
Bandai Namco's weapon-based fighting series Soulcalibur has been out of the spotlight since 2018's Soulcalibur VI, but a new rumour suggests that it could be making a comeback of sorts.
According to journalist Nick Baker, Bandai Namco is looking to remaster Soulcalibur – although Baker admits that his source is unclear on whether this is just the first game or the entire series. The revelation was delivered during the latest Xbox Era podcast.
Soulcalibur began life in arcades in 1998 and was ported to the Sega Dreamcast the following year. The main series consists of six mainline entries, plus spin-offs like Soulcalibur Legends and Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny.
However, the true origins of the series can be traced back to 1995, when Namco released Soul Edge / Soul Blade in arcades. It was later ported to the PlayStation.
[source nintendolife.com]
Comments 11
Not expecting to actually see a full collection, as great as that would be, but even a remaster of the Dreamcast original that doesn't cut any content would also be cool.
@LP09
SAME!
i actually wish games DID look like that. they never did, and the path chosen has lost a bit of the "magic" i used to feel watching this stuff.
id actually love to see remakes that either resemble the promotional materials (including cutscenes/intros) or the concept art (imagine if ffiii or chrono trigger looked like the character concept art...)
id rather a straight port of SC1 if it looked like the original in vga mode 🤤
to be fair i never got into the series again after those two first great games. (blade/calibur)
Not needed, 1 still looks and play awesome on rg353. I'd rather have a new entry. Please stop the damn remasters.
Eh... I was a big fan for the first and second game but if it's a remaster of just the first... I won't bother. If it's a collection... that includes all characters such as Link and I can still buy it on PS5... then I'd buy it. It's a long shot that would ever be allowed though.
I bought SC6 for $20 on PS4 and just couldn't get into it. My interest in fighting games has waned significantly over the years to the point that I'm not sure I'd be willing to buy another from any series.
@Muriustar It's always good to have a legitimate way for people to purchase the game, though. Right now, SC1 is only on Xbox, and that version lacks some of the Dreamcast's content (the mission mode and art gallery, as I recall).
As more companies keep their games perpetually available on long-running platforms like PC (and Xbox now), then there should be less need for studios to spend their time on (re)remastering everything every decade.
@-wc- Was I just imagining it, or were console graphics heading in that direction for a short time, before abandoning it in favour of higher object density, more complex texturing... and bloom lighting?
Some of the earlier 6th (and even 7th) gen games had a lot of emphasis on crisp textures, high poly counts, and hard shadows, but this gave way to a more muted, drab look.
If Retro ever does another Donkey Kong Country, they should make it look like DKC3- except in 3D, of course.
@smoreon
i dont think we are imagining it. dreamcast, ps2 gamecube graphics had something special, while ps3 may have been the turning point, when the uncanny valley started to really overpower the "art" in the medium. switch is the only place i feel like i have left to actually relate with videogames!
also
"[XBOX sc1] lacks some of the Dreamcast's content (the mission mode and art gallery, as I recall)."
I vaguely remember that! Mission mode IS the game! i dont even remember playing another mode, and i put dozens or hundreds of hours into this one. what a strange choice!
I would love a Ridge Racer collection. We haven't had a decent RR title since 2006, come on Namco
@-wc- I feel like a lot of mid/late PS2 games already started to look a fair bit more drab (albeit more detailed!), while some of the early PS360 games again leaned into that pre-rendered CG look for a time. (See Rare's work, especially in 2005.) And then Gears of War happened, and we know the rest.
But anyway...
Looking it up now, it seems that SoulCalibur on Xbox systems does include the art gallery, even though it drops the Mission mode. It also unlocks everything from the start, reducing the incentive to play Arcade mode as every character. The main reason most people give is the file size, but that doesn't add up: mission mode has few unique assets, whereas the gallery is full of them. Considering the way unlockables were handled, this all seems like a misguided attempt to focus in on the core gameplay for a purer fighting experience. (Didn't Guilty Gear XX do the same thing? Re-releasing the game with less content to "accent" the "core"?)
I really liked Mission mode as well, and played all the way through it more than once! SC2 had the same mode, but it didn't hold my interest quite as well- largely because of the dungeons being a bit of a slog. And then SC3 onwards went in different directions, of course.
Played Soul Blade on the PS1 a few times at my cousins, always remember trying to dodge that bullet as Mitsurugi. Could NEVER do it.
Then I got Soul Calibur on Dreamcast, my word the separate storylines and different weapons just blew my mind. Never tried to any of the others, but if a collection came out, I would probably jump at the chance.
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