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PlayStation and MLG Present the Spring Fighter Arena

Carlos Arvelo — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 06:09:20 +0000

Watch live video from mlgfighters on www.twitch.tv

Today marks the beginning of something new and exciting for the Fighting Games division at Major League Gaming and PlayStation: the MLG Spring Fighter Arena. The top eight players of Warner Bros’ Mortal Kombat and Namco Bandai’s SoulCalibur V from the MLG Winter Championships will compete in what should be one of the most godlike matchups since the release of these two fighting games. With thousands of dollars on the line, these competitors will be duking it out on PS3 in hours of competitive matches.

The amount of history behind these matches is unprecedented: CDjr the reigning Mortal Kombat champion will be navigating a gauntlet of players that all have his name on a checklist of people to beat, including some of his own brothers. Over on Soul Calibur 5, the Champion Keev, from France, will look to do the same after a successful event at the MLG Winter Championships. The action starts today at 2:00pm EST until 10pm EST packed with live streams, giveaways, and a group of the most entertaining casters in fighting games. This isn’t something any fan is going to want to miss. For a full detailed explanation of players brackets and matchup times go here.

How is this happening? You can take advantage of the free main stream available for everyone’s viewing pleasure (HD junkies can get an MLG viewing pass for 4.99). In addition to the main stream, you can find tips, exhibition matches, and supporting content on the free Dr. Pepper Ultimate Access Stream. There will be grudge matches, prizes and there will most certainly be some great entertainment.

Check out the stream above and let us know what you think.

SoulCalibur V World Championships Broadcasting 4/10

"Filthie" Rich Bantegui — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 21:07:46 +0000

Hey everyone,

On April 10, 2012 eight qualifying players from tournaments held across the globe will be facing each other to battle it out for the SOULCALIBUR V World Championship title in Las Vegas, Nevada. With over $10,000 in prizing, arcade sticks, games and more going to the combatants, this will be an event to go down in the history books. And we’re even giving fans a chance to win cool items by tuning into the action!

The SOULCALIBUR V World Championships will be broadcasted live by community stream evangelist Team Spooky, featuring hype and play by play commentary by Fighting Game Community leader Mark “MarkMan” Julio and myself, Rich “FilthieRich” Bantegui, to keep fans updated and entertained. Special guest and game director, Daishi Odashima will also be in attendance to chat about the game with fans at the event.

We invite you to watch this “HYPE” SOULCALIBUR V World Championships event, and for a chance to win awesome swag from our event partners – Hori, Mad Catz and Sony Computer Entertainment America! Make sure to tune into the stream on April 10 at 7:00pm PST at: http://www.own3d.tv/teamspooky. For questions you can tag me directly at http://www.twitter.com/Filthierich or check out http://www.facebook.com/SOULCALIBUR.

The Project Soul team, and NAMCO BANDAI Games have made it a priority to listen and engage the competitive fighting community during development and through the release of SOULCALIBUR V. We’re listening, taking notes and letting fans voice their opinions to help us keep the SOULCALIBUR franchise as one of the best fighting series out there. The SOULCALIBUR V World Championship is an excellent opportunity to see the passion and heart that goes into competitive tournaments and we plan to support more tournaments in the future.

Check out the video below, get hype, and get the popcorn ready on April 10. We’ll see you then!

Soulcalibur V Interview: Sharpening the Blade

Sid Shuman — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 18:27:02 +0000

It’s a tale of souls and swords, eternally retold. And on January 31st, 2012, that tale comes full circle on the PS3 with Soulcalibur V. Set 17 years after the events of Soulcalibur IV, Soulcalibur V is a return to the fast, furious feel that marked earlier entries in the series. I was able to put a pre-release version of Soulcalibur V through its paces to get a feel for the new gameplay tweaks and refinements. After a few intense bouts, I noticed that Soulcalibur V moves at a slightly faster clip than SCIV, and that the Soul Gauge gem has evolved into a full-blown Edge meter that powers Brave Edge attack enhancers and the ultra-damaging Critical Edge finisher. I also spotted new defensive maneuvers, such as the Quick Step evasion and a Just Guard parry. The fighter roster is getting a shakeup as well, with a core group of classic characters being supplemented by a large cast of mysterious new combatants (read more here), headlined by guest character Ezio Auditore from Assassin’s Creed.

After going hands-on with the game, I discussed Soulcalibur V’s gameplay evolution with “Filthy” Rich Bantegui, community manager for Namco Bandai Games and a serious fighting game competitor in his own right. Read on for deeper details on how SCV is carving out its own niche in the crowded console fighting area.

And remember: Leave your questions in the comments!

PlayStation.Blog: How did Ezio Auditore from Assassin’s Creed find his way into the Soulcalibur universe?
Rich Bantegui: As far as the story goes, we haven’t revealed anything yet. In terms of his fighting style, his flow, and his weapons, Ezio fits in perfectly. Ezio should’ve been in this series a long, long time ago! In general, I think that guest characters have taken a bit longer to evolve in terms of gameplay; Darth Vader and Yoda took a little more time for players to master in a competitive setting. I don’t think you’ll see that with Ezio. He’s straightforward. You’ll be able to hop right into it, and he’s got one of the easier Brave Edges. And hey, he’s got a crossbow. You can’t beat that!

