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46-455: The game introduces a variety of modes, such as Story, Arcade, and the innovative Tower of Lost Souls, where players face challenges for rewards. It also includes an extensive Character Creation mode, allowing for detailed customization of fighters, and a new online multiplayer feature that enables players to compete in both Standard and Special VS modes. Notably, the Critical Finish system and

92-466: A steelbook case edition was released instead, which included a bonus DVD containing four trailers in HD, four wallpapers, exclusive concept art, and an exclusive booklet with character biographies. Shortly after the initial release, various pieces of paid downloadable content became available, including music tracks from the original Soulcalibur , customization equipment, and weapon packs. On October 23, 2008,

138-416: A Guard Impact. The color transitions from blue to green, then to red, and eventually flashes red. The player's Soul Gauge regenerates if they successfully hit the opponent with an attack, guard, or otherwise. If a character manages to deplete the opponent's Soul Gauge, the enemy suffers a piece of armor destruction (characters now display permanent visual damage, such as broken and torn clothing) and experiences

184-836: A book-like package containing the game, a CD of the game’s music soundtrack, The Art of SoulCalibur V book, a making-of DVD, and exclusive White and Dark Knight character creation downloadable content . Namco has released additional downloadable content for the game. The first "Launch Day" pack includes a set of character customization items described as "exotic," as well as music from Soul Edge and Soulcalibur . The Valentine's Day pack, released on February 14, includes customization items described as "fearsome," along with music from Soulcalibur II and Soulcalibur III . The February 28 pack includes more customization items and music from Soulcalibur IV and Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny . The music tracks are also available individually. Further DLC packs were announced and planned for release once

230-551: A brief stun during which the character can execute a powerful Critical Finish move by pressing all four face buttons simultaneously. Each character has a unique Critical Finish move. Namco developed the Soul Gauge to mitigate the advantages of constant guarding, thus enhancing the game's tempo and making matches more offensive. The Star Wars guest characters, Darth Vader , Yoda , and the Apprentice , utilize unique attacks powered by

276-454: A broader range of character voices and the ability to adjust their pitch. Players may also modify a character's general physique and muscularity. Additionally, equipped items now affect a character's statistics. Armor, weapons, and accessories may increase health, attack, or defense; they may also grant skill points that allow the character to equip special traits affecting playstyle. These traits may include automatically triggered guard impacts,

322-452: A follow-up to Soulcalibur IV (2008). It retains the weapon-based combat that characterizes the series while introducing a new protagonist, Patroklos, who aims to free his sister from a curse inflicted upon her by an ancient weapon. This installment marks the conclusion of the original Soul series timeline. The game received positive reviews, being praised for its gameplay, atmosphere, and character creation. However, it faced criticism for

368-493: A member of Siegfried 's revived Schwarzwind. Siegfried inducts him into the group and informs him that Pyrrha is being held captive by Soul Edge devotee Tira , assigning Z.W.E.I. and Schwarzwind mystic Viola to accompany him. After a brief skirmish, Tira seemingly releases Pyrrha to her brother, who abandons Z.W.E.I. and Viola to bring her sister home. However, upon arriving in Greece, they are confronted by Dumas, who reveals himself as

414-508: A meter and unleash powerful special attacks. The game offers a variety of gameplay modes. In Story Mode, players control the protagonist, Patroklos, along with various supporting characters, guiding him through a series of battles divided into 20 episodes. Unlike previous installments, not all characters are playable in Story Mode. The arcade mode allows players to choose any character and face six opponents in time trial matches. Additionally,

460-411: A month. Critical reception of Soulcalibur V was generally positive, with average Metacritic scores of 77 (Xbox 360) and 81 (PS3). Jose Otero of 1Up.com criticized the story mode but was overall positive in his review, stating that the game " reinvents the series again." PSM3 stated, "Faster and more aggressive, SCV is what the series needed. Long-term fans may bemoan the changes, but this

506-550: A new round for each defeated opponent, new opponents enter the battle immediately after a K.O., with the exception of certain combatants. Matches utilizing the AMB system only appear in the Story and Tower of Lost Souls modes. Soulcalibur IV introduces an all-new Critical Finish system. Next to a player's health meter is a colored gem known as the Soul Gauge. The gem changes color when the player blocks an attack or has their own attack blocked by

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552-596: A roster of 34 fighters. Many characters from the Soul series return, along with two newcomers and three guest characters from the Star Wars franchise: Darth Vader, Yoda, and The Apprentice. Initially, Darth Vader was exclusive to the PlayStation 3, while Yoda was available on the Xbox 360 as part of a full game download; Namco later made both characters available as downloadable content on

