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PlayStation (Games)

Soul Caliber III PS2 Only? 82

Posted by Zonk from the big-mistake dept.
Courtesy of Joystiq, the inkling of an exclusivity deal for the next iteration of the Soul Caliber franchise. Sony and Namco may be in talks to ensure that Soul Caliber III only appears on the PS2. Still up in the air, of course, so take it with a grain of salt. From the article: "...nowadays when developers label a game as exclusive, the footnotes usually read 'for about the next six months or so.' There's a chance that Namco may just be making Xbox, Gamecube, DS, and perhaps even PSP owners wait until 2006 for their daily recommended amount of fighting game goodness."
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Soul Caliber III PS2 Only? More

Soul Caliber III PS2 Only?

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  • "from the big-mistake dept."
    Why exactly would this be a big mistake? I mean - I would assume that Namco would get a nice check for the exclusivity and it is not as though the game won't have a market; there have been more than a few PS2s sold, after all. So where's the mistake?
    • Most of the time that logic is correct, however the GCN version of SC2 outsold the other versions. (admittedly with help from Link, but the point stands)
    • Often exclusivity deals don't involve getting paid, but getting reduced liscensing fees. So if it only costs namco 50% of the liscensing fees to sony, is it worth the lost revenue from the other platforms they could sell the game to? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. And sometimes companies get threatened by the platform owner if they don't go exclusive, like either go exclusive or we raise your liscensing fees on all your games a few percent, sony has been known to play hardball with developers like this before

      • "Often exclusivity deals don't involve getting paid, but getting reduced liscensing fees. So if it only costs namco 50% of the liscensing fees to sony"

        Getting reduced rates is the same thing as getting paid.

        "Sometimes yes, sometimes no."

        And that was primarily my point. There are arguments on both side of the issue as to why this may be good or bad for Namco - which is why I don't understand why Zonk would say that this is clearly a "big mistake."

        • Because.... (Score:2, Insightful)

          by Vermifax ( 3687 )
          "which is why I don't understand why Zonk would say that this is clearly a "big mistake.""

          Because he owns an xbox/gc?
        • Getting reduced rates is the same thing as getting paid.

          Not necessarily. Getting paid a lump sum is guranteed money, lower licensing fees only effect your bottom line if the game sells enough.

          The big mistake here is the spelling, it's "Soul Calibur", "caliber" relates to guns and only Cervantes has a gun in SC2 (never mind he never uses it).

    • It's funny the way gamer's attitudes are changing. System exclusives used to be a point of pride for a game-- now gamers get rather angry when a title that 'should' be multi-platform isn't.

      • Well, SC2 sold about equal on all platforms, if you tell 2/3rds of your customer base that the game won't be available for their platform of choice you can expect them to be pissed. Whether they have multiple platforms doesn't matter, most people would rather play their multiplatform games on the Box or Cube because they tend to look better there.
    • The big mistake is that the PS2 sales of SC2 were less than the GCN sales, and the X-Box sales wern't far behind the PS2 sales. (fanboyism aside, that's actually true, though unexpected) It would be a mistake to sacrifice one large market and one small one for the sake of a medium-sized one when you could have all three markets instead.

      The other big mistake would be that Joystiq actually believed the rumor, which was started by notorius idiots at Gamepro magazine. They have a way of words that's just m
  • as long as it's not the console maker - and not always even then - the game is going to get a port in some form if it's popular enough, and soul calibur is popular enough.

    hell, they'll call it Soul Calibur ExtraPlus or something other if they feel like it.

    "platform X only" is worn out marketing..
    • Yeah, this whole platform only thing is just like that whole "ONLY IN THEATERS!" tagline they slap on every movie trailer now, heh.
    • Looking over the website's news record lately, I wouldn't trust the site as far as I could throw it, and I hurt my back in January and I'm not supposed to be throwing things right now. It seems that every one of their news posts is copy/pasted from some forum somewhere. They don't even have the decensy to post month-old news from other gaming sites, they post month-old rumors from forums. They even go the extra step that when the actual company does something about it (Microsoft addressing the very rare so

  • Right. (Score:2)

    by Pxtl ( 151020 )
    Because there aren't bazillions of other fighting games that are every bit as good and cross-platform. The only time that this sort of tactic works is when a game is head and shoulders above its bretherine in the genre - like how Halo is by far the best console-based FPS. Soul Caliber isn't - its good, but it doesn't stand alone.
    • Companies need to start making fighting game sequels without subtracting characters. As long as you go up a series keeping all the same characters, it's all good.

