Soul Calibur III: first details

By Ellie Gibson Published 24 March, 2005

Turns out it will indeed appear on PS2 only. And feature "an unprecedented number of modes", would you believe.

Sony has announced that the third instalment in the Soul Calibur series will only appear on PS2, confirming reports that Xbox and GameCube owners will miss out.

We're promised that Soul Calibur III will offer "exhilirating sword-fighting action" and "profound" martial arts, complete with the obligatory improved graphics and sound effects.

A Character Creation mode will allow players to customise their own fighter, selecting weapons, gender and occupation, and there are also three new characters to choose from.

Tira (all names to be confirmed) is an "angel of death with a bird-like grace" whose special weapon is the Ring Blade. Setsuka, a "wandering beauty on a lonely journey" who enjoys old movies and long walks in the rain, probably, likes to attack people with a sword she keeps hidden in an umbrella. And finally there's Zasalamel, whose hobbies include gardening, salsa dancing and "dragging those who witness the sharp light from his giant scythe to the abyss of death."

There are more modes to choose from than ever before - ten in total, including Practice, Story and three different types of VS modes. Soul Arena offers varied battles in unique situations, and Museum Mode lets you check out items you've collected and take a look back at the history of the Soul Calibur series.

Sony have yet to announce an exact release date, but Soul Calibur III is expected to arrive in Europe by the end of the year. Expect a hands-on report from E3.

Picture of Ellie.

About Ellie Gibson

Since joining Eurogamer in the mid 2000s, Ellie has written about subjects as diverse as the fall of Gizmondo, the rise of Hollyoaks actresses in Red Alert games and the noise a bear makes under NSFW circumstances.

Read more articles from Ellie by visiting the Ellie Gibson archive page.

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Comments (26) Latest comment 7 years ago

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  • mrpsb #1 7 years ago

    Arse.

  • ssuellid #2 7 years ago

    Is it an exclusive PS2 exclusive or a time limited exclusive PS2 exclusive?

  • crashVoodoo #3 7 years ago

    i used to like fighting games, now they just seem bland or uninteresting. so i for one, don't really care if Tira, Setsuka & Gargamel stay in ps2land.

  • toy_brain #4 7 years ago

    Que the usual round of responses from disgruntled GameCube owners.
    Kinda understandable, though I do wonder just how many of those GameCube owners who bought SC2 also have a PS2 knocking around somewhere...........

  • Nillsens #5 7 years ago

    Damnit.

  • Menace #6 7 years ago

    Really looking forward to it.. ever since soul edge on psx this has been my game (series) of choice when it comes to fighting games..

  • Kami #7 7 years ago

    I have all consoles, and played all versions of SCII. Surprise then, that the Cube version seemed the smoothest of the lot - and it had Link. Major selling point in Link alone!

    It's a real crying shame that Namco aren't releasing it on the 'Cube or X-Box... if I recall, the PS2 version of SCII was the least successful (The exclusive character Heihachi, well, wasn't much of an "exclusive" character seeing as he belongs to Namco anyway! More like, "Filler Material"...), which does puzzle me why SCIII would be a PS2 exclusive.

    But then, who am I to argue? Namco are clearly gonna be paid for the exclusivity, and money talks volumes. It's not looking great NOW... but we'll see. If Tekken 5 proves anything, is that Namco can do some great visual stuff with the PS2... it would be criminal if SCIII wasn't at LEAST Tekken-5 visual standards at the end...

  • Darren #8 7 years ago

    I thought the Cube had the best version of SoulCalibur II as well even though I also have the game on the Xbox as well. I'd also played the PS2 and it was the worst of the three especially for loading times and visuals.

    Shame then that the sequel is going to be PS2 only. Perhaps Namco will see sense and release an enhanced Xbox 2 version?

  • GrayFox #9 7 years ago

    What's with those crazy "Gamecube version was best selling?" stories? It' sold better for a week or so. SC2 sold in 700 000 on ps2, and not much over 1 million on GC and xbox together. SC2 was not successful for namco.

  • Peekaboo #10 7 years ago

    The new shots and trailer on CVG.com look quite nice actually.

  • Kami #11 7 years ago

    I just remember reading the 'Cube version was the better seller. But as I said, Link was in it - and to be honest, Link was probably the reason it sold on the 'Cube. He's a killer selling factor.

