Soul Calibur II getting the HD treatment

by: Jeremy - posted: 7/23/2013 8:59:00 AM

One of the greatest fighting games of all time is being brought back to life on the Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network. Namco Bandai has announced plans to release Soul Calibur II HD Online in celebration of the game’s 10th anniversary.

The new release, due later this year, ups the visual resolution of the classic game and adds in full, online multiplayer support. This is in addition to the original, extensive lineup of gameplay modes like Arcade, Survival, VS Battle, Time Attack, Team Battle, Practice, and the lengthy Weapon Master mode.

The question I have is whether or not the game will include any of the guest characters that the original release included. There were three different versions of the original game, each with their own unique guest star: Link on the Gamecube, Spawn on the Xbox, and Heihachi on the PS2. There is no way that the game will include Link due to licensing reasons, but the other two characters could easily be included. Unofficially, it is being said that the game is based on the PS2 version but that still needs to be verified.

You can check out the first trailer for the game, which highlights the visual enhancements the new port is receiving, below and read the official press release on the next page.
   

NAMCO BANDAI GAMES AMERICA INC. ANNOUNCES SOULCALIBUR II HD ONLINE FOR 2013 ON XBOX 360 AND PLAYSTATION 3 SYSTEM
                                                                                                                                     
SOULCALIBUR II Celebrates Its 10 Year Anniversary with New Online Battles and Updated HD Graphics

SAN JOSE, Calif., (July 19, 2013) – Leading video game publisher and developer NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. today announced SOULCALIBUR® II® HD Online, available on Xbox LIVE® Arcade for Xbox 360® games and entertainment system from Microsoft and PlayStation®Network for PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system.  Heralded as one of the best fighting games of all-time, SOULCALIBUR II returns to consoles this year with crisp new high definition graphics and all-new online modes in celebration for its 10-year anniversary.

Developed by PROJECT SOUL®, the elite development team at NAMCO BANDAI Studios Inc., SOULCALIBUR II HD Online reimagines the beloved title by adding online multiplayer support to the title as well as vibrant updated graphics to take advantage of modern high definition TVs.  For the first time ever, players will be able to square off against opponents from around the world with their favorite SOULCALIBUR II characters such as Ivy, Taki, Mitsurugi, Talim, Maxi and more.  The online infrastructure will feature brand new netcode overseen by the PROJECT SOUL development team.  SOULCALIBUR II HD Online will also come with the multitude of modes found in the original release including: Arcade, Survival, VS Battle, Time Attack, Survival, Team Battle, Practice and Weapon Master.

“For more than a decade the SOULCALIBUR franchise has been one of the preeminent head-to-head fighting franchises for consoles,” said Chris Gilbert, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc.  “SOULCALIBUR II HD Online lets fans relive an important chapter of the series’ history with beautifully enhanced graphics and new online gameplay.”

For more information about SOULCALIBUR II HD Online and the entire lineup of NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. titles, please visit: http://www.namcobandaigames.com and http://www.facebook.com/namcobandaigames.