http://uk.playstation.com/features/...SELQ?storyId=106949_en_GB_FEAT&linktype=PC115
Hiroaki Yotoriyama, producer of the PlayStation 2-exclusive souls and swords sequel, tells us about exciting new modes, character evolution, and the future of Soulcalibur.
Was it your aim to create the ultimate Soulcalibur III game for PlayStation 2 as a kind of goodbye to the current generation of consoles?
It isn't necessarily a departure from PS2. When we were making Soulcalibur III, we weren't intending to say goodbye to the hardware, or considering it as the last one - we never had ideas like that. It was more a case of looking back at Soulcalibur II, and realising that there were many things that we wanted to do but couldn't because we had to spread out the development across three platforms. In order to achieve that, we had to compromise on certain features and modes.
You could say that we regretted that we didn't do more. At the time, we felt that we really had reached the limits of the PS2's hardware specification, so we were faced with two challenges: improving Soulcalibur III further from that point technically, and making it more extensive in terms of the content.
These two points were the key challenges. Soulcalibur III had to be very successful worldwide, so we really wanted to concentrate our efforts on one platform to make the best fighting game that we've ever made.
Were the three new characters inspired by any particular stories or legends?
All of the characters are not necessarily based on a particular story or legend, it's more a case of what new weapons we want to introduce. Taking Tira [SCIII's new elfin warrior] as an example, the designers looked at various new weapons and found the ringblade. From there, they thought of which kind of character would use this weapon - would it be a male or female?
In this case, it was a female. Once they'd determined that, they said, "Ok, what part of the world would the person who uses this weapon come from?" So they pick a region in the world that is suitable within that description. The region they chose would then influence what kind of clothing she wore, how she looked physically, and how she would fit into the storyline.
All of this is discussed throughout with the people who design the fighting styles and animations of the characters. Once they've put all of this information together, they go to the artist to create the visuals. That's how they do it - it's quite logical in a sense.
Is that how all Soulcalibur characters are designed - from the weapon up?
Yes. Taking Ivy as another example, they first started of with her Ivy Blade weapon, which is a sword that turns into a whip and said, "What kind of character would use that?" Then, through a similar process, we developed Ivy.
Will players of the previous games notice many differences with the classic fighters?
Indeed. If you play one of the familiar characters you'll definitely see a difference. For example, Kilik's moves have been worked on in great depth and detail to improve the character. Even the general fighting style [has been changed] - we've made a lot of effort to make it more sophisticated than previous versions.
So there are quite a few changes to the basic fighting system?
From numerical data up to real attention-to-detail stuff, all aspects of the fighting system have been worked on. There has been a lot of fine tuning. If a hardcore player plays, they'll say, "That's what we wanted!" There's a lot for players to discover.
To what extent can you determine the fate of your warrior in Tales of Souls mode [SCIII's improved story mode]? Do you simply choose your route, or do you actually have a part to play in the cut scenes?
There are many points that I really want to talk about, but I'm not allowed to! [laughs] There are very interesting, very exciting, and very surprising parts of the story for each individual character. You will discover such elements through playing the game.
The story will branch normally - you'll be in a position where you have to decide whether you want to take the story in one direction or another - and there'll also be interactive cut scenes.
Will they work in a similar fashion to the interactive ending scenes of Soul Blade?
It's actually more in-depth than that. Through playing all these different combinations and permutations of a character's story, you'll naturally become curious about how the other characters are involved in your story. Then you'll want to play their story and see how the characters' paths cross. There'll be good endings, bad endings, and even surprising ones as well.
Can you explain how the new Chronicles of The Sword mode works?
It's a fusion between a real-time strategy game and Soulcalibur fighting. Essentially you have a field map whereby you'll control your units, and the enemy will control theirs, and you're both moving in real-time. You'll be required, depending on which particular mission or map you're playing, to fulfil certain conditions for victory - you may be required to take a strategic vantage point, or defend yours from the enemy to win the battle. When two units encounter each other, then you will start a Soulcalibur fight.
If you win a battle, you'll gain more experience points, and with these you'll increase your level. As your level increases, your attributes and status will improve as well. Depending on what occupation your unit holds, they will develop new skills that you will be able to employ on the field map. Taking ninjas as an example, as they level up they will acquire a skill whereby they can move more quickly on the map, giving you a strategic advantage.
Do you think that more beat 'em ups should follow your example to stop the genre growing stale?
Certainly. Our development philosophy is more fan-led, rather than reacting to what a competitor did. We follow our own path and get reactions from the players who enjoy Soulcalibur.
How do you envision the Soulcalibur series evolving for the next generation of consoles?