    But then, I can only go by what I've read. I haven't SEEN sales figures, but I do agree - SCII wasn't exactly the success it could have and perhaps, SHOULD HAVE been...

  • pelolep #12 7 years ago

    Ok, Namco has ticked me off. I'm gonna call them right now and demand that they release it on GC. *Picks up phone*

    Ummmm... anyone know Namco's customer service number???

  • Freek #13 7 years ago

    555-wedontgiveaflyingfuck or the other number 023-we-dontcare-abouteurope
    Edited by 1 at 24/03/05 @ 21:33

  • Sid-Nice #14 7 years ago

    Here's some Soul Calibur II Data

    Edit: Obviously the PS2 version would of overtaken the Cube build due to the PS2s much larger user base, also many copies would of sold on the PS2 when it was released on Platinum.
    Edited by 2 at 24/03/05 @ 23:20

  • Juriel #15 7 years ago

    As PS2-owner, I'm just happy they're focusing on doing it properly on one platform, instead of diverting attention to each one separately.

    That said, Soul Calibur II is pretty damn fine - I doubt this new part can really offer all that much new and improved bits. But I've liked the series since PSX, so I'll be getting it.

  • cubbymoore #16 7 years ago

    And finally there's Zasalamel, whose hobbies include gardening, salsa dancing and "dragging those who witness the sharp light from his giant scythe to the abyss of death."

    Is that a euphemism?

  • Freek #17 7 years ago

    LOL, well he's black so that could be a joke they slipped past the marketing crew, but since his weapons is actaully a giant scythe it's probably for real.

  • Universal_Hamster #18 7 years ago

    What about this create-a-character mode? How much power to customise will we have?

  • Cyhwuhx #19 7 years ago

    .::: I prefered the Cube version as well, because (a bit unexpected) the Cube controller proved to have the most divine button layout for the game, making multiple button-moves really easy to pull off.

    The custom character mode interests me, but at the same time it's probably going to be complete make-over dress-up for an existing character. Or are we getting a move-designer like in Fighter Maker?

  • Spiral #20 7 years ago

    Ceron: So you like to look down on people who would rather have a bit of fun with their mates than travel across states to play against strangers. Congratulations. You're an elitist twit.

    In other news, any word on if any characters will be getting the chop this time around? I'd imagine Sophitia will go, since three sword / shield users is a bit excessive, unless they make Cassandra more like Link.

  • Tippytappy #21 7 years ago

    Well, if they HAVE to make it PS2 exclusive could they at least try to remove the occational slowdowns that the PS2 version suffered from?

    Well seeing as its only on PS2 and Tekken 5 is flawless I'd say there's a pretty good chance.

  • neosalad #22 7 years ago

    shame it's not gonna be on cube or even the xbox, seems a bit silly to me considering how many xbox owners there are, and especially after SC2, and how much better it looked on xbox and cube
    :( oh well.
    i have 2 cubes & 2 xboxes, 2 Dreamcasts but no PS2 dammit!

    but i really like the soul calibur series!
    oh well. namco's loss!

  • savant #23 7 years ago

    It's a damn shame this is going to be a PS2 exclusive, as it's the least capable console of the three. Still, one can only hope it's a step up from SCII, which was disappointing on many counts (a lot of recycled material, too difficult mission mode etc.). The trailer on Gamespot looks pretty hot, and the customisation feature is a good idea. Namco certainly seem to be on a roll with their fighters of late (by all accounts Tekken 5 has been universally well received), it's just annoying that us Xbox and Gamecube owners will have to miss out again :(

  • #24 7 years ago

    PS2 only? thats bollocks for a start xbox version and probably gamecube version will be realeased the same time as the crappy PS2 version.

  • ToxicTed #25 7 years ago

    Best version of SCII? The 720p HDTV version on Xbox. No more argument!

  • sir_tripod #26 7 years ago

    I can't decide between "meh" and "yawn"

  • matteviL #27 7 years ago

    well.....that does kinda suck....
    i mean the controller on ps2 is better than the other two for fighters,
    but i bet for many people their playstations are starting to look a lil thrashed, i know mine is. and the ps2 version of SC2 was the poorest.

    im just kinda pissed that sony has the freekin rights to about every game in history while most of them games would look and feel better on the other systems.........DAMN YOU majority gamers!!!

    but "giant scythe" makes me very happy:)