hanging out wearing thongs... and the closeups of the boobs and booties gets to be rather tiresome... men wonder why more women don't play video games... this is one of the reasons.

3) The commercial showed Darth Vader fighting Yoda... um... you only get Vader on the PS3 version, apparently Yoda is on the Xbox version. It would have been nice to have had both.

4) The loading times from fight to fight get a bit tiresome, especially in the tower when you just got your derrier handed to you and you have to re-fight the same guy for the 15th time and there you are; waiting for 2 minutes or more to reload the battle.

5) In the character creation I should be able to pick some better undergarments for my people just in case all of their clothes get busted off so that they aren't standing there in a bra and thong.

Still, I love the game, it's an absolute blast and well worth a purchase (especially used)

Equal parts homage & upgrade
When the mechanics of a game franchise are fundamental to its success it is best not to tinker too much with how it controls and feels overall. The newest SC suffers from this slightly as it does feel like the same old game, but that is also its strength. There isn't anything new that takes away from the core enjoyment of this supreme fighter because other than the new SW characters everything is meshed together for a smooth experience. The new critical finish comes into play so little as to non existent. There is alot under what appears a shallow surface, however. The character creation only gets fun once you master it and unlock the cool equipment and weapons. Ideally the game wants you to take everyone through its 5 chapter story mode offering but the hardcore restart elements of mission mode (my favorite part of the old game(s) are redone in the somehow less fufilling TOWER mode(it is lacking the storyline text& map that made the original missions more fun.) Survival mode is redone as a backward crawl into the dungeon of the tower. The unlockables come easier but it feels right as this is a more challenging SC as well. Changes like these and the customizable skill and equipment set make SCIV VERY replayable. I know this my thumbs still burn especially after taking the unwieldy DARTH VADER through arcade mode which took me longer than I care to admit. Darth V. is tough to control as he should be with his mechanical legs, his forces powers and throws are tougher to use but with practice he can be worth the effort. The story text for each character is enjoyable, and the incredibly deep moves list for each fighter is accessible from the pause menu as always. SCIV is frustratingly hard at the right moments, and addictive in all the right places with an abundance of strategy and configurability, that plus its satisfying catalogue of fighters will have this disc running hot in my PS3 for awhile. BTW The install feature to hard drive doesn't shave as much off the load times as I was hoping for but I like having the option.

Another incredibly good installment of a great series
For as much as Namco's Soul Calibur series has stayed the same, the more fun the weapons-based fighter has become. Soul Calibur IV is no different, offering up a plethora of fighters that bear familiar faces to fans of the series, as well as even offering Darth Vader (yes, Darth Vader) as a bonus fighter for the Playstation 3 version of the game (while XBox 360 gamers get Yoda), and stands as the best fighter to hit the PS3 yet. Like previous installments in the series, the fighting engine is surprisingly deep yet even more surprisingly accessible for those new to the series, and is rewarding as well. It should also be noted that Soul Calibur IV looks magnificent (especially on the PS3) and fully displays some brilliantly animated graphics that are vibrant and nicely detailed. Even better is the game's online play which is smooth, lag-free, and tons of fun. The only real downside to Soul Calibur IV is that the game's single player mode isn't hard to get through at all, and there's no team battle mode either, which is really disappointing. Despite that though, Soul Calibur IV is a wonderful and incredibly good installment of a great fighting series that deserves your attention, whether or not you're a veteran or newcomer to the Soul Calibur universe.