Impressions #19: Soul Calibur 2 HD

So, how did this happen? How did I go from talking nearly nonstop about Shin Megami Tensei games to an HD remake of a PS2-era fighting game? Well, I remember playing Soul Calibur II a lot as a child, and the HD remake went on sale for $5 on PSN. It really is that simple. Placing my “Season of ATLUS” on hold temporarily, I decided to take some time to reconnect with the game, looking at it from a modern perspective. In light of recent trends in fighting game releases, Soul Calibur 2 is actually a nice breath of fresh air, aging surprisingly well. This week, I will tell you why that is.

First released in 2002 for the PlayStation 2, GameCube, and original Xbox, Soul Calibur II is the direct sequel to what many had considered to be one of the best games on the Dreamcast. The basic premise of the game is that there are two very powerful swords. The first is an evil sword named Soul Edge, which takes over its wielder and devours the souls of those it kills. The second is a holy sword named Soul Calibur, which is constantly at odds with its evil twin. Fighters from all over Europe and Asia covet these blades for various reasons. Some seek to possess them, others to destroy them, and so on. This sets the stage for all of these warriors to travel across the world and fight each other over these weapons.

Each of the various consoles had a guest character join the cast as well. Tekken's Heihachi Mishima made his cameo on the PS2, since Tekken was a major Sony-exclusive at the time. Nintendo gave permission to allow Link to make an appearance in the GameCube version, because he is the most logical Nintendo character to bring to a 3D weapon-based fighter. As for the Xbox, they got Spawn because Namco and Todd McFarlane really needed to get out of that contract they had with each other. (That is not a joke.) The HD rerelease of the game, released in 2013 for both the PS3 and the 360, brought both Heihachi and Spawn to the game. Link was not present, since there is no way Nintendo would allow it. A bit of shame, since he was obviously the best of the three, but understandable.

As for the game itself, it is still as fun to play as ever. One of the things that I enjoy about the Soul Calibur series is that the mechanics themselves are relatively easy to understand, compared to other fighting games. Most of the commands are generally simple to pull off. In general, spending ten minutes or so with a given character will teach a player the basic gist of that character. Some fighters are obvious more or less difficult to use than others, but on a fundamental level it has more to do with the properties of their attacks and how their combos work, and less to do with the execution of any one move.

It is also nice to play this game when taken into context with its sequels. Many franchise fans, myself included, would say that it was the series's pinnacle. Soul Calibur III was not a bad game, but it did feel a bit like a step back. Because each character had more health, fights took longer. Furthermore, the discrepancy between the power of each individual fighter felt significantly greater. Soul Calibur IV added in the Soul Gauge mechanics, which punished more defensive playstyles. Players who continue to block attacks would get broken, which allows the aggressor to perform an instant kill. The power differences between characters in Soul Calibur III were also felt in IV as well. The ultimate culmination of this downward spiral was Soul Calibur V. SC V turned the franchise into a low-rent Street Fighter IV clone with swords. Everything about that game was awful and better left forgotten. This is one of the few franchises where “Taking a few steps back” is actually a really good thing, and Soul Calibur 2 HD best demonstrates why this is the case.

The other great aspect of Soul Calibur II, that in hindsight makes it such a great game, is its vast stores of single-player content. Weapon Master mode, with the possible exception of the campaigns in either the Mortal Kombat reboot or Injustice: Gods Among Us, is what I would call one of the best single-player campaigns in the history of fighting games. It puts the player directly into a story where they are a warrior seeking Soul Edge. During the journey, the player undertakes a series of missions, each taking the form of a battle. As they progress, they unlock new characters, weapons, and modes to play with.

However, these are not just typical battles more often than not. Usually, special conditions will be imposed on the battle. It is these constrictions which inject variety into the campaign. For example, one mission will make it so that the enemy will only take damage while he is in the air, but he will fall at a slower rate when launched upwards. Another mission will make the enemy invisible, with the exception of his weapon. Not only do these requirements add to the variety, they help teach players about the many mechanics of the game in a non-competitive, relatively safe space. Since the difficulty of these missions greatly increases the more players progress, it is safe to say that someone who gets through it all, while maybe not be the best player out there, is equipped to hold their own against other players.

Even outside of Weapon Master, there is still much that one person can do to get more out of the game. Arcade Mode is standard to fighting games, but there also options like Time Attack, where the goal is to fight through every character as quickly as possible. Other modes include Survival Mode, where players see how long they can last in a series of matches, with only limited healing between each match. Team Battle allowed players to form up to 3 character teams to fight in a series of one-on-one matches, where team members would fight in sequence. VS Team Battle allowed two players to pit teams of 8 against each other. “Extra” versions of these modes even allowed players and enemies to use the weapons unlocked in Weapon Master mode in battle. All in all, even someone who cannot regularly play with friends can get much out of the game.

