Topic: Soul Calibur III Exclusive to PS2

[Bloodworth]

Unfortunately, it's not a rumor.  The official press release.

NAMCO ANNOUNCES "SOULCALIBUR(R) III"

Critically Acclaimed Fighting Saga to Continue Exclusively on the PlayStation(R)2

SANTA CLARA, Calif., (March 24, 2005) – Leading video games publisher and developer Namco Hometek Inc. announced today "SOULCALIBUR(R) III," the latest installment in its celebrated weapons-based fighting franchise, is scheduled for release exclusively on the PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment system in 2005.  Featuring three all-new characters, a groundbreaking character customization system and original gameplay modes, "SOULCALIBUR III" continues the storyline of legendary fighters in pursuit of the all-powerful Soul Edge.  

“'SOULCALIBUR III' expands upon the landmark achievements of the franchise, and is undoubtedly one of the must-have games for PlayStation 2 owners in 2005,” said Yoshi Niki, Business Unit Director with Namco Hometek Inc.  â€śWith a robust character creation system, jaw-dropping graphics and a large selection of fighters, 'SOULCALIBUR III' gives players the ultimate opportunity to immerse themselves in one of the most beloved series in gaming.”

"SOULCALIBUR III" offers players unprecedented variety in gameplay modes and fighting styles. Gamers can guide the fate of their favorite character in the narrative Tales of Souls Mode, play head-to-head with a friend in Vs. Mode, create their own custom fighters in Character Creation Mode, battle as their custom fighter in a real-time simulation in Chronicles of the Sword Mode, engage in unique and original battles in Soul Arena Mode and even recount the history of the franchise in Museum Mode.  Also, the addition of three new characters to the existing family of classic warriors gives "SOULCALIBUR III" a collection of more than 25 playable characters, each with their own unique fighting style. New characters Zasalamel, Tira and Setsuka will engage in combat within all-new stages, further enhancing the game’s unmatched epic scope and trademark weapons-based fighting engine.

For more details on "SOULCALIBUR III", please visit http:www.namco.com.

[couchmonkey]

I wonder if Sony paid for this?  I kind of doubt it, because it's not like the PS2 really gains much from this exclusive. I wouldn't want the game to fail just because it's a PS2 exclusive, but it sure would brighten up my day if it sold just a little worse than the last one.

[Darkheart]

 I will never be able to have Link again damn you Sony you stole him away DAMN YOUUUUUUUU.    

[threestain]

isn't it a really bad idea to put SC3 on PS2?  SC2 already looks like crap on the PS2 compared to GC and Xbox.  Don't tell me they've somehow managed to strap 4 PSPs together and pretend its one PS2?

[Ages]

Quote
Originally posted by: couchmonkey
I wonder if Sony paid for this?  I kind of doubt it, because it's not like the PS2 really gains much from this exclusive. I wouldn't want the game to fail just because it's a PS2 exclusive, but it sure would brighten up my day if it sold just a little worse than the last one.

Of course Sony paid for it.  I dont have actual proof, but SCII sold near 800k on every system, with the Cube version being the highest sold.  It would make absolutely no sense, even as a business decision to make SCII exclusive to the PS2.

[Plugabugz]

If Namco were to decide, it's likely they would have picked the Cube because it sold so much already: more sales = more revenue.
It's more plausible Sony paid them to take a pot-shot at Nintendo, knowing it didn't sell as well on the PS2 but merely to prevent Nintendo from repeating their success again.

[anubis6789]

I can only hope that its a timed exclusive.

If I wasn't so sure that Sony paid for the exclusive I would be saying that this is a Sega-esque form of bad descision making, it makes no sense any other way.

[joshnickerson]

Thanks a lot Namco! I was actually impressed with Soul Calibur 2 even without the Link quotient and was planning on buying the third installment, but not now! Yay!

Gamecube owners are quite possibly the only people who are punished for buying third party games. A game sells the best on the Cube? Maybe we should release the sequel on that system too... nah, that would make sense!

[matt oz]

The press release makes it sound like a timed exclusive.  It "is scheduled for release exclusively on the PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment system in 2005."  Meaning we might see something on the other systems in early 2006.  But by then, people will be preparing for XBox2 and Revolution, so the sales might suck, and Namco can say they were justified in only releasing on PS2 or some other nonsense.

Doesn't make a big difference to me.  How much different can they make the game?

[Savior]

Time for some grass roots "outrage" since "outrage" was what got RE4 on the PS2..  

[InfinitysEnd]

I can't say I'm surprised by something like this.  It's just another example of how Sony beat the crap out of everyone in "teh console war."  Namco prefers Sony over all other systems.  They got the ENTIRE Tekken series, and the Ridge Racer phenomena was born on the PS1.  Sony's just got better cards than everyone else.  It's pointless to bitch about something like this.

[Ian Sane]

NAAAAAMMMCOOOOOO!

I have a feeling this is not going to sell nearly as well as SC2.  If you go to multiplatform forums in general people are mad about this.  Not because it's not coming to the Cube but because it used to be multiplatform and now it's not.  Even some people who own PS2s are mad because they preferred the framerate on the Cube and Xbox versions.  Namco just sh!t on everyone but Soul Calibur fans who only own PS2s.

With ruining Star Fox and screwing us out of a sequel to a rare third party release that sold best on the Cube Namco isn't really doing a good job of keeping the Nintendo fans they spent a fair amount of effort attracting this generation.

[KDR_11k]

Savior: That was SHAREHOLDER outrage. Unless you are a shareholder you wont be able to move Namco.

The screenshots look pretty bad. I thought SC2 already looked pretty boring but this... The only hope is that the World Champion mode might be like OMF's career mode.

