Soul Calibur completely revamped the gameplay system, turning a middling fighter into one of the deepest, easiest-to-play 3D-fighting games ever created. A home Dreamcast port cemented that status, making Soul Calibur the stuff of gaming legend. It's not easy to follow-up such an achievement, but Namco is doing its best to re-create the winning ways of the original. Rather than revamp the entire gameplay system yet again, Soul Calibur II polishes and builds on the foundation of the original Soul Calibur. The result is a game that is every bit as polished and refined as the original.
Soul Calibur II takes place a few years after the events of Soul Calibur. If you remember, Xianghua, the wielder of the spirit sword Soul Calibur, managed to defeat Nightmare and shatter the remaining half of Soul Edge. The world sighed with relief -- was the nightmare finally over? Alas, it was not to be. The shards retained their evil powers and spread throughout the world, infecting people and asserting their sinister will. A small cadre of the world's greatest warriors set out to collect the shards, each with their own convictions and motivations. Who will succeed this time? And can the evil really be destroyed? (The answers: It's a secret, and not if they want another sequel.)
Nips and Tucks
At first glance, Soul Calibur II looks somewhat similar to its predecessor, but a closer look reveals the enhancements gleaned from four years of technological progress. The character models are much more detailed than the Dreamcast version of Soul Calibur, with more polygons in their bodies, costumes, and faces. The enhancements are sometimes subtle, but are extremely apparent in a side-by-side comparison. Perhaps more striking are the new backgrounds, which are now fully 3D. The fighting arenas, too, have experienced a leap forward in detail, with much more intricate architecture and more numerous and sharper textures. The orchestral music also makes a return, very much in the style of Soul Calibur. It's my opinion that Soul Edge retains the distinction of having the best music in the series, but that's hardly surprising considering that game's legendary musical quality.
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