Pros: Lots of unlockable features, addictive gameplay, excellent graphics; a "bigger" version of its predecessor.
Cons: No drastic improvements to gameplay; Xbox controller not the best choice for this game
The Bottom Line: Although the basic design is largely the same as the its predecessor, Soul Calibur 2 adds a ton of extras, hidden features, more characters, and finely-tuned gameplay.
Soul Calibur 2 is the long-awaited sequel to one of the best fighting games ever made. However, the game does little to improve its basic design. Despite that, fans of the series will still find plenty of new and extra features to like. The game is a bigger, tighter, and prettier version of its Dreamcast predecessor.
A Bigger Game...
Soul Calibur 2 is a multi-platform game that is now available for PS2, Gamecube, and Xbox. It is actually the 3rd sequel in its series because the “first” Soul Calibur was on the Dreamcast – which was actually a sequel to Soul Blade, a game on the original Playstation. The improvements to Soul Calibur 2 in art and gameplay are small at best when compared to its Dreamcast predecessor. That's not to say that the game looks dated, and that it plays bad. On the contrary, it's beautiful and plays even better! The reason why Soul Calibur 2 doesn't feel like a full sequel is because the graphics and gameplay on the Dreamcast were surprisingly good already, and it's obvious that even with the power of the newer consoles, there’s little left to improve upon. In all fairness, this isn’t a big surprise. Other fighting games such as SNK’s King of Fighters series (on Sega Saturn, NEO GEO, and Dreamcast) is also similar - in that there is more “fluff” than actual improvements to art and gameplay. In any case, fans of the Soul Calibur series will likely love the new features, even though there are no drastic changes to the game itself.
While Soul Calibur 2’s basic design is essentially the same as its predecessor, there are new modes of play, hidden characters, alternate weapons, and more. In addition to the standard Arcade, Practice, Versus, Time Attack, and Survival Modes; Namco has added a whole new set of "Extra" modes. These Extra modes include versions where alternate weapons can be used. There are also several hidden characters that can be unlocked, alternate costumes, concept art galleries, different demo modes, etc. Soul Calibur 2 is truly one of the most robust fighting games around.
Gameplay
Soul Calibur 2 is a 3D Fighting game where each match is a one-on-one fight using weapons. Each match is divided into a series of rounds. The fighter who wins the most rounds within a match is declared the victor. Winning a round is done by K.O. (inflicting enough damage so that an opponent's health drops to zero), or by pushing the opponent out of the ring, or by having the most health when time runs out. In Arcade mode, the first fighter to win 2 rounds wins the match. When the player wins a match, the next match begins with a different fighter. (Of course, the number of rounds, the time limit, and other settings can be changed in the options screen.)
Characters can move about the ring in any direction, but they tend to face the opponent whenever possible. There are three basic attacks: horizontal slash, vertical slash, and kick. Generally speaking, horizontal slashes cover a lot of area, and are best used to strike opponents who sidestep. Vertical slashes get priority over horizontal slashes, but opponents can avoid them by sidestepping. Kicks can vary in effectiveness, but are often quick and help interrupt opponents who like to use combos. Characters can also use throws that can only be done when both fighters are close. Blocking is done by holding the block button, but since attacks can vary from high and low, it is difficult to predict where an attack may come. And as a result, it’s best to be the attacker rather than the defender. In addition to these basic moves, all the characters have their own unique attacks as well.
The Soul Calibur series of games has always been known for button-mashing playability. (Button-mashing is the term used when players indiscriminately press buttons frantically in order to get off attacks.) It’s not uncommon for new players to beat the game, or beat other players by button-mashing. That’s because many combat moves can be easily done with just a few button presses. However, players who’ve learned each character’s attacks will certainly know when to block and when to attack. And it’s this knowledge that separates those who button-mash, and those who are truly skilled.
Everyone who plays this game tends to gravitate to certain characters. Some are faster while doing less damage, while others do more damage, but aren't quite as agile. The gameplay is balanced enough however, that no character is truly dominant over another.
Soul Calibur 2 feels tighter, and more finely tuned than its predecessor. Some attacks come off quicker or have been tuned to hit more often. Also, throws seem to be harder to do against experienced players (since a throw is now easier to interrupt).
