It’s taken over a year but SoulCalibur V will finally be available as a digital download next week. It’s not the biggest news story of the day but as a longtime SoulCalibur fan, I feel the need to cover this. In other words, I’m totally letting my the fanboy in me get the best of me.
The latest entry in the premier weapons-based head-to-head fighting series continues with the epic struggle of warriors in search for the legendary Soul Swords. SOULCALIBUR V brings the best in battles, movement, and visual effects so players can pull off cool, dynamic attacks with ease and battle with complete freedom. Choose from a roster of over two dozen characters including the master assassin – Ezio Auditore, from the critically acclaimed Assassin’s Creed® series, or create your personalized fighter. Challenge the computer AI, compete against your friends or challenge fighters from around the world.
I’ve spent over 200 hours playing SoulCalibur V and enjoyed it but the game received a bit of hate from fans. The main criticism is usually aimed at the lack of single player content and I can understand, Namco rushed the Project Soul team to get the game finished so it wouldn’t get in the way of the rather rubbish Street Fighter X Tekken and excellent Tekken Tag Tournament 2. In all fairness it’s impressive that SoulCalibur V turned out as well as it did in the end given the tight development cycle.
Someone on the internet once said “SoulCalibur V is one upgrade away from best the best in the series” and I agree, sadly Namco were more than happy to let the game die off rather than support it. Even in it’s current state I still think the game is worth checking out for hardcore fighting game fans, casuals will cry about moan about the lack of gimmicky extras so it basically comes down to what type of player you are and what you look for in a fighting game.
SoulCalibur V goes digital on Xbox 360 and PS3 on April 23rd/24th respectfully. It’s £14.99 on the Xbox Marketplace and £15.99 on the PlayStation store, I have no idea why it’s £1 more expensive on Sony’s system. The PlayStation store will have an exclusive Legendary Edition version of the game, it’s £23.99 and features all the previously released DLC content.
