Together Retro: Soul Calibur

[noiseredux]

who's playing?
http://www.racketboy.com/together-retro ... ul-calibur

[dsheinem]

More than even most fighters, I've always understood the appeal of this series to be as a two player game, so I wonder: does anyone have any suggestions for how to make the single-player mode in the original worth playing? Are there any settings/imposed limits/etc. that people use to make the game more compelling in arcade mode? Otherwise I can't see myself playing this for very long...

[Xeogred]

I liked Soul Calibur 2's campaign, kind of had a semi-adventurous system to it. But yeah I played a bit of the first game and it was pretty bare bones in comparison.

[alienjesus]

I have this game on Dreamcast, ready to play. I'm not looking forward to using the dreamcast controller for it though

[ExedExes]

ExedExes thoughts on Soul Calibur

I may have a shmup background, but when it comes to arcade games and arcade ports, it will always be a passion of mine.

I was loving the game before it, Soul Edge. For an early 3D fighter, it had a real sense of style the other games didn't have. Each character had their own weapon and for you to do well you had to master much more than punches and kicks. No projectiles, no CRAZY moves, no gallons of blood, it was a good fit.

Fast forward to 1998 where I experienced the greatness of Soul Calibur for the first time. The time release of new characters was an ingenious idea on Namco's part, keeping the experience fresh for arcade gamers.

I remember seeing the Dreamcast commercial from the "Inside The Triangle" series with all the early DC characters at the drive in seeing amazing launch titles like Soul Calibur -- this was one of the reasons I purchased my original system, which died after 11 years of faithful service last week.

Therefore, I have to give you this anecdote until my replacement unit from Ebay comes in. I was planning to erase all my progress with everything unlocked and work through the Mission mode once again. If you do not have this port, you are missing out on much.

This game fits my arcade history passion and Dreamcast sensibility more than anything else, so it's a fine choice for a TR. I hope we will have many play and share their experiences here, and I'll join you all hopefully within the next week again.

More than even most fighters, I've always understood the appeal of this series to be as a two player game, so I wonder: does anyone have any suggestions for how to make the single-player mode in the original worth playing? Are there any settings/imposed limits/etc. that people use to make the game more compelling in arcade mode? Otherwise I can't see myself playing this for very long...

Well, if you noticed, you are TIMED in completing the game. It's almost like a racing time-trial. That is what I play for in the main mode, a fast clear time.

And for those who feel the DC controller might be an issue -- it isn't. It works very well, seeing as there are just 4 buttons for fighting, and the analog stick is used for the 8-way run feature.

My character of choice is Maxi (inherited from Li-Long of SE fame) with his mad nunchuck action (costume B to avoid the Elvis impersonation).

Final SC arcade story: Was playing this around 1999 (?) and this one dude kept coming up to the machine and was getting beaten by my mad Maxi skills -- kept losing and LEAVING for minutes on end and then coming back and trying again. Final time he plays he goes "You embarrassed me in front of my friends!" I'm trying not to laugh.

[noiseredux]

seeing as how I pretty much gave my DC to my wife and traded Soul Calibur to l00ky, I'm going to instead be playing most of other games in the series:

Soul Blade (aka Soul Edge) (PS1) - I'm really interested in giving this one a go, as it's the beginning of the entire series. Never played it before.

Soul Calibur II (PS2) - I've played 2 a bit on GCN in the past. But I can't say I played it long enough to really even get the hang of it. I feel like it's a fan favorite of the series, so looking forward to seeing why.

Soul Calibur III (PS2) - I never touched this one before, so it'll be a big surprise for me.

Soul Calibur IV (PS3) - Been playing this for a few months now. And we scheduled it for two fight nights this month. In a way, I'm most excited about this because as dsh pointed out, fighting games are really best when you're playing against another player.

[retrosportsgamer]

I remember seeing the Dreamcast commercial from the "Inside The Triangle" series with all the early DC characters at the drive in seeing amazing launch titles like Soul Calibur -- this was one of the reasons I purchased my original system, which died after 11 years of faithful service last week.

:poursforty:

[KDub]

I'll get in on this, Soul Calibur is one of my favorite fighters and one of the must haves on the Dreamcast.

[TEKTORO]

I downloaded the xbla version if anyone wants to play,otherwise Ill focus on getting some achievements in the mean while.

[retrosportsgamer]

Soul Blade (aka Soul Edge) (PS1) - I'm really interested in giving this one a go, as it's the beginning of the entire series. Never played it before.

Nice callback here. I remember playing this one and think it was actually an import boot (aka CDR - for shame) of Soul Edge.