14 DAY TRIAL // Namco Bandai has confirmed that the next installment in the popular franchise featuring gigantic swords will be in stores in North America on July 29. No European date has been named, although more announcements from Namco Bandai are expected in the following weeks.
The fourth game in the series introduces an important gameplay change in the Critical Finisher system, which will alter the way players approach battles. There will be another gauge under the characters' Health Meter, known as the Soul Gauge. This meter will fill up when attacking and decrease when guarding. When the meter is empty, the opponent can do a strike that breaks off a part from the character's armor, altering their appearance and making them weaker for the remainder of the match.
There are also three green boxes below the gauges, reflecting the state of the characters' armor: high, mid, or low. This mechanic was developed by the people at Namco Bandai to encourage a more aggressive style of play from the gamer and make them consider being constantly on the offensive rather than the defensive.
If the character manages to empty out the opponent's Soul Gauge again, they will get a short chance to perform a powerful Critical Finisher, which will kill the opponent instantly. Each character has his/her own personal Critical Finisher which he/she will employ in such situations. Again the mechanic is implemented to create a situation where a purely defensive player can get killed quite quickly if he doesn't try and execute some offensive moves.
A Premium Edition of the game will feature art book and a comic that serve as prequels leading to the story of Soulcalibur IV, a tournament kit and exclusive access to some "extra customization content," with the tournament kit created to "give fans the opportunity to document the battle amongst friends." The Premium Edition will come in metal packaging and will cost 79.99 dollars on launch.
Also worth noting in the new SoulCalibur is the gravity-defying stunts and the sanity-defying costumes of the characters, especially the female ones. Be sure to check them all out when the game hits on July 29 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.