      I hate it when they make up some lame storyline to make certain characters not available (cough cough Tekken).

    • Actually, the Soul Calibur series is head and shoulders above above its brethren, and has been since the first one. The Dead Or Alive series on Xbox and now Tekken 5 are its only real competition these days, since SNK and arcade fighting games pretty well bit the dust.
      • i do believe you forgot to mention Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution, which is easily (imho) the greatest fighting game of all time...

        93.5% rating on Gamerankings.com as seen here. [gamerankings.com]

        Soul Calibur 1 and 2 are definitely great games but not games I enjoy a great deal; Tekken and DOA are nice to look at but fail to have balance and depth, at least compared to VF4evo's near perfection.

        • i do believe you forgot to mention Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution, which is easily (imho) the greatest fighting game of all time...

          I do believe you're right, on both counts. I don't own a PS2, but that's really no excuse for forgetting.

      • Re:Right. (Score:3, Informative)

        by radicalskeptic ( 644346 )
        2-D, arcade-stype fighters aren't dead by a long shot. Most of the community has just gone underground. Instead of playing in arcades, they buy arcade sticks and play on their consoles. But there are still places [romancancel.com] for [shoryuken.com] fans [gamecombos.com] of [combovideos.com] 2d [planetdreamcast.com] fighters [planetdreamcast.com], and dozens or hundreds of tournaments every year.
    • Except that Soul Calibur is six places ahead of Halo on GameRankings [gamerankings.com] and usually considered reason enough to own a Dreamcast. Soul Calibur 2 didn't climb as high because most reviews subtracted points for it not being as large a step ahead as SC1.
    • "Because there aren't bazillions of other fighting games that are every bit as good and cross-platform."

      Name one. VF4 isn't cross-platform last time I checked.
    • In the 3D fighting game genre, Soul Calibur is one of the most popular. Really, the other competitors are Virtua Fighter and Tekken. Perhaps it is your opinion that Soul Calibur isn't every bit as good. But as a martial artist and an avid gamer, I can tell you that Soul Calibur's fighting engine is well beyond that of many other fighting games in terms of strategy, robustness, and depth.

  • Can't you guys at least get the name right? (Score:4, Informative)

    by hibiki_r ( 649814 ) on Wednesday March 23, 2005 @06:02PM (#12029760)
    The first game of the series was Soul Edge/Soul Blade, that came out in the Arcades and was ported to Playstation. Then came Soul Calibur, as in Excalibur, for the Dreamcast. Soul Calibur 2 came out for GCN, PS2 and XBOX. None of the games is called Soul CalibEr.

    caliber:
    1. Abbr. cal.
    1. The diameter of the inside of a round cylinder, such as a tube.
    2. The diameter of the bore of a firearm, usually shown in hundredths or thousandths of an inch and expressed in writing or print in terms of a decimal fraction:.45 caliber.
    3. The diameter of a large projectile, such as an artillery shell, measured in millimeters or in inches.

    Do not accept every suggestion your spellchecker makes. Sometimes it is wrong.

  • Rediculous (Score:2, Informative)

    by theREALMcCoy ( 817988 )
    This is rediculous. The best selling version of Soul Calibur II was the gamecube version. Why set up exclusivity with a console that has a mediocre fighting game record?
    • That probably had more todo with LInk being a playable character than anything.