598-495: Is permitted for Offline VS. mode, meaning that only one profile's created characters can be loaded at any given time. Multi-fighter battles in Soulcalibur IV employ a different structure from its predecessors, known as Active Matching Battle (AMB). Similar to the tag system of games such as The King of Fighters 2003 , the AMB system allows players to switch to other members of their fighter party mid-battle. Instead of starting

644-410: Is the perfect starting point for newcomers." Adam Biessener of Game Informer called it "the best Soulcalibur ever." On the other hand, IGN 's Steven Lambrechts wrote that Soulcalibur V "feels like more of the same" and expressed disappointment with the game, particularly criticizing its main story mode. Jordan Mallory of Joystiq claimed that Soulcalibur V "is simultaneously one of

690-521: The Tekken series) indicated that he would seriously consider a sequel if there was sufficient interest. He informed fans that he was open to opinions and requests via Twitter, asking that messages be short and simple due to his limited English skills. While the possibility of a sequel appeared stronger than ever, Namco had not made any statements to confirm their commitment to the project. Fans were encouraged to continue showing support and interest to help secure

736-552: The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Soulcalibur IV for the " Fighting Game of the Year ". In 2010, the game was included as one of the titles in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die . Project Soul (the development team of the Soul series) had always suggested that Soulcalibur IV would be their final installment, as there were rumors that the team had disbanded. However, Katsuhiro Harada (producer of

782-452: The Assassin's Creed series. ^a Newcomers ^b Guest character ^c Unlockable ^d DLC only ^e Moveset available through Character Creation A petition for Soulcalibur V posted on Facebook caught the attention of Katsuhiro Harada, producer of Namco's Tekken series. He accepted suggestions and promised to advocate for fans in

828-517: The Force . Darth Vader can employ Force-based blasts, punches, and chokes; Yoda can use the Force to propel himself into the air for intricate aerial attacks; and finally, the Apprentice is capable of wielding Force lightning and other dark-side abilities. These moves consume a special Force Meter, which gradually recharges when not in use. If the Force Meter is depleted, the player momentarily loses control of

874-578: The Year ," which was ultimately awarded to PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale . It was also nominated for "Fighting Game of the Year" by Igromania , which was awarded to Dead or Alive 5 . Soulcalibur V reached number 4 in the UK PS3 sales charts, and number 3 on the Xbox. In eight months, the game sold 1.38 million units worldwide, which is somewhat less than the 2.3 million copies of Soulcalibur IV sold during its first eight months. Star Wars Too Many Requests If you report this error to

920-553: The ability to inflict damage on a blocking opponent, or even a statistic increase based on parameters such as an opponent's alignment or gender. Standard characters can also be modified in this manner, albeit only modestly, allowing custom costumes and skill sets to be used in Special VS. mode. Custom characters may still be utilized in Standard VS. mode but without any special abilities gained through equipment or weapon choice. One profile

966-465: The ancient king Algol, his tower, and his connection to the origin of the spirit sword known as Soulcalibur. Each character's motivations and relationships with others are explored in a mode called Chain of Souls. As is customary, none of the individual endings from the previous game are considered canonical events, and most characters' motivations from that game remain unresolved. However, a small number of characters experienced significant events related to

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1012-412: The best Soul Calibur games ever made and the worst Soul Calibur game ever made." Besides the story mode, many reviewers criticized the absence of the series's longstanding female characters, such as Sophitia, Talim, Cassandra, Xianghua, Taki, and Seong Mi-na. During the 16th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards , the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Soulcalibur V for the " Fighting Game of

1058-537: The blade, Patroklos tracks down Nightmare's former pawn Ivy , who knows a ritual to enhance the blade, but it requires its other two counterparts, Krita-Yuga and Dvapara-Yuga, which are possessed by a young staff fighter named Xiba and Leixia , the daughter of Xinaghua . During the ritual, Patroklos has a vision of his mother, Sophitia, who tells him that the only way to save Pyrrha is to kill her. Meanwhile, Nightmare wages war on Europe to strengthen Soul Edge, with Schwarzwind fighting to stop him. Z.W.E.I. manages to kill

1104-435: The character. For the first time in the series, Soulcalibur IV includes an online multiplayer option. The versus modes available in online battles are Standard VS (for classic matches) and Special VS (for customized characters). Created characters are playable in the online multiplayer mode. A player's wins and losses are recorded and used to establish a ranking level that reflects their online skill. Soulcalibur IV features

