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Review: Soulcalibur IV guests make it shine

McClatchy Newspapers

August 25, 2008

Soulcalibur IV may not be the quintessential one-on-one fighting game, but it's certainly the quintessential Soulcalibur. That's a good thing, unless one dislikes Soulcalibur. This game won't change anyone's mind. It features the most diverse lineup, the most extensive character-building options and by far the best graphics of any recent fighting game.

Plus, Yoda is in the Xbox 360 version, and Darth Vader is playable for those with the PS3 edition. Another " Star Wars" character makes an appearance in both versions as well: Vader's secret apprentice from the upcoming Force Unleashed game. They all play well - Yoda dips and spins as in the movies, Vader employs crushing blows and Force attacks, and the Apprentice is quick and powerful with an odd behind-the-back lightsaber stance that leads to unpredictable strikes.

"Star Wars" characters may seem like an odd fit, but they work just as well here as Spawn, Link and Heihachi did in Soulcalibur II. The series' makers always manage to find some excuse for their guest characters' existence in this universe.

The game play is what one expects from a fighting game sequel: familiar but with tweaks. Thus, fighters have had new moves added and their move sets reworked and rebalanced, with some familiar moves replaced or requiring different motions to carry out.

Fighters now have three pieces of protective equipment that can be shattered during battle, and a character that blocks too much is left open to an instant-kill attack.

The story mode cuts out a lot of the extraneous map navigation and other annoyances of previous Soulcaliburs. The downside is that the narrative is all but lost. This time around, each one gets a setup and an ending, and that's it. Nearly no narration or context is provided for the fights between those points.

SOULCALIBUR IV

RATING T for teen

PLOT " Star Wars" characters join the diverse cast of fighters

PLATFORMS Microsoft Xbox 360 and Sony PlayStation 3

COST $59.99

BOTTOM LINE Character creation is where the game really shines.