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Soul Calibur II HD Online: Soul Calibur has been around in many different incarnations since 1998, following hot on the heels of Soul Edge (1996). It started in the arcades and then moved to the Dreamcast towards the end of 1999, with an improvement in the graphics, which actually makes it better than the arcade version overall.
I hadn’t played this game since the days of the Dreamcast, and more recently this year at Revival 2013 in Wolverhampton. It was glorious on both that wonderful, but ill-fated home console, as well as in the arcade, and it’s a hit on the PS3 as well. For my money, it beats any game in the Mortal Kombat and Tekken series.
As you’d expect, Soul Calibur II HD Online has all the usual modes: Arcade (7 rounds with random characters, except for the last one who’s always Inferno), Time Attack (beat the enermy by the time the clock runs out), Survival (keep going for as many rounds as possible – with a possible max of 50, with no chance of replaying when you die, and only one shot at each round), Team Battle (get into the game with a maximum team of 3 characters, so not as many as I was hoping for. I’m sure it used to have 5?) and, of course, the obligatory Practice mode.
There’s also “Extra Arcade”, which is similar to the Arcade mode, but also allowing you to select a new weapon. Or so you’d think, as I could only select my usual. Then there’s Weapons Master, which is like a story mode, as you participate in a series of fights while brushing up your skills and unlocking new features. Museum shows you all the character profiles and a demo theatre which shows all the unlocked character endings you’ve achieved so far.
I’m hopeless when it comes to effective button-mashing to the point where I can pull off a series of slick moves to win the game. The only way I can beat the bad guys late in the game is by sheer fluke.
Go to page 2 for a look at the online side of this title.
Unfortunately, when it came to the online side of it, I could only find two people to play against. And when I lost, it kicked me out and we had to re-find each other. After two matches with each, they both were gone. You can see one of these below. On the plus side, there was no lag apart from the occasional minor tiny amount, so that’s all good.
Graphically, Soul Calibur II HD Online looks stunning. Fans will know exactly what to expect when I say that it’s everything you remember it to be, but spruced up with high-definition graphics and retaining all the fluidity of the original release. Audio-wise, it’s crash/bang/wallop aplenty. Technically, by modern standards, it’s not as intense or as graphically-capable as games with a draw distance to envy like Grand Theft Auto V and Call of Duty: Ghosts, but all that matters is that it’s perfect for what you’re expecting.
If I had any gripes is that I was wondering where Sophitia was in this game, as she wasn’t selectable. There are some more characters to unlock so I can only presume she’s amongst them. From the start, however, we do have Cervantes, who’s always a tough one to beat, and this time round, he looks like Richard Branson! Thank Frank he’s not plugging his stupid broadband services…
Also, completists won’t be pleased that the English version lacks the dual language option available in the original game and only features English voice acting. However, they will be pleased that both versions of the game also include 2 guest characters, Spawn and Heihachi Mishima, you could only get on the PS2 and Xbox, previously.
Soul Calibur II HD Online is available now to download on PS3 and Xbox 360 for £14.99.
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Important info:
- Publisher: Namco
- Players: 1-2 (co-op and multiplayer)
- HDTV options: 720p/1080i/1080p
- Dolby Digital 5.1 sound: Yes
- Spoken language: English
- Subtitles: English
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GRAPHICS SOUND GAMEPLAY ENJOYMENT |
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| OVERALL | 8 |
Directors: Jin Okubo, Yoshitaka Tezuka, Kouji Asuna, Shoji Shiromoto and George Taguchi
Producers: Junya Okabe and Hiroaki Yotoriyama
Writer: Yoshihiro Nakagawa
Cast:
Raphael Sorel: Paul Jennings
Talim: Julie Parker
Hong Yunsung: Jim Singer
Cassandra Alexandra: Debbie Rogers
Kilik: Scott Reyns
Chai Xianghua: Wendee Lee
Maxi: Doug Boyd
Heishiro Mitsurugi: Scott Keck
Taki: Desirée Goyette
Nightmare: Ted D’Agostino
Astaroth: Jay S Gilbert
Isabella ‘Ivy’ Valentine: Renee Hewitt
Sophitia Alexandra: Diane Holmby
Seung Mina: Molly Lin
Heihachi Mishima (PlayStation 2 version)/Spawn (Xbox version): Victor Stone
Yoshimitsu: Phil Sheridan
Cervantes de Leon: Warren Rodgerson
Narrator: Cazmo Lukrich
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.
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