Microsoft's standard Xbox controller and the smaller, Controller-S aren't exactly the best choice for a game like Soul Calibur 2. Both these controllers were designed so that left hand could easily use the left analog stick to control movement. At the same time, the right hand holds the controller so that the thumb can press the face buttons, while the forefinger could press the trigger. However, since most attacks in Soul Calibur 2 require the face buttons to be pressed rapidly, players are forced to have their right hand rest on top of the controller itself. This allows the right hand's fingers easy access to all attack buttons (the face buttons). Needless to say, this isn't very confortable. And although one could get used to this awkward configuration, it's much better to use a joystick. At the time of this writing there are very few joysticks available for the Xbox. The one that I have tried and that I highly recommend is the X-Arcade Solo. This is a heavy-duty 9-button joystick controller made from arcade-quality parts. It's a bit pricey ($99) but it feels and responds great. Of course, not many have the luxury to spend $99 on a single joystick. The other alternative is to get a $35-$50 joystick from the local gamestore. But I would recommend trying it at the store before buying. Joysticks must be heavy or relatively stable for a game like Soul Calibur 2.
Arcade, Survival, Time Attack, Team Battle, Versus, and Practice are the default modes that are readily available. Arcade is the typical mode where players fight matches until they defeat the last boss character. Survival mode requires the player to never loose a round, and his life bar recharges only partially before each new opponent. The goal of Survival mode is to beat as many enemies as possible in a row. Time Attack is similar to Arcade mode, but the goal is to win all matches in the least amount of time. Team Battle allows players to form a team of up to 3 characters and fight other teams. In this mode, the matches are still one-on-one, but if a round is lost, the next player on the team takes over the next round. Versus mode is where two players can fight against each other. Practice mode is where a player can practice moves and attacks. Additional modes exist, but they must be unlocked through the Weapon Master mode (more on this later).
Characters
The cast of Soul Calibur 2 includes fighters from around the world with their own unique abilities. By default, 15 of these characters are already selectable. The remaining 5 characters are hidden, and must be unlocked. One unique thing about Soul Calibur 2 is that each version gets a special character. The PS2 version of Soul Calibur 2 gets Heichachi, who comes from Namco’s other fighting game series, Tekken. The Gamecube has Link, hero of Nintendo’s Zelda games. And the Xbox gets Spawn, the morbid character seen in Todd McFarlane’s series of comic books. Below is a list of the fighters (Xbox version). (Spoiler Alert! If you don’t want to know who the additional hidden characters are, don’t read on!)
Default Characters:
Astaroth - a large barbarian-type character who uses his massive axe to inflict lots of damage.
Cassandra – Sister to Sophitia (see below), and uses a sword and shield.
Ivy – Aristocratic warrior woman who wields a weapon that’s a cross between a sword and a whip
Kilik - A fighter who uses a staff, and keeps his enemies at bay
Maxi – Known for his speed with his nunchukus
Mitsurugi – He is the classic Samurai, known for single deadly strikes.
Nightmare – A corrupted Knight who wields the evil weapon, Soul Edge.
Raphael – Reminiscent of swash-buckling heroes, he uses a fencing fighting style.
Taki – A ninja woman who is known for her speed and agility
Talim - An girl from India who is one of the fastest fighters in the game.
Spawn – Todd McFarlane’s popular comic book character whose appears only in the Xbox version of Soul Calibur 2.
Voldo - A strange and unorthodox fighter who uses his attacks to catch people off gaurd.
Xianghua - Her fighting style is elegant, yet deadly.
Yangsung - A fighter whose style is similiar to that of Xianghua.
Yoshimitsu - From the Tekkan series, this fighter is unpredictable and known for his suicide attacks.
Hidden Characters:
Assassin - Shrouded in cloth, weilding a deadly sword
Berserker - Huge, and devestating in his attacks
Cervantes – The “boss” from the previous game, Soul Calibur. He wields two swords and is very strong.
Charade – A strange character made up of a glowing “eye.”
Lizardman - A reptilian fighter whose style is similiar to Sophitia's.
Seung Mina – Also from the previous Soul Calibur on the Dreamcast, she returns with her familiar halberd-like weapon.
Sophitia – She is reminiscent of a Roman warrior, wielding a sword and shield.
Weapon Master Mode
The Weapon Master Mode (hereafter, as “WM mode”) is basically a very long series of matches that unlock hidden features in the game. In this mode, the difficulty cannot be manually changed, and most of the matches have specific parameters. For example, a match can be set to one round, and the player’s health can be set very low. Or, a match can be against 5 fighters in a row, and the player must push each of them out of the ring to win. These are just a two examples of the many different types of matches to be found in WM mode.