Our relationship with Ubisoft has been good; I’ve heard that they’re very happy with how he’s turned out. You’ve never seen him at this close a range with this many moves. Controlling him in Soulcalibur V lets you see him in a new light.

PSB: If you had to compare Ezio’s fighting style to an existing Soulcalibur character, who would it be?
RB: He’s very much his own character, but his closest comparison is probably Mitsurugi in terms of his range and his damage. He hits like a dump truck! He’s not a super fast character, though, so he’s not going to stand toe-to-toe with his opponents — you’ll want to space him out. He’s got cool techniques that enable him to sidestep around incoming attacks and manipulate 3D movement to evade his opponents. His ranged crossbow attacks are quite powerful as well.

PSB: Since Soulcalibur IV came out in 2008, there’s been something of a fighting game renaissance. Has SCV taken any cues or inspirations from the new generation of fighters?
RB: Absolutely. Things like Brave Edge and Critical Edge, the comeback system – these are really appealing to people who play fighting games. The fact that Soulcalibur is set on a 3D arena and it’s a weapon-based fighter…Soulcalibur is a game that everybody knows, but now they have all these new tools and more people to play with. We’re trying to keep our hardcore fans happy but also balance it for people who have never played Soulcalibur.

PSB: Speaking of Critical Edge, it seems to have a big impact on the flow of gameplay. How does this uber-attack change your tactics in a fight?
RB: You’re managing all these different things: Your life bar, your opponents’ life bar, and now your Critical Edge meter. You can divvy it up however you want: you can rush in and use half your bar to perform a Brave Edge attack, or save it up for one Critical Edge finisher. Everything that affects the Edge Meter is completely dependent on the player: The Guard Impact, Brave Edge, and Critical Edge all take away from it.

The Critical Edge and Brave Edge add to the diversity of the game. They let you develop habitual defensive patterns for when your opponent notices you’re conserving your Edge meter [in preparation for a Critical Edge or Brave Edge]. I think it’s really healthy for this series, even though it’s different from what Soulcalibur players are used to. But I know they’ll enjoy it because the depth of the game is going to be taken to a new level.

PSB: I noticed a major shift in Guard Impact from Soulcalibur V – the command has changed and it’s harder to perform. What sparked this change?
RB: We really want to test the guys who play these games in and out. You mentioned earlier that you were able to use Guard Impact in Soulcalibur III and SCIV to effortlessly parry blows. The more you play SCV, the more you’ll understand how to use Guard Impact and Just Guard. When you use Just Guard, you just tap block right before you get hit and you’ll parry the attack and you can interrupt your opponent.

The Guard Impact is more intended for somebody who’s newer to Soulcalibur. It’s the same concept, and you get guaranteed damage but it costs a bit of your Edge Meter. I think Guard Impact will help newcomers will work like a stepping stone to get them into the world of Just Guard.

PSB: Soulcalibur V is said to be the fastest game in the series. What inspired the faster speed?
RB: The EVO crowd and hardcore fans tend to prefer the faster pacing of the earlier games, which forced you to play at close range. SCIV played well, but we wanted to turn it up. Speed is only one element: you need to use your brain, too. There’s been a desire to return the pacing to the series’ roots and, with SCV, I’d say that the speed and pacing is closest to Soulcalibur II. But with the new Quick Step maneuvers, it’s its own beast. The Quick Step lets you sneak behind your opponent if you time it correctly, even moves that you can’t normally dodge using the sidestep or eight-way run.

PSB: I’m hearing that the Character Creator has gotten a massive overhaul for SCV. How does it enhance what we’ve seen before?
RB: You start by choosing which existing character’s move list you want to work with. You’re able to adjust a ton of new variables, including the size of your character’s limbs, physical height, voice, and gender. But those are just the base configurations in SCV. You can layer details on your character, and even completely change the appearance of items you’ve earned. You can really make your character your own. Even if you and your buddy both used “Pants Type B,” there’s absolutely no way that your pants will look alike.

The character creator is a great way to reach new fans, too, players who want to expand their creative mindset. According to the development team, we’ve increased the character creation options by 130% percent. We hope to see tons of crazy creations online when SCV hits this January!

PSB: There are an awful lot of empty slots on the current character select screen. Can you give us any hints?
RB: Absolutely…not! [laughs] It hurts to see the character list that we have internally and not be able to share. I’m so excited for the character roster that we’ll be releasing as time goes on. There are fan favorites in there but also characters that I don’t think anyone will expect. Stay with us! There’s always a lot of excitement over who will make the final character roster, and we don’t want to detract from that.

That said, we’re all about listening to our community. If you like or don’t like a particular character, we want to hear about it. Don’t push your thoughts under the rug. We’re working hard and we listen to our fans. If you have any suggestions, just let us know!