  • Copies sold of SCII... (Score:4, Informative)

    by BTWR ( 540147 ) <americangibor3@yah o o . c om> on Wednesday March 23, 2005 @06:10PM (#12029861) Homepage Journal
    Soul Calibur 2(GC): 766,621
    Soul Calibur 2(PS2): 708,965
    Soul Calibur 2(Xbox): 509,506
    • And that's probably exactly why is targetting this game, it doesn't want anymore examples that developers can point to when thinking of releasing a game for gamecube and ps2.
    • Had the 3 console specific characters been on each port those numbers would have been very different. People who owned Cubes and another system bought the Cube version for Link. If it weren't for Link I cant imagine anyone wanting to play a fighter on that god awful Nintendo controller instead of the PS2 controller, or even (shudder) the Xbox controller.
      • I actually prefer GCN's controller when playing SC2 due to how closer the buttons are to each other which make the two-button moves easier to pull off. And if you've owned a system for any amount of time you shouldn't need to get used to your controller just for one specific game. BTW, Link definitely wasn't a deal-maker in my purchase decision.
      • My belief is that it had less to do with Link and more to do with the lack of similar style games at the same quality for the Gamecube. Smash Brothers is a riot, but it's not the same type of fighting game as SCII.
      • Had the 3 console specific characters been on each port those numbers would have been very different. People who owned Cubes and another system bought the Cube version for Link. If it weren't for Link I cant imagine anyone wanting to play a fighter on that god awful Nintendo controller instead of the PS2 controller, or even (shudder) the Xbox controller.

        I bought the GameCube and the Xbox version. I skipped the PS2 version completely because it was clearly the worst of the three - not just in terms of th
      • "I cant imagine anyone wanting to play a fighter on that god awful Nintendo controller instead of the PS2 controller, or even (shudder) the Xbox controller."

        Actually, people who own multiple consoles tend to buy the GCN versions of games, even if they appear on the Xbox and/or PS2. It seems they tend to get the other two consoles for exclusive games and treat the 'Cube as their default system.
    • What's wrong with these numbers? I bet a LOT of game makers would like a game that moves 2 million copies, and costs peanuts to develop (compared to say, games with intense storylines, dozens of characters, huge environments, lots of voice acting, etc.). It can't cost them that much to develop 20 character models and a look-and-feel mostly borrowed from SC1.

      Furthermore, I bet a lot of fighting game developers would love to sell 2 million copies. For example, Virtua Fighter 4 is a PS2 platform exclusive
  • I own a the Gamecube version of Soul Calibur. I only buy consoles if a game will be on that console that I absolutely must own.

    I will buy Soul Calibur 3 for GCN. I will not buy it for PS2.

    Of course, given the installed base of the PS2 vs the Gamecube, I somehow doubt that my input on this will influence Namco though.

    END COMMUNICATION
    • Given that SC2 for GCN outsold the PS2 version, its a serious question should arise for Namco. Apparently, either the money Sony is putting on the table is tipping the scales, or Namco thinks it can be a big fish in a big pond, instead of a big fish in a smaller pond. Whether their renewed focus would pay off, is questionable.
    • I only buy consoles if a game will be on that console that I absolutely must own.

      So, you really want SCIII, but won't buy it for the PS2 is it's not available for the GC, yet you just said that if you really wanted a game, then, and only then, you'd buy the console that it's available on. Isn't that contradictory?
      • A clairification...

        I bought a Game Cube at it's launch, because I was certain that there would be games on that platform that I would absolutely want to play. Once I overcome that barrier though, there are other games that I would buy for that console.

        There are some games that you like enought to buy the console for, if you dont own that console.

        There are some games that you like enough to buy if you already own the console that it comes out on.

        Metroid Prime, Super Smash brothers, and Legend of Zelda c
  • Why the playstation!?!? For once the gamecube had an advantage over Xbox and PS2.

    google fight:
    Heihachi playstation soul caliber
    4,800 hits

    link gamecube soul caliber
    111,000 hits

    I will be so disappointed if I can't kick ass with link in Soul Caliber 3.
    • Uh, "link" is a word. It's often used on websites, as in "here is a link to our review of soul calibur 2 for the gamecube"

      Also, the game's called soul calibur.

      Mind you, I do think Sony can fuck off. And so can all the other console makers who've ever had an exclusive without a good reason.

      • #1 Calibur incorrectly spelled -- touche. I actually ran my post through a spell checker and it corrected all of my spelling. An oversight on my part

        So, Google fight redux (I even took into consideration of your "link" comment

        "Heihachi is the best" exclusive "soul calibur II"
        4 hits

        "link is the best" exclusive "soul calibur II"
        88 hits

        conclusion: either Link is 22 times cooler than Heihachi or the relevance/importance of Google Fight results ...or lack thereof... is proven once again.

