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Friday 15 February, 2008
GAMEPLAY
I finally played the arcade mode and I must say, it was a roller coaster of emotions. It can make you cry in happiness or in frustration in a matter of seconds. Because I’m a new player, I wasn’t too familiar with many of the special moves. I tried my best to pull of with some attacks that managed to decrease almost half of the opponent’s health bar. However, I find myself having a hard time battling the AI. The only possible way was to knock them off the stage, thus, winning the battle. This, however, doesn’t seem like the “real” way of fighting.
The first two or three battles were not challenging and allowed me to get used to my character, Nightmare. Overall, I pretty much used the same movements and still managed to win the battles. But once I got beyond the third level, things weren’t as easy as I thought it would be. Once the opponent hits you, it is impossible to get up and do a counter-attack. They run to where you are lying down on the floor and hits you move after move. You get up, you fall down again and so on. I was lucky to move on to the final battle stage and immediately the opponent uses a special move on me. Half of my health bar disappeared and I gave up soon after trying for another 30 minutes or so. Therefore, I come to a conclusion that when you are playing against the computer, cheap tactics and kicking them off the ring are still far easier than strategic fighting and skills.
It is better to play with your friend rather than the computer. But you might decide to head on to the one player mode if you want to unlock some new characters. Otherwise, it is best to play with your friends and just have fun with it. Or else, you will be filled with anger and irritation after playing the game.
DESIGN
The most compelling designs of Soul Calibur III, hands down, are its numbers of characters and battle arenas to choose from. Not to mention, the ability to create your own character. The characters’ weapons and appearance look extremely realistic, and when you examine the characters, their weapons and clothing actually match each other. Furthermore, the environment designs are breath-taking. There are many details in the background and for example, the water actually sparkles as the players move around in any directions. In addition, the ground actually also cracks when you take a hit on the floor. Last but not least, the music goes in sync with the gameplay itself. When your character or the opponent is near the end of their health, the music tenses and speeds up. As a result, players feel the excitement as they play the game.
The only negative aspects of the game that I have to mention is that no one really needs to master the game in order to be good at it. New players can win players who’ve been playing for a long time with no trouble. However, this aspect of the game can be eliminated if players are to play with other new players or friends.
Finally, because of the different characters and modes, there are many possible outcomes to the game. Players are greeted with different opponents every time they play in single-modes and can try to learn more special moves as a result. The replay value of the game is extremely high and one shouldn’t be bored of this game easily.
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