While many of the hidden features can simply be unlocked by winning a certain match in WM mode, some of them must be “bought.” In a similar fashion to RPGs, gold and experience is awarded to the player when a match is won. Gold can be used to buy weapons, alternate endings, and other hidden features within the game. Experience works as another way to unlock features, so the higher the experience level a player has the more opportunities will be available to unlock more hidden features.
WM mode takes place using a geographical map. This map represents the world in the Soul Calibur 2 storyline. The map itself is divided into “Chapters” that represent the player’s journey – starting from the west to the east. Each chapter of WM mode takes the player to a new location where matches must be won in order to clear the road to new chapters and regions. At each location there is a “shop.” Here, the player can purchase alternate weapons, new endings, and a host of other hidden features. Each shop can differ in what they offer. For example, some shops sell very unique weapons, while others sell only a certain hidden feature. Needless to say, the more locations a player opens up (by winning matches), the more shops are available.
Most players will be able to finish WM mode once in only a few hours. When WM mode has been finished once, the game resets to a higher difficulty and new areas are opened. Finishing the WM mode a 2nd time will take much more effort, but it will also allow the player to unlock almost all the hidden features.
Hidden Features
There are lots of hidden features within Soul Calibur 2. I’ll discuss the more interesting ones here. As stated before, most of these must be unlocked using the WM mode – either by winning a certain match, or by purchasing the feature with gold and experience.
“Extra” Modes and weapons
Extra Modes are special versions of the standard Arcade, Practice, Versus, Survival, and Team Battle modes that allow players to use alternate weapons. These alternate weapons have special affects on each fighter during a match. For example, some weapons can inflict more damage at the cost of draining the wielder’s own health. On the other hand, some weapons can break through defenses but have a short reach. Being able to use these alternate weapons in the Extra modes is great because it changes the dynamic of each match – making it easier, or harder depending on what weapon is chosen. (Alternate weapons must be bought in WM mode.)
Hidden Characters:
(Spoiler alert! If you don’t want to find out who these hidden characters are, don’t read this paragraph!) There are several hidden characters in the game who can all be unlocked by playing the WM mode. Three of these characters are from the Dreamcast version of Soul Calibur: Seung Mina, Sophitia, and Cervantes. In addition to these are Assassin (his style is akin to Yungsang), and Berserker, who looks like a very large barbarian (his style seems to be a mixture of other styles). Despite outside appearances, some of these characters use similar fighting styles to others within the game. For example, Kilik and Seung Mina are similar in their fighting styles; as are Cassandra and Sophitia. Also, some of these characters cannot be used in certain modes.
More Stages/Arenas
In addition to the several arenas available by default, there are at least 5 additional arenas that can be unlocked (I’ve unlocked 5, but it remains to be seen if there are more). These additional five arenas are unique. One of them is a caged arena, while another is exceptionally small and dangles precariously over a pit.
Exhibition Mode
In this mode, each character performs an exhibition of his or her fighting style. This is a set of movements performed in an almost dance-like way. If you’ve ever seen a martial arts exhibition, this is very similar. During the performance, the camera’s point-of-view can be changed and controlled automatically or manually.
Art Galleries
One great thing about Soul Calibur 2 is its excellent artwork. The Art Gallery displays illustrations and concept art done by talented Soul Calibur 2 team. It’s pretty neat to look at what the original concept for each character was.
Alternate Costumes
Whenever a character is selected, pressing Y on the Xbox controller will change the current costume of a character. By default, there are 2 costumes for every character. But many of them have a 3rd costume that can be unlocked in WM mode.
Character Profiles
This is a nice mode where each character is displayed in his or her stage. Background information on each character is provided in simple text-filled windows. Furthermore, the camera can be moved around the character to see his or her costume in full display. (In order to unlock a character’s profile the player must finish Arcade mode with him or her.)
Graphics
Soul Calibur 2 has excellent graphics. Each character is modeled with lots of polygons and with detailed textures. Returning characters like Ivy have been reworked to look better and seem to animate slightly smoother as well. The stages are equally great to look at.
Conclusion
This is a great game for fighting game fans. It’s deep, easy to learn, difficult to master, and has lots of extras. Whether playing in one of the many different modes, or against a friend; this game is loads of fun. Soul Calibur 2 is basically a decked-out version of its Dreamcast predecessor. While it doesn’t drastically change or improve anything, the game does have a lot of extra and cool features that fans of the series should enjoy.
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