While Soul Calibur 2 HD is still really good, it is far from flawless. For example, although the game now offers online play, and the net-coding is solid, it feels extremely limited. It is only possible to engauge in standard versus mode online, meaning players can only go against friends one-on-one, without using any weapons they unlocked. For a game that has such a diverse set of weapons for each cast member, and so many different modes of play like Team Battle, this comes off as overly simplistic and downright disappointing. I was hoping that my friends and I would be able to create our teams of characters and go against one another with our own custom assortments of weaponry. It would make sense to have Ranked matches be this limited, but when playing Unranked, these options would have been greatly appreciated.

Further, while the balance is much better here than in the sequels, there are some noticeable balancing issues. The people who originally purchased Soul Calibur 2 for the Xbox must have been really disappointed by Spawn. Now that I have had the chance to play him in the HD remake, I am astounded by how bad the character is. Unlike Heihachi and Link, who both fit in well, Spawn feels so much like an afterthought that I am honestly left dumbfounded. There had to be some other character they could have used. Along these same lines, the character of Necrid, who was also designed by Todd McFarlane, is also pretty terrible. Whoever in Project Soul worked on these characters seems to have a grudge against McFarlane, because his characters are some of, if not the worst in the game.

Overall, Soul Calibur 2 HD is a great game for both newcomers and veterans to the fighting game genre. Compared to many other fighters, it is very easy to learn. On top of that, there is a wealth of content available for single-players. I am sure there are those who would disagree with me on this point, but Soul Calibur 2 is my favorite fighting game. The HD remake does well to bring the game to more modern consoles. It is definitely worth your time and money.

Impressions #17: Project X Zone

It was a long time coming, but I purchased a Nintendo 3DS a few months back. All the factors, from its game catalog and price point to my current spending money came together at one time. Of course, one does not buy a console without first purchasing a game or two for it: Project X Zone was one of them. After playing it on and off for a few months now, I have beaten the game. The sheer amount of time it took to complete PXZ is indicative of my decidedly low opinion of the game. This week, I plan to tell you exactly why I feel that way.

Released in January of 2013 in the US, Project X Zone was developed by Monolith Software and Banpresto, published mainly by Namco Bandai. The central premise of the game is pretty simple: Bring all of the most notable characters from various big name Namco Bandai, Capcom, and Sega franchises together for one of the largest crossovers ever seen on a video game console. Given that I have heard of and/or enjoyed most of these franchises at some point in time, I would theoretically be the person with the best chance to like this game. However, the game has so many little flaws that they collectively bring the entire experience down in my honest opinion.

The story is a huge example of this. Similar to Namco X Capcom, the story revolves around two original characters made exclusively for the game: Kogoro Tenzai and Mii Koryuji. Hoping across various dimensions, timezones, and even into cyberspace, they encounter various other characters who, for whatever reason the game provides, join their party and assist them on their adventure to retrieve a stolen relic called the Portalstone. Honestly, it is extremely clear that the plot, for better or worse, only exists to justify why characters like Ryu and Ken from Street Fighter are fighting along the likes of Resident Evil's Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine, Frank West from Dead Rising and Hsien-Ko from Darkstalkers, Kite and Blackrose from .hack, among many, many others. Without the fan appeal inherent to the cast, the story would not be able to stand on its own.

This is mostly because it really is only present for roughly the first and last quarters of the game. The middle portion mostly has the cast faffing about in various stages pulled from some of the games that the characters are from. Nothing of note happens during this section aside from the introduction of new cameos to add to the player roster. Even when the story is happening, it is extremely predictable and most of the plot points are either unsurprising or could be seen from a mile away. Fans of the JRPGs that are drawn upon would probably be able to piece most of the story together shortly after the start of the last quarter of the game. Like I said, it only serves to bring the characters together, and simply does not stand on its own without them.

Having said that, there are many nods, references, and in-jokes that fans of the many franchises present will appreciate. Characters from more “grounded” (for lack of a better word) franchises like Resident Evil and Dead Rising will frequently make fun of the more absurd outfits that characters from RPGs like Toma and Cyrille from Shining Force EXA wear. Differences in magical, martial, and technology powers from the various dimensions are acknowledged and understood by the plot. For example, in Valkyria Chronicles, the Valkyria powers exhibited by characters in the story are awesome. When compared to the kind of powers exhibited by KOS-MOS and T-elos of Xenosaga, or Kite and Blackrose from .hack, they come off as much less impressive, and characters make note of this.

