Soulcalibur IV

Soul Calibur IV
File:Soulcalibur IV.jpg Logo for the latest installment in the Soul series.
Developer(s)	Project Soul
Publisher(s)	Namco Bandai
Series	Soul series
Platform(s)	PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Release	JP 2008 NA Spring 2008
Genre(s)	Fighting
Mode(s)	Single player, Multiplayer

Soul Calibur IV (ソウルキャリバーIV, Souru Kyaribā Fō) is the fifth installment in Namco's Soul series of fighting games. Namco has announced that the game will be released on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in 2008, perhaps in Spring 2008 in North America, and rumored for Europe in Spring 2008 or Summer 2008. The game is unlikely to be released on the Wii although it has not been denied as of yet. However, Soul Calibur Legends was released exclusively for the console on November 20, 2007. For the first time in the series history, the game will have competitive online play. An arcade version has not yet been announced, making it the second game in the franchise to not be released in the arcades first. Soul Calibur IV's E3 trailer states that the warriors head slowly towards its inevitable conclusion, allowing speculation as to if Soul Calibur IV could be the last game in the series. But nothing of that sort has yet been confirmed. More information on Soul Calibur IV will be released at the Consumer Electronics Show in January.10

Characters

Three characters were shown in the initial teaser trailer, Ivy, Mitsurugi, and Nightmare. Director Katsutoshi Sasaki has also mentioned that Create-a-Character will be playable in multiplayer mode. Electronic Gaming Monthly confirmed the return of Siegfried, Sophitia, Taki, Tira, and Yoshimitsu in its July issue. Sophitia, her sister Cassandra and the series staple Voldo were featured next in Famitsu magazine. A recently released trailer featured the first clips of gameplay footage, along with brief glimpses of a new character Hilde, a female in knight's armor (with a wolf's head motif) wielding a red lance and a short sword. This article also confirmed the appearances of Raphael and Astaroth. It has been mentioned that the game will feature guest characters that "make Spawn look like a D-list character." Another character will be revealed at the Computer Electronics Show. In the picture is a shadow of the new character with a question mark on it and the shadow seems to resemble Zasalamel.

Confirmed characters (according to the official website)

• Astaroth
• Cassandra
• Darth Vader
• Hilde
• Ivy
• Mitsurugi
• Nightmare
• Raphael
• Siegfried
• Sophitia
• Taki
• Tira
• Voldo
• Yoda

Features

• Based on the 'design flow' of Soul Calibur II
• Game is said to be very detailed: "The amount of detail in the game will be amazing! The leather straps on Ivy's thighs make real-time indentations into her skin as she fights."
• Stages will be much larger than before and be more interactive with breakable objects
• Ring Outs will be less common as this is something the developers want to cut down on
• New characters will be revealed closer to release
• New and Improved 'Create a Soul / Character'
• Customizations will have an effect on gameplay
• Created Characters can be traded online
• Online Play
• Chronicles of the Sword mode will not be included but will be replaced with a new mode
• Health Gauge will be changed
• There will be a way to beat opponents without the use of the Health Gauge, Time-Ups, or Ring Outs
• 'Guard Impact' is back
• Game can be patched if necessary

External links

• Official Soul Calibur IV website (in Japanese)