Some believe that Sony actually blackmailed Namco into this because the amount of money required would be HUGE. Sony is known for tactics like saying "do what we want or we'll raise the license fees on ALL of your games!". This is why a console leader falls after two gens, they get too cocky.

And a blade hidden in a bamboo umbrella? How lame. Everybody is doing stuff like that these days (and Urahara had one of those in Bleach so it's not even rare).

[Shin Gallon]

Hmm...this is a bit upsetting, and I don't even like Soul Calibur.
Bad form, Namco.

[Sarail]

I am SO with you on this.  If Resident Evil 4 can come to the PS2 downgraded, then Soul Calibur III is most definitely gonna come to the GameCube upgraded.

I'm not gonna have it any other way.

[Spak-Spang]

I think Sony has alot to gain from doing this...and I definately think Sony paid for this.

Nintendo has not been known as a fighting game system.  The first really great fighting game in years comes out and it sells best on Nintendo, granted its after Nintendo did some cozzing up to Namco, but it still sold better.

Sony paid for this exclusive to prevent Nintendo or Microsoft from making more ground in this genre....and to give Nintendo the middle finger.

I wouldn't be surprised if this backfires though, and Nintendo and Namco make a deal to include Link again, and perhaps another character from Nintendo.  If I was Nintendo that is the plan I would take.

[nickmitch]

This is perhaps the first time Namco REALLY pissed me off.

[ruby_onix]

Soul Calibur 2 made the PS2 look bad, without actually doing anything "unfair".

The director of the game designed it around the "lowest common denominator" (the PS2), and it still looked the worst on the PS2. The GameCube version sold the best, even though the PS2 version sold well. It's not like the PS2 version was ignored.

The only "unfair" part was "But...but... the Nintendo version had LINK!!! How are we suppsed to compete with that?!?" Which leads to the inevitable "Well then, you should've let Namco borrow... ummm... hmmm... yeah... you've got nothing."

Either way, the PS2 got embarrased by SC2, so Sony opened up their wallets (or maybe they grabbed a knife) and made the problem go away.

[Savior]

Unless you are a shareholder you wont be able to move Namco.


I seem to recall the Capcom PR guys saying Customers, Sony PS2 Owners asked so much for the game, and that was one of the reasons....

I think if Namco gets enough feedback, it might port it eventually on the Gamecube. Ill wait till 2006 if it means better graphics and Link and Gannondorf playable

[ruby_onix]

From the other thread...

Soul Calibur II (GC): 789,964
Soul Calibur II (PS2): 736,372
Soul Calibur II (Xbox): 529,190

Multiplatform Total : 2,055,526

Those are the NPD (American) sales figures. I don't think anyone has any Japanese sales figures for SC2 handy, but it has been suggested that even the Xbox version of SC2 beat the PS2 version in Japan.

(Basically, it's said that Japanese PS2 owners saw SC2 as an "American" kind of game and didn't want it, Japanese Xbox owners wanted it because they thought it was American, and Japanese GameCube owners bought it for Link.)

[Gamefreak]

I'm sure this is just a timed thing. Don't worry. The original Splinter Cell was Xbox exclusive for a few months. Ubisoft wasn't even allowed to talk about the other versions until the deal with MS expired.

By the wording of the press release I'd say it's the same sort of deal. Notice they don't even mention an arcade version. Namco is the company at the head of the whole "arcade revolution" movement, Namco has great relations with Nintendo, and SC2 sold best on Gamecube. There's not way it's permanently exclusive.

Microsoft is actually probably going to benefit from having it in early 2006, since that means Namco will probably move it to Xenon, giving new Xenon owners a good fighting game to buy.

As for Nintendo, since the Revolution is backwards compatible I don't think releasing it in 2006 will be a problem.

Oh, and some asked what Namco could possibly add this quickly... Did you not read the press release? There's a freaking character creation mode!

Oh, and Gamespot has a 3 and a half minute movie showing 3 new characters and a developer interview.

[ThePerm]

So they are guaranteeing ite going to sell under a million? if ps2 gets exclusive sc3..how bout rev get exclusive sc3:rev

[Djunknown]

So much for logic and reason prevailing. I can only hope it is a timed exclusive.

Quote
battle as their custom fighter in a real-time simulation in Chronicles of the Sword Mode

I normally don't like to argue semantics but what the bloody hell does that mean? You can make 'em, test them, but can't control them? Hmmmm...

With 25+ plus characters, hopefully they'll include just about every single character thus far, none of this  'Assassin is probably Hwang' stuff. Just say no to Necrid

[mukanjou]

Gamers such as me who own both a gamecube and a PS2 should keep in mind that if this is a timed exclusive, Sony will do everything in their power to sucker you into buying the PS2 version before the gamecube one is announced.  That may mean quelling rumors of a GC version.  After seeing the sales figures anyone can see clearly that the PS2 can't compete in a simultaneous release.  Sony is playing dirty here.
There was a "making of" video I saw on IGN where one of the developers was saying that in SCII they used the guest characters to broaden their audience.  I'm one of the gamers who initially developed interest in SCII because of Link's inclusion, but found everything else about the game immensely satisfying.  There are hundreds of thousands of people like me who hopped onto the franchise only to be pushed off by this decision.  It would be completely irrational, no matter how much money Sony is throwing at them, to build up such a fanbase and then throw it away.  Ideally, Sony's motive is to make it seem exclusive so that sales of the PS2 version will trounce those of the GC.
I'd love to see this game on the gamecube, even if Link isn't part of the deal, and I'm not going to let this announcement ruin my anticipation.  

[S-U-P-E-R]

They're still using SC2 art for Nightmare all over those logos       lol          

If they're not bringing it into arcades first, I guess they're making it less of a fighting game and concentrating more on the customization and conquest stuff...?