SoulCalibur V At Comic-Con: Ivy, Natsu, Z.W.E.I. Detailed

Hisaharu Tago — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 00:07:16 +0000

Hello! My name is Hisaharu “Heath” Tago, Producer for SoulCalibur V and a member of Namco Bandai Games’ Project Soul development team. I wanted to go over the SoulCalibur V news we announced at this week’s San Diego Comic-Con to the PlayStation.Blog and all of its fans.

SoulCalibur V (SCV for short) is a bit of a particular project. There are two main reasons for this: The first one is because Project Soul, the development team behind the SoulCalibur franchise, was disbanded after the release of SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny for the PSP system. The members were spread throughout Namco Bandai Games to work on other projects within the company. Soon after that happened, Katsuhiro Harada, the Director of the TEKKEN series, called on SoulCalibur fans to speak up and send a message to Namco Bandai Games to develop a new SoulCalibur title. As a result of Harada-san’s request, we received many passionate notes from fans allowing us to reform Project Soul for SCV.

The entire Project Soul team, myself included, appreciates the outpouring of support from fans and wanted to reflect this with a new Project Soul logo:

The new logo represents the team and fans coming together to make SCV possible. It also represents a new era and direction for the team, which can be seen and felt through SCV. I would like for fans to be proud of what they have done for us whenever they see this new logo.

The second reason are the changes to the battle system. These changes will surely surprise SoulCalibur fans and let them feel the beginning of the new chapter for the series. Some of you might have already recognized the changes by watching our trailers. SCV is faster and sharper, different from the previous games in the series.

The beautiful graphics the SoulCalibur series are known for will return with more elegance than ever before in SCV. We promise every player will feel extremely excited and satisfied when they defeat an opponent by successfully using the new Quick Move high-speed evasion from attacks, sharp combos in sequence, and brilliant special moves causing lots of damage.

We know that innovation causes not only expectation, but concern as well. Please be reassured that we understand that characters fans are used to must not be completely changed, and that these innovations must not make the game unbalanced. We are working day and night to ensure that the game will be well balanced and make for an exciting and satisfying gamepay experience.

And now, I would like to dicuss the SCV characters that have just been revealed!

I think Ivy’s appearance is what everyone really worries about, because 17 years have passed since SCIV. But as you can see below, you don’t have to worry about that. In a way, her eternal existence is promised.

Name: Isabella Valentine (Nickname: Ivy)
Sex: Female
Age: Stopped at 32
Birthplace: London, British Empire
Height: 5’10″ ( 179 cm)
Weight: 128 lbs. (58 kg)
Date of Birth: December 10th
Blood Type: Unknown
Weapon: Snake Sword
Weapon Name: Valentine (Ivy Blade)
Fighting Style: Unrelated Link
Family: Her adoptive parents, Earl and Countess Valentine, are deceased. Her real father is Cervantes.

The next is a brand-new character named Natsu. She is an apprentice of Taki, a character that has been in SoulCalibur since the beginning. I think it is better to show Natsu’s charm in motion and not by talking about her appearance — please look forward to gameplay videos soon. SCV’s sharper and faster battle system really compliments Natsu’s ninja speed and evasive maneuvers. After you use Natsu, you can discard any prejudice you may have that she is simply a replacement for Taki.

By the way, being so excited to talk about Natsu, I almost forgot to mention that Taki is alive.

Name: Natsu
Sex: Female
Age: 17
Birthplace: Izumo, Japan
Height: 5’5″ (166 cm)
Weight: 115 lbs. (52 kg)
Date of Birth: August 3rd
Blood Type: O
Weapon: Ninja Sword x2
Weapon Name: Kuzukiri & Awayuki
Fighting Style: Musoh-Battoh-Ryu
Family: She is Taki’s student and brought up by Chie, the chief of Fu-ma clan. She harbors the great demon Arahabaki within her.

Regarding the next new character, I’ll try not to explain too many details about him just yet. His name is Z.W.E.I. and he is a completely new character.

The biggest surprise with Z.W.E.I. is the short sword in his hand is not his main method of attack. His inclusion is making SoulCalibur’s “Weapon-based Fighting Game” style step into all-new territory. Please watch the Comic-Con trailer on Monday, July 25th and imagine how his fighting style will play out. The clue is Z.W.E.I. means “two” in German. Does that mean there must be a “one” as well?

Name: Unknown (Calls himself Z.W.E.I.)
Sex: Male
Age: Unknown (Appears to be early 20′s)
Birthplace: Unknown
Height: 6″ (182 cm)
Weight: 179 lbs. (81 kg)
Date of Birth: Unknown
Blood Type: Unknown
Weapon: Sword
Weapon Name: Kreuzgriff
Fighting Style: Self-Taught
Family: He does not talk about them.

If you are reading this before July 31st, I really would like you to come to EVO at Las Vegas. At the event, SCV’s Game Director Daishi Odashima will be in attendance to show some exciting content.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the fans for their continued support for not only SCV, but the SoulCalibur franchise as a whole. This project would not be possible without your continued support.