The Travesty of SoulCalibur: Lost Swords

Namco, you have tainted a once-great fighting game franchise.



SoulCalibur once upon a time was the top fighting game released that wasn’t called Street Fighter II: Turbo or Mortal Kombat II. This fighting game was the first of its kind to receive so many awesome reviews, and it made 3D fighting the new direction of the genre. It ushered a new era of gamers, and gave the Dreamcast a short breath of life before its inevitable death.

So surely a game with perfect reviews and praise from every corner would find a way to continue selling a decade later, right? Even with the same company working on it, right? Even with the fighting mechanics and successful formula still intact, right?

Well.............

Somewhere along the lines, Namco thought it would be a great idea to make their next game pay-to-win. Somewhere along the lines, Namco thought to make the game free and charge you for everything.


Insert SoulCalibur: Lost Swords.


The game is only single-player. You can only choose from three characters. You have to buy your way to earning more powerful weapons to survive. The game has no ring-out. The game has no counter ability. Some of the deep fighting mechanics have been removed. You need to buy the other characters and their alternate costumes. THE GAME HAS NO MULTI-PLAYER. REPEAT, A FIGHTING GAME HAS NO MULTI-PLAYER!!


Are you kidding me? Seriously?

The producer of the game mentions that he doesn’t want to alienate the new gamers by putting them in online multiplayer against the heavier-spending veterans, which is why he made the game free to start, simplified everything, and shielded them from the good Soul players. And the logic here is confoundedly ridiculous. How can you possibly grow your franchise if you are not going to allow communication between the players? And let me remind you that this is a fighting game, and stripping the multi-player from a fighter is like removing the storyline from an RPG—it is a game-killer no matter how good the rest of the game might be.

And you just released Soul Calibur II in its entirety a mere year ago at just $20 on the XBox and Playstation online stores. Why wouldn’t I just go back to that game instead of putting up with a free game that is a mere shadow of what the SoulCalibur series is all about? Why would I even look at this game? Gamers aren’t stupid, any game that is free is whether a trap or just a Facebook game. There’s no such thing as a highly-acclaimed free-to-play, play-to-win game.

Similar to Capcom’s ridiculous Breath of Fire 6 decision, this SoulCalibur game is going to wreck the reputation, image, and overall perception of the franchise. What was once an unforgiving, tough, hardcore cluster of games is suddenly opening up to entice new players by removing some of the layers that made the fighting games great in the first place. The saddest detail in all this is how Namco doesn’t seem to see the terribleness in all this nonsense. This is just going to confuse the newcomers, anger the gaming community, and make the hardcore fans absolutely livid. Nobody wins here, nobody.

Namco, Soul Calibur VI better be absolutely amazing, and it better be a game-changer. Because after the stupidity of SoulCalibur V, Legends, and (especially) Lost Swords, you owe us, bad. And I am not sure VI, VII, or VIII can bring you back to the successful Arcade/Dreamcast days.

June: The Month That Might Belong to Microsoft

Summer 2014: The Leveling of the Eighth Generation. The true arms race begins.

Microsoft became the last company to separate itself from the motion-control gaming that had taken the world by storm, but then became an afterthought as soon as the seventh generation ended. Now there are XBox One systems that are about to be sold without the Kinect connection. Now the price of the XBox One will match that of the PS4. This is now a direct competition; this is now an arms race to see who can muscle out more copies when the price is streamlined to the $400 price tag (Which I had predicted from the start would be the perfect price for a next-gen system).

Not only will June be the first month of XBox One’s new sexy price, but we also have E3 literally lingering in the distance. Nintendo dropped the ball and missed out on their entire year of opportunity to separate itself from the pack. Now, Microsoft has a great opportunity to make waves, make some noise. They are now playing Sony’s game, and it is now entirely up to them to improve upon the rules.

The XBox One is in the ultimate desirable price. All connections to the Wii Era are pretty much gone. Halo 5 will happen next year for sure. The Halo Series is also within this distance to give the third Green Machine some value. And lastly, we have E3 to give the XBox a chance to prove as to why it should be the system to purchase over the equally-priced PS4. Microsoft needs to improve its software lineup, and absolutely overhaul its online store system and somehow attempt to even come close to Sony’s amazingly cheap, valuable, and awesome Playstation Store.

