Editorial Review: Featuring graphics that surpass even the amazing NFL 2K, Soul Calibur is the martial arts fighting game to end all fighting games and the game to get if you're a Dreamcast owner. Based on the arcade classic of the same name, Soul Calibur lets you choose to represent one of 10 fighters in a series of battles against your peers. If you can successfully defeat all of your opponents, you will then face the fiendish Inferno in a final showdown that will determine the fate of the world. Each of the game's warriors is armed with a different deadly weapon--sword, ax, stave, nunchaku, you name it--and an assortment of special moves all tailored to that specific weapon. The warriors include men, women, and creatures from all over the globe and from various mythologies. Each is brought to life with amazing motion-capture animation, which results in incredibly lifelike and realistic duels. If you own a Dreamcast or are thinking of buying one, do yourself a favor and add Soul Calibur to your collection. --Mike Ryan
Pros:
Exceptionally lifelike graphics and animation
Multiple game modes--1-player, 2-player, team, computer vs. computer, martial arts demo, and more
Secrets and extra features will keep players coming back
Cons:
May be too violent for some parents
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - This game has a lotta' soul!
Quite possibly the best game put out by Sega for its Dreamcast console. The graphics on this game are amazing. Years after its release it is still putting some games to shame. Buy a copy. Soon.
Rating: - Greatest Fighter Ever
This is just as good as Soul Calibur 2 and its a wonder how Dreamcast died with so many amazing games this being the best along with Grandia 2, Crazy Taxi and Jet Grind Radio. Any way i highly recommend you play this or Soul Calibur 2 and be completely amazed.
Rating: - Amazing fighter for the DC
In comparison to Soul Blade, this game is a towering improvement. To Soul Calibur II, it is a little behind, but then, it was released 5 years prior. This also represents a very smooth transition of storylines from the first to the second in the series.
Combat commands in the straight spectrum are highly developed, though 8-way-run attacks are limited to two or three basic attacks. Still, the game is very fun, and fun to play over and over for a long span of time. The voice-over/narrator guy is hillarious also.
This game's museum mode has 335 pieces of unlockable artwork and different skins and modes, as well as more than 10 unlockable characters. The first set of museum pieces completely explains the Soul storyline, and the events that lead up to where the game is; something you have to nit-pick through in SCII to figure out just what happened since this installment. For Dreamcast collectors, or fighting game enthusiests, I highly-reccomend this game.
Rating: - Welcome back to the stage of history
Soul Caliber - Circa 2001
GOOD:
- Good/Tight controls
- Nicely balanced gameplay
- Lots of different and unique fighters
- Minutes to learn years to master gameplay
- Some nice unlockables like new Fighters, costumes, stages and other bonuses
- A 3D fighting game that really uses the 3D space (with eight way run)
- Considered a classic to many hardcore fighting fanatics
BAD:
- Non- traditional fighting gameplay, might alienate some more traditional fighting game fans
- Have to unlock most of the game through the story/quest mode
IF IT FITS YOUR TASTE:
- Has medieval theme, both European and Chinese/Japanese
- Not traditional fighting game in the sense that there is no real combos and supers, or even projectile moves
- Game has built in quest mode, where you pick a fighter and complete a number of challenges, the end result is you unlock more content and are a better player
- Fight with weapons, like a 3D Samurai Showdown
GAME ITS MOST ASSOCATED TOO:
- Soul Caliber 2
- Tekken 3
- Samurai Showdown
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
- You can unlock a mode that lets you Customize your intro (by picking who will be in the intro of the game at which points)
Rating: - Ages like a fine wine.
Not that this game is "old", but when you consider it's a game from 1999 that's exclusive to a dead console system, it's amazing to realize that this game is arguably better than any other combat game out there even today. The graphics made full use of the Dreamcast's capabilities, and even now it is one of the most beautiful games I've ever seen. The combat moves are fluid and based on real martial arts...there is even a martial arts display mode where you can see all the characters doing various weapon katas! It is a good game for both button mashers and pros. There is no "blood" which makes it a bit unrealistic when you see someone getting hacked with a huge axe and not bleeding; but that doesn't detract from the experience because this isn't that sort of game. The abundance of modes allows for a high replay value. The only thing I would knock is the end-stories, which are a bit corny and considering the animation in the gamplay itself, it feels a bit like a copout to see the endings as just still life. However, that's all nitpicking.
This game is the reason to buy a dreamcast, and it is still worth it to buy this game and then go find someone selling a dreamcast so you can buy and play it. Have fun!