1150-427: The chart served as a poster. It was packaged in a metal case and released on the same date as the regular edition, along with exclusive access to additional customization content for this version. This extra content included the automatic unlocking of the most powerful weapons and joke weapons for each character, as well as clothing items to create a schoolboy or schoolgirl character. In New Zealand, Australia, and Europe,

1196-450: The creation of a new Soulcalibur game. The game was teased as early as 2010, when game director Daishi Odashima tweeted " SC is back! ." On December 25, 2010, a new Soul series project was announced to be underway, led by a new director. In late April 2011, Odashima tweeted again, stating " Hopefully I will be able to announce something mid-May. " Soulcalibur V was officially announced by Namco Bandai on May 11, 2011. Development of

1242-559: The development of Soulcalibur V . On May 11, 2011, Namco Bandai officially announced the new game, which was released for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on January 31, 2012. Soulcalibur V Soulcalibur V ( ソウルキャリバーV , Sōrukyaribā Faibu ) is a 2012 fighting video game produced by Namco Bandai Games for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 . As the sixth main installment in Namco 's Soulcalibur series, Soulcalibur V serves as

1288-480: The events of Soulcalibur IV , and centers around the children of Soul series veteran Sophitia . Her son, Patroklos, serves as a soldier for Graf Dumas, the Roman Empire's appointed ruler of Hungary, and is tasked with eliminating the "malfested," a curse bestowed upon anyone who comes into contact with the evil weapon Soul Edge, in exchange for help in locating his sister, Pyrrha , who has been missing since he

1334-557: The game as "some of the best weapons-based fighting action in town". Certain criticisms were directed towards the guest characters from the Star Wars franchise, with several critics maintaining that their presence felt unnatural and that Yoda and The Apprentice, in particular, were "broken" (a reference to a perceived imbalance in fighting games that gives some characters a vastly unfair advantage over others) and "absurd", respectively. Yoda's smaller size (and thus his immunity to grab attacks)

1380-418: The game includes Quick Battle mode, which enables players to unlock titles for their online profiles, as well as an extra "Legendary Souls" mode. Like its predecessors, Soulcalibur V features a variety of multiplayer modes, allowing players to compete against each other both online and offline. The character creation mode from previous games has also been retained. The game takes place in 1607, 17 years after

1426-461: The game's story mode was outsourced to CyberConnect2 , developers of the Capcom game Asura's Wrath . The story was originally planned to be four times longer, but it was reduced due to time and manpower constraints. Pre-order bonuses included the playable character Dampierre from Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny . A collector's edition of Soulcalibur V was released alongside the standard edition in

Soulcalibur IV - Misplaced Pages Continue

1472-421: The game, utilizing the fighting styles of returning characters. They are designed by Mine Yoshizaki , Ito Ōgure , Hirokazu Hisayuki , Yutaka Izubuchi , and Hiroya Oku , respectively. ^a Guest character ^b Unlockable ^c Bonus unlockable characters ^d Newcomers The story of Soulcalibur IV, conveyed through in-game written profiles and cutscenes, centers around

1518-501: The job he couldn't. When Pyrrha comes to her senses, her desperate attempt to save Patroklos frees his mind enough to confront his "mother," who reveals herself to be Elysium , the spirit of Soul Calibur. After a long battle, Patroklos breaks free from Elysium's control, and together, he and Pyrrha seal away both swords. The game features 28 playable characters, including 10 that are new to the series. The new characters include two versions of Pyrrha and Patroklos. The game also introduces

1564-418: The legendary swords now wielded by Siegfried and Nightmare, with most facing Algol as the final boss of Story mode. All characters feature animated ending cutscenes. The Premium Edition of Soulcalibur IV included a 48-page softcover art/comic book illustrated in full color, an XL 100% cotton T-shirt, and a tournament chart that allowed fans the opportunity to document battles among friends. The reverse side of

1610-791: The mysterious Z.W.E.I. as well as Viola, an amnesiac fortune teller (later revealed to be Raphael's grown-up adopted daughter, Amy Sorel). Several new characters utilize the fighting styles of previous characters in the series: Taki's student and successor Natsu, Xianghua 's daughter Yan Leixia, and her illegitimate eldest son Xiba, who employs a fighting style reminiscent of his long-lost father, Kilik. The game also features several returning characters, such as Siegfried , Voldo , Ivy , Tira , Algol, Aeon (Lizardman), Hilde, Kilik, Maxi, Mitsurugi , Raphael, Yoshimitsu , Cervantes , Nightmare , Dampierre (who first appeared in Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny ), and Ezio Auditore da Firenze from

