Soul Calibur II (XBX)

Though it has received criticism, the best revamp in the game is the Weapons Master mode. It’s essentially an updated version of Soul Calibur’s Story mode, and like its predecessor, takes you on a journey though different towns, requiring you to beat the stuffing out of various opponents in different scenarios. In some, you’ll be required to play with diminished health, in quicksand or taking on several characters team-battle style. Each win earns you skill points and a pile of filthy lucre that can be used to purchase new weapons and costumes for each character. On my first shopping spree, I bought a new pair of blades for my favorite freak, Voldo, designed to give him a longer reach during battle. However, his speed and agility seem to diminish when using his new hand-held blades, so most of the time, I found it smarter to stick with his original weapons.

Weapons Master level carries another point of contention—several Zelda-style dungeons that you must beat your way through and, hopefully, unlock something big at the end. Essentially, you fight the same oafish beast throughout each level. Though the battles can be challenging, if at any point you decide to quit the dungeon to change characters or give your hands a break, you’ll have to start the entire effort over again. Be warned. It’s extremely irritating to get through six levels in a dungeon and have to repeat the whole darn thing again, especially since the dungeon levels tend to be yawn-inducing than awe-inspiring. If you do make it through the dungeon, the payoff generally makes it worth your while.

Graphics-wise the game has been upgraded a notch from the Dreamcast version, but still carries an oddly familiar look and feel when it comes to ‘special’ effects like hair blowing in the wind. Playing this game served mostly as a reminder that the whole concept of ‘next generation’ graphic rendering has now become the norm. We’re no longer wooed by rippling water effects, no longer blown away by individual hairs flying about or by fluid movements. In fact, I suspect that all of this new technology that Soul Calibur took advantage of on Dreamcast helped it become such the legendary game it is today.

On that note, many of the old characters have been tweaked visually. All of the returning cast will look remarkably familiar, with exception of the now young, and hunky, Nightmare and she-ninja Taki, who for reasons unbeknownst to us, has received a whopping pair of quadruple-D breasts. I suppose the developers thought overinflated, Pam Anderson cans would keep her from being overlooked. Maybe it will.

I was still disappointed that the graphics and animation wasn’t improved in the last level in Arcade mode. After you beat Inferno, you still see the same poorly rendered explosion of flames and the One True Sword descend from the air like the tiny Stonehenge in Spinal Tap. It was laughable in 1999, but now it’s just looks ridiculous. And, it doesn’t help matters that beating the arcade mode no longer seems to unlock characters, just levels and other unsubstantial items. more >

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