PSI reports:
''The long anticipated return of one of the greatest fighting game franchises has finally come true. Soul Calibur IV has finally arrived and it aims to impress. Hours will be spent refining gameplay styles, and many more will be spent acquiring new gear. The latest in the long-running series is its next-gen debut and the visuals aren't the only things that have been given an extra coat of polish.
The first thing that pops about Soul Calibur IV is how gorgeous it is. The bright, vibrant colors and fluid animations bring a much needed breath of fresh air to the dark grays and browns in the new world of gaming. Every character model has been updated with much better textures, fabrics, and armor sets. One of the many new features on this outing is that now everyone's armor deteriorates and breaks apart over time to add more realism and strategic depth to the game. It all happens in real time as well, with individual pieces falling off corresponding to where the attack came from. Along with the characters, the stages and backgrounds also earned a new level of quality with their interactivity and appeal. Each stage has its own unique personality and visual design choices that make it fun to see and play every time. While it is clear that Namco/Bandai spent plenty of time on making their game look good, they also dedicated that same devotion to making it sound good too.
The sound and audio in Soul Calibur IV is done very well with each stage receiving its own theme. Veterans of the franchise will recognize many of the songs and pieces, but there are a few new songs to mix things up a bit. The ending music and themes for each character are also performed nicely with each piece fitting with every character's personality. All of the songs are instrumental pieces that add to the world in new ways and find a way to get stuck in your head for many days afterward.''
Assassin's Creed's Ezio and The Witcher's Geralt have been excellent guest characters in the Soul Calibur series.
Soul Calibur IV launched worldwide 15 years ago, bringing with it the best performance of the series to date.
Hell no. It was the start of the downfall (SCV) of the series. Huge downstep from the giant SCIII
Used to love this series, probably my favorite 3D fighter, perhaps together with the now also dead Dead or Alive (2-3-4), but as with so many games in the fighting genre, their short-term greed (season passes) has made me lose all interest, sadly …
Loved Number 2 and 3( loved all the solo modes like chronicle of the sword ) so was super hyped when 4 came out but the lack of single player content was disappointing. Still love soul calibur to this day though
2 was definitely the golden era of Soul Calibur for me. I was a bit conflicted about it at times because there were 3 different versions (I liked the PS2 version for controls, I liked playing as Spawn the most, and I thought the addition of Link was really awesome). Even so, the single player content was outstanding. Easily the most fun I've had with a fighting game, followed closely by Tekken 5's single player modes
From VG247: "Link suits the world of Soul Calibur. The elf-like little twink fit into the roster as well as any sword-wielding fantasy hero could – facing off against the likes of the machiavellian Frenchman Raphael, the inhuman hellspawn Astaroth, or the horny gimp Voldo, the Legend of Zelda guest character fits right in. Weaponry, aesthetic, move set… all of it gels with Soul Calibur’s camp high fantasy world – even when you’re pulling massive bombs out of God-knows-where and hurling them across the stage. It just fits.
You know what doesn’t fit, though? Lightsabers. No amount of sci-fi reasoning, magic, or blaming it on wizards can make Yoda, Darth Vader, and (eurgh) Starkiller fit in the war-torn European and Silk Road settings of Soul Calibur. It just doesn’t track. Why Bandai Namco decided to shoehorn the trio of characters into the fourth Soul Calibur game, then, remains a mystery; it’s damaging to both brands, it makes no sense canonically, and – more than anything else – it’s just all a bit tacky (or should that be Taki?)"
