Soul Blade

by Namco

Product Details

• ASIN: B00000I1BZ
• Item Weight: 8 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,401 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)

Product Description

GameSpot Review

For months gamers have been waiting for Soul Edge, 1997's hottest PlayStation import title, to make its way stateside. Even though the intro's psuedo-nudity has been toned down and the name has been changed to Soul Blade for the American audience, the game still remains a 32-bit fighting masterpiece. Like fighting titles before it, this game follows a group of fighters in their battles around the world. The twist: the combatants all wield bladed weapons - a welcome change from the hand-to-hand combat found in most other fighting games.

The storyline of Soul Blade is essentially an excuse for various showdowns over myriad backgrounds. Set in the 16th century, the title features warriors from various clans who are on a quest for the "Soul Edge," a magical sword some believe holds ultimate combat power. The warriors include those looking to use it for goodand evil. The characters include Taki, a female hunter you wouldn't want to tangle with; Cervantes, a wicked looking pirate (you gotta love a fighting game with a pirate); Sophita, an emotional goddess (Namco's description - but how does one become an emotional goddess?); Voldo, hell guadian (we'll just leave it at that); Rock (the token slow-moving, "no one uses him" character); and others. The game also features hidden fighters, multiple endings and numerous costumes for each character, and other hidden surprises that flesh out the game.

Soul Blade is visually astonishing from the moment you turn it on. The cinematic introduction and non-gameplay graphics are THE BEST yet seen on the PlayStation - nothing else even comes close. However, the rest of the game's graphics don't reach that lofty mark: The backgrounds have an amazing look, but the fighters look only as good in action as their Tekken 2 counterparts. The game plays smoothly, but the animation suffers, thanks to the complexity of the backgrounds - that is to say, the game's frame rate slows down considerably. The sound quality, on the other hand, is nearly perfect. I don't usually care about game's soundtrack, but this is possibly the best I've heard - the three impressive orchestral soundtracks truly compliment the rich visuals.

Soul Blade offers a number of options: All the standard fighting game features are present (vs., arcade, team play, and so on), in addition to the very cool Edge Master mode that allows you to play any of the ten standard characters in a sword-quest throughout the world. Over the course of your journey you pick up new weapons (eight in all) and watch the story progress. These storylines, while a bit hokey, are detailed and develop the characters to a near Street Fighter-like level (i.e. you actually learn a bit about why they're fighting). Namco has also included its now signature Practice mode, which is being copied by just about every fighting game. Namco's, however, is the best: You determine how your drone attacks you (choices ranging from a full-on attack to the drone passively standing there and letting you hit him). As you attempt your moves, the depressed buttons display onscreen, making it easier to learn the moves and combos. When you turn on the command menu, almost all of the special moves and combinations are spelled out for you (not like the days of the original Street Fighter 2 - where you had to find your own by accident).

In one-player and two-player mode, Soul Blade presents quite a challenge with its mix of horizontal and vertical attack, block, and sidestep controls. It also provides a very entertaining feature - if both fighters swing at each other, their swords may clash and fly back. The combination moves range from the simplicity of Virtua Fighter's punch-kick combo to the complexity of Killer Instinct's multi-hit attacks. The fighting overall is quite solid and will engross you. Soul Blade is a great fighting game with its share of flaws. If fast-paced weapon-to-weapon combat sounds like welcome addition to the ass-whooping arena, Soul Blade is just the game for you. -- Ed Robertson

--Copyright ©1999 GameSpot Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of GameSpot is prohibited. GameSpot and the GameSpot logo are trademarks of GameSpot Inc.

Product Description

USED LIKE NEW. ROM AMAZON PRO MERCHANT. For rush delivery (3-6 business days), please use Expedited Shipping.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Game, Great Graphics, December 6, 1999

By A Customer

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Soul Blade (Video Game)

Compaired with games of simular weight (Tekken 2, Tekken 3, Bushido Blade 2) This game ranks #1 in my book. The graphics are great and looks almost EXACTLY like Soul Edge (the arcade version of this game). Although I beat this game rather quickly, the game has loads of replayability with the Edge Master mode (search for the ultimate weapon for your character and use it in other modes), Player Vs. Player modes, Survival Mode (goal is to not get hurt and to see how many fights you can win), and Team Play Mode (play as a team against the CPU, when you are beaten your team mate takes over).

