Soulcalibur’s handheld destiny sure could use a fix
Format: PSP Dev: Namco Bandai Pub: Namco Bandai / Ubisoft
Out: 04/09/09 Players: 1-2
3D fighting games are a tough sell on handhelds. Smaller screens, fewer animations and often the loss of the fierce two-player competition that’s always gone hand-in-hand with such games. But Namco are no strangers to the fighting genre. Their 2006 title, Tekken: Dark Resurrection, was a technical marvel on PSP. Now they’re bringing their other famous fighting series to Sony’s handheld with Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny.
Much of Broken Destiny is primarily made up of assets from Soulcalibur IV. Character models, costumes and environments all look incessantly prestigious – accept they don’t have that eye-twinkling sparkle seen their next gen counterparts. The core gameplay, too, seems to have been taken straight from the home console version, which is only a good thing. Soulcalibur IV players will be performing lethal strikes and fiendish counters right away.
You’ve got your standard gambit of game modes in Broken Destiny. Curiously, three of them could all be considered ‘training’ modes in some way or another. Of course, the ever-present versus and quick match modes are great for short bouts.
However, Gauntlet mode will likely leave you nonplussed. Here you are asked to complete basic training and perfect the art of fighting – in teensy five second battles. On one hand, it’s good for learning the split-second timing needed to perform advance moves, but on the other, it’s really just a long series of fighting puzzles. There are only ever one or two ways to complete a challenge and, once you get the gist of it, it will grow old fast. I’m sure many people would prefer a proper arcade tournament to 34 chapters of grind.
Broken Destiny also continues the long Soulcalibur tradition of licensing characters from other popular entertainment franchises to appear in the fighting series. This time it is Kratos from God of War. And, once again, the inclusion of a non-roster character has upset the game balance. Unlike the other characters in the game, Kratos’ Blades of Chaos give him unique reach and speed. He’s not overpowered, but many of his long range attacks tend to stun characters, making it easy to hammer them over and over.
There’s fun to be had from this medieval fight fest, but it really does like to keep you at arm’s length. Everything has been designed to take a few minutes tops – there’s nothing for those with more time on their hands to grapple with. Creation mode is still here luckily, and seeing some of the many silly outfits makes for a hilarious sight. Plus, where would I be without my Xianghua clone? Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny retains the series’ accessible gameplay, but its more style than substance. If you’re after something more serious, stick with Tekken.
Aaron Lee
Tags: fighting, handheld, namco bandai, soulcalibur, ubisoft