At the same time, the fact that over 70 characters from roughly 30 different franchises has its own results on the story. This results in a phenomenon that I like to refer to as “Crossover Syndrome.” That is, when too many characters are in a scene at the same time, they all need to make an impression upon the player. Since they each only get one or two lines at the most, writers have to reduce those personalities to only the most notable traits out of what might have been a very nuanced, multifaceted personality from the original game. The ultimate result of this is that what were fleshed-out characters have become mere caricatures of what they used to be. With a cast this large, such edits are necessary. However, that does not make it any less disappointing to fans of those characters. I cannot think of a way around it, but it is something that needs acknowledgment.

As for the gameplay itself, the game is divided into a series of roughly 45 chapters. Each chapter takes place on a 2D grid, similar to what one might find in Final Fantasy Tactics. The player's party is divided into different units, which start in pre-determined spaces on the grid. There are two different types of units. The first are “Pair” units, which are comprised of two characters, usually (but not always) from the same franchise. These units are the main force players use. Effectively one unit, these partners move about the 2D plane and engage the enemy units together. What is unique about Project X Zone is that when a player unit attacks an enemy unit, they enter a 2D plane to do battle. The player can then use up to five different attacks and chain them together into a combo. As they land blows, they build up XP (Cross Points), which can be expended to use support skills on themselves or other party members. Alternatively, XP can be spent performing special attacks which inflict massive amounts of damage on the enemy. XP is shared among all player units, so there is a added element of resource management.

In addition to these Pair units, there are also “Solo” units. Rather than stand on their own, these single-character units are equipped to a Pair unit. When a Pair unit engages in a battle alongside a Solo unit, they can call upon that unit to provide addition attacks. Further, if another Pair unit if close by to that Pair unit, they can provide a Support attack. Both the Solo and Support attacks can be used even while the base Pair unit is launching their combo. When this occurs, the enemy is frozen in position during the “Cross Combo,” which provides additional XP as a bonus and can often make it easier to land attacks.

While this all sounds good on paper, the execution leaves a lot to be desired. There are several reasons why this is the case. For one, these battles are extremely long. As I mentioned earlier, there are about 45 chapters, each comprised on a single battle scene. My playtime, not including the many times I performed a soft reset and reloaded a save after a bout of bad luck, totaled over 52 hours. Since many of the early missions can be completed in about 30 minutes, this means that most of the missions towards the end will take players an hour or two to finish up. For me, this was the game I played on my commutes both to school and work, which are both 20 minutes away from my house. On a typical day, I would spend 40 minutes playing this game. Missions frequently took a day or two for me to finish.

And on its own, that might be acceptable, but the game is greatly streamlined. There are no towns, no shops. When a player finishes a match, they are shown an “Interlude” screen. At this screen, players are shown which Pair and Solo characters are available for the next mission. They can change up which Solo character is on each Pair unit, save their game, and manage equipment. Due to the lack of commerce, equipment can only be obtained by beating boss characters and opening treasure chests on the battlefield. Since this means that players will basically just go for the highest numbers, the system can by-and-large be safely ignored. Aside from this screen, players are funneled from mission to mission, without much of a chance for a breather.

Again, this would not be a problem. However, this is further compounded by the issue in that missions lack much in the way of variety or pacing. Missions tend to have a set structure in PXZ. There will be a cutscene at first which sets up the scene. Typically, players will start with an initial board layout and objective, usually “Defeat [Boss]” or “Defeat All Enemies.” Once either several turns pass or that objective is completed, a “plot twist” will occur. At this point, another enemy will appear on screen, bringing their own units into the mix. The objective for the mission may also change, but typically it remains as “Defeat All Enemies.” Once the “true” mission is complete, then the closing cutscene leads into the Interlude screen, followed by the next mission. The first few “plot twists” might catch players off guard, but it will quickly turn into another routine upon the many routines PXZ repeatedly puts the player through. Because of this loop, very few missions aside from the last two stand out to me. Even when the initial objective was unique, it always ended in “Defeat Every Enemy”, so I would mostly just play on auto-pilot.

Project X Zone is a game that only die-hard fans of the various source materials should think about purchasing. Even then, there is not much of a guarantee that said fan will walk away satisfied. I know people who love and hate this game in equal measure. Personally, I found the many otherwise small flaws of PXZ overwhelmingly detracted from my experience in aggregate. Others might have a higher tolerance, or would be more able to lose themselves in the spectacle. Overall, I would warn potential players to watch footage of the game to be a good impression of how it works before investing in it.