An added plus for younger people is that no blood or gore is in this game. So if you are a concerned parent, that prohibits such things from your youngster, this game offers a fighting genre without blood, guts and gore or death (says "Knockout" when you are beaten or win).

Bottem line, this game is a classic and warrents a place on any gamer's shelf that enjoys a good fighting game.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Basic Needs: Food,water,shelter...SoulBlade!!, March 24, 2001

By 

Derek (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Soul Blade (Video Game)

Imagine you are stranded in the hottest desert on Earth. You are in desperate need of something cool and resfreshing to revive your senses. As you wonder hopelessly,looking to find anything which will satisfy your growing need, you find various bottles containing many liquids. You are overcome with joy. But, as you drink from the first bottle, you are even more thirsty than before!!! So, you try another, and another. Nothing seems to work. Suddenly, you discover a unique container filled with a mysterious liquid. As you drink, you find that you thirst has been completely vanished and fulfilled... This is the case with the various fighting games which leave you thirsty and wanting more. Soulblade is that mysterious liquid. Gulp down the unique graphics and unbelievable techniques which have been so intricately added to this game to make it a Masterpiece.

Dont get stranded in the desert. Please, for your sake, fulfill your need for for man to man, weapon to weapon combat. All you need to do is open the right bottle and experience what Soulblade has to offer!!!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Old-School Hand-to-Hand-to-Weapon Combat, June 16, 2002

By 

Mr. JKW "jkw" (Honolulu, Hawai'i) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Soul Blade (Video Game)

Soul Blade is Namco's PS1 translation of it's 1995 hit arcade smash Soul Edge. Definitely aimed toward fighting purists this game features warriors who fight in hand-to-hand combat. There are no fireballs or other mysterious powers. What we do have here are historically-based fighters who represent various different fighting styles dukeing it out one-on-one.

THE STORY:

Set back in history 10 fighters from around the world, for their own various reasons, set out to find the mythical blade "Soul Edge" which is rumored to have great powers.

THE GAME MODES:

Not lacking in game modes Soul Blade offers the following:

1. Arcade Mode: The arcade translation mode where the player progresses through 10 rounds of battle

2. Vs. Battle: Standard "you vs. a buddy" mode

3. Team Battle Mode: You can form you own team of Soul Edge fighters to take on a team of other Soul Edge fighters.

4. Survival Mode: It's your fighter against each successive opponent to the bitter end.

5. Time Attack Mode: See how fast you can beat the game.

6. Edge Master Mode: A really cool feature where you enter a "Story Mode" progressing across the map of the world beating the other characters in the game and earning new weapons. The catch, in each round you must master a new battle technique to overcome your opponent. A true challenge for true "Edge Masters!!"

THE CHARACTERS:

Here are the 10 Edge Warriors to choose and master in the game:

1. Heishiro Mitsurugi: Great samurai warrior!!!

2. Seung Mina: Long blade/Tae Kwon Do warrioress!!!

3. Li Long: Nunchuk-welding Chinese warrior!!!

4. Taki: Deadly yet sexy ninja warrioress!!!

5. Voldo: Freakish Italian Edward Scissorhand-like warrior.

6. Sophitia Alexandra: Virtuous Greek warrioress!!!

7. Siegfried Schtauffen: Noble Knight!!!

8. Rock: Axe-welding Barbarian!!!

9. Hwang Sung Kyung: Sword-swinging/Tae Kwon Do warrior!!!

10. Cervantes: Evil Pirate Warlord!!!

WHAT SETS IT APART:

The fact that weapons were introduced in this game truly set it apart from other fighters on the market in its time and to this day still sets it apart. The characters are more believable and it's "dueling" feature still makes a stand out from its competition.

THE VERDICT:

Overall, the lifelike battle scenes definitely make this game really fun to play with. The animation of the game, particularly the opening and ending sequences are just amazing. Again, the game's difficulty is at a happy medium. It is relatively easy to pass the game, but still challenging enough to be, well, a challenge. It is not so hard as to where it becomes frustrating. The variety of characters and fighting styles make it a pleasure to master. Also, the various game modes provide a unique gaming experience, particulary "Edge Master" Mode. Of note, this game, like Tekken, did become another franchise for Namco spawning the highly-touted sequel Soul Calibur, with more sequels in development.

Highly Recommended