Edges, Blades, and Caliburs

There are some who look only as far back to 1999’s Sega Dreamcast launch as the beginning of Soul Calibur, but the series actually began life in the arcades as Soul Edge. My first entry into Namco’s weapon-based fighter was the home-port of Soul Edge for the PlayStation, better known in America as Soul Blade. I rented it during the Spring of ‘97 and was glued to it for an entire weekend. Even after beating the Edge Master mode in that single rental, I was still craving more, so I bought my own copy before the rental was due back. Soul Blade was easily my favorite fighter on PlayStation.

Dreamcast’s killer app

Then on 9/9/99, Soul Calibur hit. It was far more than just a obligatory launch title filling the fighting requirement; it became a landmark achievement in 3D fighters. Sure, Soul Calibur had been floating in the arcades for a while then, but Namco had upgraded the home version so significantly that it looked like a completely new game. Soul Calibur wasn’t only the best Dreamcast title at launch, but it was one of the best throughout the entire system’s life (and the Dreamcast, though its life was cut short, had a ton of amazing games).

Smackdown

Necrid on the offensive

Swept him off his feet

The cross-platform exclusive sequel

It was only natural that one of the best 3D fighting games ever would receive a sequel. So, Namco announced that all three current-generation consoles would get comparable versions of Soul Calibur II. And there was much rejoicing. Though Soul Calibur II wasn’t going to be an exclusive affair like its predecessor, Namco still managed to retain some form of exclusivity for the sequel.

Time attack mode

Standard mode? You wuss

Ugly vs. Uglier

As everyone knows by now, each console version has its own exclusive character. PlayStation 2 gets Tekken's Heihachi, Xbox gets Todd McFarlane’s Spawn, and GameCube gets Legend of Zelda’s Link. Those who own more than one game system could be faced with a tough decision on which one to get. In addition to running through the game itself, we’ll try to help you decide on which version is right for you.