1656-539: The opposite platform for a fee. The Apprentice, the main protagonist of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed , is playable on both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions. Revenant, Frederick Schtauffen and several other minor characters from the Soul series make an appearance in battle, and most can be created in Character Creation mode. Several bonus characters designed by manga artists ( Angol Fear , Ashlotte, Kamikirimusi, Scheherazade, and Shura) are also playable in

1702-555: The options to play as Yoda in the PS3 version of the game and Darth Vader in the Xbox 360 version became available via paid downloadable content. However, both pieces of DLC were later removed from PSN and XBL due to licensing issues following the purchase of Star Wars by Disney. Soulcalibur IV received mostly positive reviews from media outlets. In 2014, six years after its initial release, it held an average Metacritic score of 85 for both its PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions. The game

1748-450: The removal of fan-favorite characters and for its story mode. It was succeeded by Soulcalibur VI (2018). Like the previous games in the series, Soulcalibur V is a weapon-based fighting game. Players utilize high and low vertical and horizontal attacks to damage opposing characters and can block incoming attacks or parry enemy moves to gain a tactical advantage. The game features an updated "Critical Edge" system, allowing players to fill

1794-417: The series they would like their created character to mimic. This differs from Soulcalibur III , which featured many unique styles such as "Grieve Edge". The styles of Algol , the bonus characters, and the Star Wars guest characters cannot be used by player-created characters. A wide array of new equipment pieces are available for use in Soulcalibur IV ' s Character Creation mode, and new options include

1840-612: The still weakened Nightmare but is quickly disposed of by Tira and Pyrrha, who proceed with Tira's true goal of turning Pyrrha into a new host for Soul Edge. However, as soon as Pyrrha picks up the demonic blade, Patroklos arrives and kills her with Soul Calibur. Shocked by his actions, Patroklos' mind winds up in Astral Chaos, where an encounter with Edge Master convinces him to travel back and save Pyrrha by removing Soul Edge, thereby severing its control over her. However, "Sophitia" encases him in glass, intending to take over his body to do

1886-847: The unique Force Meter mechanics for guest characters add depth and strategy to combat. This installment is recognized for its contribution to the franchise, paving the way for future developments. The game received mainly positive reviews; it was followed by a handheld title, Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny (2009), and later a full sequel, Soulcalibur V (2012). Soulcalibur IV features Story, Arcade, Training, and Museum modes. A new mode, Tower of Lost Souls, requires players to win battles to gain rewards. The game runs in HD resolution with 5.1 channel surround sound on both platforms. The Character Creation mode from Soulcalibur III returns in Soulcalibur IV . However, instead of including original weapon styles for use with certain classes of fighters, Soulcalibur IV allows players to choose which character from

Soulcalibur IV - Misplaced Pages Continue

1932-492: The universal events of Soulcalibur III. Siegfried has died and been resurrected by the Soulcalibur sword. Sophitia 's daughter Pyrrha has been kidnapped by Tira and malfested by Soul Edge, leaving Sophitia to fight for the side of evil in defense of her now-corrupted daughter. Tira is also suffering from a split personality disorder. Most characters are still driven by a desire to either obtain, destroy, or defend one or both of

1978-625: The vessel for Soul Edge's physical form, Nightmare. Complicating matters, Pyrrha has become a malfested, having been slowly corrupted by Tira over the seventeen years since her capture. Patroklos flees in horror after Nightmare's defeat, causing a distraught Pyrrha to wholeheartedly side with Tira. Returning to the Schwarzwind base, Siegfried entrusts Patroklos with Soul Calibur, the only weapon capable of saving his sister and stopping Nightmare. However, it has changed forms and weakened significantly since its last battle with Soul Edge. Seeking to strengthen

2024-404: Was a child. While searching a town to root out the malfested, he is attacked and defeated by half-werewolf Z.W.E.I , who reveals that Dumas is not who he seems. Confronting Dumas, Patroklos learns that Dumas is actually aligned with Soul Edge, and the "malfested" he had been killing were innocent people he needed to die to restore the blade. Escaping Dumas' control, Patroklos tracks down Z.W.E.I.,

2070-448: Was mentioned as one design issue. At the same time, Yoda's short range and low damage output were deemed problematic, making him both overpowered and underpowered simultaneously. Soulcalibur IV topped the UK sales charts for several weeks on both the PS3 and Xbox 360. As of March 31, 2009, the game had sold 2.3 million copies worldwide. During the 12th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards ,

2116-467: Was praised for its polished graphics, deep Character Creation mode, and long-awaited online play capability. Reviewers noted that the gameplay was accessible for newcomers and beginners while still offering plenty of depth and technicality for veterans and experienced players, including an abundance of single-player challenges in Tower of Lost Souls mode. The music was also praised, and Gaming Revolution summarized

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