Japan should not even be in the equation. Microsoft needs to focus mainly on Europe and maintain its American appeal. Although it is neck to neck against Sony in the States, the XBox is far behind in the European region. Unlike Nintendo, Microsoft now knows who the leader is, and must follow the right path before attempting to dethrone the leader. Improve the game lineup, improve the online section, and stop trying to bill yourself as an “entertainment” system. This no longer works, we want games, and the first of the three major systems to actually unveil a healthy amount of software will win this war.

Let’s be honest, the PS4 is getting by on a weaker software lineup simply because the competition up to this point have made tons of critical mistakes. Not anymore. Although Nintendo’s Mario Kart/Smash Brothers combination may not be enough, XBox One’s price cut and promising E3 just might provide the fuel to start a close race that we’ve currently been lacking.

This summer, the competition might actually begin, because so far it’s been all Sony leading the way with record sales. Gamers are just as hungry as ever for fresh games and fresh ideas, and the quick-selling rates of the PS4, 3DS, and even XBox One are proving this. Microsoft, this is your chance. Summer must be yours to own, or it might be a PS2-like dominance occurring within the coming years.



Microsoft you may not be catching up, but you are at least going down the right road.

The Ninendo Smokescreen That Only Furthur Displays its Ineptitude

So Nintendo hates money.






A lot.




After revealing that they are operating at a major loss, yet again, because of the WiiU, Nintendo announces that they are remaking one of the older Pokemon games----the Ruby and Sapphire editions…….for the 3DS.

What looks to be the latest smokescreen to mask the bad financial news in the world of Nintendo, we are getting yet another Pokemon adventure for the handheld coming out this year---less than a year after Pokemon X/Y. This makes it the sixth year in a row a Nintendo handheld is getting a Pokemon game. It starts with Pokemon Platinum in 2009, and through the entire Call of Duty-like run we have seen two remakes, and a sequel.

And yet in the midst of all this, still nothing for the consoles, even if the console is the main source for all your flopping.

It is almost poetic justice that this news arrives right after the financial reports come out, because it reveals that Nintendo is losing money and then showcases one of the main reasons why. I am not saying Pokemon is going to single-handedly save the WiiU, but it would definitely bring a wild card to the table and get the ball rolling. Twitter and Facebook would have absolutely exploded if they said they have a Ruby/Sapphire remake for the WiiU in true 3-D form. Now THAT would have been a light at the end of the tunnel. Instead, we are left scratching our heads.

Not only is the remake not being in HD and in console form, but it’s not even having a chance to arrive in WiiU in any form. And it makes no sense because now we have DS Virtual Console games arriving directly to the WiiU! Pokemon X/Y has sold over 12 million copies, this is the success story the WiiU desperately needs! Why couldn’t you just remake the game and make a WiiU exclusive?


Just look at these numbers:
Pokemon Red/Blue/Yellow: 46 million
Pokemon Gold/Silver/Crystal: 29 million
Pokemon Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald: 22 million
Pokemon Red/Blue/Gold/Silver Remakes: 22 million
Pokemon Diamond/Pearl/Platinum: 25 million
Pokemon Black/White Part 1 and 2: 21 million


Want to know what they have in similarity? All handheld. The Game Boy (118 million), Game Boy Advance (81 million), and the Nintendo DS (154 million) have benefited amazingly from this franchise. Want to know how many Nintendo consoles have sold over 81 million copies?


Just the Nintendo Wii.

Why would you not want to transfer some of those ridiculously successful numbers into the console? The Wii didn’t really need it (Well, until after 2010 when Nintendo dished out approximately one game a year), but the Gamecube could’ve used some help, and the WiiU definitely needs this sort of help. The idea of a console Pokemon with online enhancements would move hardware like nothing else Nintendo has done since making a 3-D Super Mario game way back in 1996. And if you think Pokemon doesn’t transfer well in consoles, just look at the N64 days—when Pokemon Stadium sold over 5 million copies and Pokemon Snap, a low-budget spin-off, sold 3 million with minimal marketing.

Nintendo, you need to stop being stubborn, you have a gold mine just waiting to be discovered. The elusive big budget HD Pokemon game has officially become one of gaming’s biggest desires, especially after seeing that the technology can indeed be achieved. Stop with the remakes, stop with the rehashing of older Pokemon games, and start focusing on the next generation of Pokemon gaming: larger budget, larger environment, HD graphics, and a major emphasis on online play. And even if you aren’t ready for that, these upcoming Pokemon games should have at least been an option for the WiiU, at the very least.


Nintendo, you seem to hate money nowadays because you are failing to see the different ways you can earn it, even during these dark times. Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire for the 3DS (and only the 3DS) is your latest and possibly greatest example.