Videogame Preview: Soul Calibur 5

It’s been four long years since Soul Calibur IV was released, and fans of the Soul Series are surely ready for more.

Set 17 years after the events of that game, Soul Calibur V’s got a brand new story (but still maintains the overall theme of scouring 17^th century Europe for the Soul Swords), a handful of new characters, and a more aggressive fighting style that hopefully will be well-received.

Fear not that new characters means that old favorites have vanished (though Cassandra is not present this time around). Among the returning favorites are:

• Siegfried – If you’re a fan of him and his zweihänders, he’s still around, though his Schwarzwind thieves group is now a more respectable band of mercenaries.
• Hildegarde – The princess of Wolfkrone has seen her realm crumble in the intervening years, and she’s now joined with Siegfried until she can rebuild her empire.
• Heishiro – He’d been living a quiet life of farming, until hearing mention of Soul Calibur led him to head to Europe with his katana, hoping to finish the duel he and Algol had started 17 years ago.

But every series needs a little new blood to keep things fresh, and some of the people perhaps destined to become new fan favorites include:

• Viola – Her backstory is a mystery—mainly because she can’t remember herself—but this companion of Siegfried is a fortune teller who wields a steel claw and incorporates her crystal ball into her attacks.
• Z.W.E.I. – Utilizing a sword with three handles, this other member of Schwarzwind has the handy ability to summon E.I.N., a creature with werewolf-like features.
• Patroklos – The son of Sophitia, he uses the rather mundane by comparison combination of a short sword and shield when in battle. He’ll be searching for both his mother and his sister, Pyrrha, who doesn’t even know she has family out there.

And it’s that last new character that everything hinges on, as he’s the stated protagonist of Soul Calibur V. While the various motivations of Hildegarde, Heishiro, and others will surely make for great sub-plots, the main thrust of the game revolves around Patroklos, as “he begins to unravel the fated connection that links his family’s destiny to the legendary Soul swords.”

The game has undergone some changes in both special offensive tactics, as well as guarding and blocking.

The first special attack is Brave Edge. They’re basically an enhanced version of a character’s existing special moves, and using one expends a quarter-segment of the Critical Meter. Characters will have at least two, but some will possess a third.

The other, more devastating special attack is Critical Edge. Basically replacing the previous game’s Critical Finish Moves, these expend a full half of your Critical Meter.

The defensive side features its own special abilities. Guard Impact (a series holdover) is similar to parrying in other fighting games; using up a quarter of the Critical Meter, you can parry just as a blow lands, staggering your opponent and allowing for a ferocious counterattack. Additionally, the height of your opponent no longer plays a role in this blocking ability and it can counter otherwise unblockable attacks.

Meanwhile, the new Just Guard requires no expenditure of your attack meter, but is tougher to execute; it’s roughly the same as the way Guard Impact used to be. A new Quick Move also allows for easier sidestepping to avoid attacks.

Additional tweaking has been done regarding Ring-Outs. While in the past forcing your opponent out of the combat arena awarded victory, some areas will have extra levels below. Ring-Outs in those scenarios will simply result in the battle continuing on the lower level.

Multiplayer will feature a more robust character creation template than before, allowing for more personalization before you enter a lobby or search for an opponent and have at it in the ring.

Like many anticipated games of late, there’s a collector’s edition available for $80 in addition to the $60 regular edition. Your extra double sawbuck nets you a soundtrack CD, a ‘making of’ DVD, an art book, and a code to download special armor for free; it’s all housed in a handsome display book.

Whichever version you choose, the game has already been declared a hit in an early review from British magazine PSM3 that awarded an 8.9/10. So if you’re a fan of the series or just looking to try something new, it’s already sounding like this will be a game to get.

Soul Calibur V is scheduled for release from Square Enix on January 31 for Xbox 360 and PS3. Rated T for Teen (Mild Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence).

Jeff is currently playing Metal Gear Solid HD Collection; follow him on Twitter at JKLugar.