  • PS2 "Exclusive" (Score:5, Insightful)

    by FriedTurkey ( 761642 ) on Wednesday March 23, 2005 @06:54PM (#12030300)
    If I was a game publisher, I would take advantage of the fact the Xbox2 is coming out this year and sign an exclusive with Sony. The PS3 is coming out much later so you have a greater lifespan than the Xbox. Even if they did it for the XBox2 they would still lose because there isn't a large install base for the Xbox2 at launch. With the "exclusive" deal they can bring it out for the Xbox2 in 2006 and make even more money.

    • Re:PS2 "Exclusive" (Score:2, Interesting)

      by 100lbHand ( 676832 )
      But good games sell consoles too. Soul Calibur was reason enough for me to buy a Dreamcast on the first day.
    • The PS3 is Confirmed [gamesindustry.biz] to be backwards compatible. So the PS2 Library is going to roll over to the PS3. Maybe with some enhancements like better AA to make games look even better on the new engine.

      However the opposite [gamesindustry.biz] is true with Xbox2. And the the game would more then likely be part of the release lineup for Xbox2, which would be limited to early adopters.

      It would seem to me, that Nintendo should be fighting for it as well. Their new system is also backwards compatible. [ign.com]
      The only reason I can see The GC no

  • Platform doesn't matter... (Score:1, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Controllers exist that are cross platform, like the X-Arcade Joystick [google.com]. Yes, the game might look a little better on system X, but honestly... for the people that really care (which is pretty much anyone who owns SC) it won't matter since they'll probably play arcade anyway.
    • Platform doesn't matter... Controllers exist that are cross platform, like the X-Arcade Joystick.

      Wow! They make cross platform controllers that insert Link as a playable character into any game you play? That's so cool!

  • PS2 had the most trouble with SC2 (Score:4, Informative)

    by HalfFlat ( 121672 ) on Wednesday March 23, 2005 @10:34PM (#12032125)
    If Namco are hoping to push the eye-candy any further than they did with SC2, they're going to have a very hard time limiting themselves to the PS2.

    Of the three console versions of Soul Calibur 2, it is worth noting that only the PS2 version has very noticable slow downs on some stages when 'big effect' moves are performed. Try playing with, or against, an Ivy on an animated stage and revel in the frustration of missed frames and distorted timing.

    So I really do hope that if it is an exclusive release, it is indeed only for six months or so.
    • Well, its entirely understandable if the ps2 version of soul calibur 2 underperformed because the development team was spreading their efforts across three platforms. Granted, the ps2 is significantly challenged comparitively, but I don't think its entirely beyond their means. Making the game ps2 specific should allow for a few design comprimises that speed up the game on the ps2. I have to wonder if SC3 will be much more than the SC2 that should have been...

    • When you're doing PS2 exclusive stuff (and I mean REALLY PS2 exclusive, not "Renderman on PS2) you can do a lot. See the recent Gran Turismo 4 and Gods of War for examples of what the humble underperformer can do when properly pushed.
  • Isn't it a bit late in the current generation to gain much from locking out the competitor's machines? It seems like it would hurt the publisher/developer much more then it would help Sony.
  • What about the Dreamcast version? If you gonna get your butt kick in this type of game (I always do), you need a decent console to play on. I mean the water-cooled CPU was a really neat feature -- especially when it worked. ;)
  • I saw a scan of the Gamepro page earlier today. People were saying that it was an April Fools day joke because of some of the images on the page. Rest easy
    • There may be some merit to this claim. The article starts with "Everyone can pretty much agree that Soul Calibur II was a big disappointment." Now, with an average ranking of 92% for the PS2 version (from gamerankings, with Gamepro themselves giving it a perfect score), that doesn't seem like that big of a disappointment to me. If it does turn out to be a joke though, it'd be a shame... I really like the character design of the circular-bladed femme-fatale. The models for Mitsurgi and Taki look great too.
  • What's the point of making it PS2 exclusive. I mean, SC2 sold on all three consoles and the PS2 version has been playing catchup since day one. I'd say call Nintendo, offer exclusivity, and find out what besides Link Nintendo could offer for the Soul Calibur Universe.
  • ...was Dreamcast exclusive, so what?
  • According to GameSpy [gamespy.com] this was officially announced by Namco today.

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