I feel that it's not really about the specifications of the hardware, it's more what your game is about - what's your motif, what's your theme? As such, like I mentioned earlier, it's more of a player-led development. We'll look at how they react to new hardware and react accordingly.
Talking specifically about Soulcalibur, I feel that it has the potential to expand beyond the confines of the fighting genre and into new areas. As a result of that, we've started experimenting with these new paths in Soulcalibur III and I'm eager to find out how the fans react to it in that respect.
Hiroaki Yotoriyama, producer of the PlayStation 2-exclusive souls and swords sequel, tells us about exciting new modes, character evolution, and the future of Soulcalibur.
Was it your aim to create the ultimate Soulcalibur III game for PlayStation 2 as a kind of goodbye to the current generation of consoles?
It isn't necessarily a departure from PS2. When we were making Soulcalibur III, we weren't intending to say goodbye to the hardware, or considering it as the last one - we never had ideas like that. It was more a case of looking back at Soulcalibur II, and realising that there were many things that we wanted to do but couldn't because we had to spread out the development across three platforms. In order to achieve that, we had to compromise on certain features and modes.
You could say that we regretted that we didn't do more. At the time, we felt that we really had reached the limits of the PS2's hardware specification, so we were faced with two challenges: improving Soulcalibur III further from that point technically, and making it more extensive in terms of the content.
These two points were the key challenges. Soulcalibur III had to be very successful worldwide, so we really wanted to concentrate our efforts on one platform to make the best fighting game that we've ever made.
Were the three new characters inspired by any particular stories or legends?
All of the characters are not necessarily based on a particular story or legend, it's more a case of what new weapons we want to introduce. Taking Tira [SCIII's new elfin warrior] as an example, the designers looked at various new weapons and found the ringblade. From there, they thought of which kind of character would use this weapon - would it be a male or female?
In this case, it was a female. Once they'd determined that, they said, "Ok, what part of the world would the person who uses this weapon come from?" So they pick a region in the world that is suitable within that description. The region they chose would then influence what kind of clothing she wore, how she looked physically, and how she would fit into the storyline.
All of this is discussed throughout with the people who design the fighting styles and animations of the characters. Once they've put all of this information together, they go to the artist to create the visuals. That's how they do it - it's quite logical in a sense.
Is that how all Soulcalibur characters are designed - from the weapon up?
Yes. Taking Ivy as another example, they first started of with her Ivy Blade weapon, which is a sword that turns into a whip and said, "What kind of character would use that?" Then, through a similar process, we developed Ivy.
Will players of the previous games notice many differences with the classic fighters?
Indeed. If you play one of the familiar characters you'll definitely see a difference. For example, Kilik's moves have been worked on in great depth and detail to improve the character. Even the general fighting style [has been changed] - we've made a lot of effort to make it more sophisticated than previous versions.
So there are quite a few changes to the basic fighting system?
From numerical data up to real attention-to-detail stuff, all aspects of the fighting system have been worked on. There has been a lot of fine tuning. If a hardcore player plays, they'll say, "That's what we wanted!" There's a lot for players to discover.
To what extent can you determine the fate of your warrior in Tales of Souls mode [SCIII's improved story mode]? Do you simply choose your route, or do you actually have a part to play in the cut scenes?
There are many points that I really want to talk about, but I'm not allowed to! [laughs] There are very interesting, very exciting, and very surprising parts of the story for each individual character. You will discover such elements through playing the game.
The story will branch normally - you'll be in a position where you have to decide whether you want to take the story in one direction or another - and there'll also be interactive cut scenes.
Will they work in a similar fashion to the interactive ending scenes of Soul Blade?
It's actually more in-depth than that. Through playing all these different combinations and permutations of a character's story, you'll naturally become curious about how the other characters are involved in your story. Then you'll want to play their story and see how the characters' paths cross. There'll be good endings, bad endings, and even surprising ones as well.
Can you explain how the new Chronicles of The Sword mode works?
It's a fusion between a real-time strategy game and Soulcalibur fighting. Essentially you have a field map whereby you'll control your units, and the enemy will control theirs, and you're both moving in real-time. You'll be required, depending on which particular mission or map you're playing, to fulfil certain conditions for victory - you may be required to take a strategic vantage point, or defend yours from the enemy to win the battle. When two units encounter each other, then you will start a Soulcalibur fight.
If you win a battle, you'll gain more experience points, and with these you'll increase your level. As your level increases, your attributes and status will improve as well. Depending on what occupation your unit holds, they will develop new skills that you will be able to employ on the field map. Taking ninjas as an example, as they level up they will acquire a skill whereby they can move more quickly on the map, giving you a strategic advantage.
Do you think that more beat 'em ups should follow your example to stop the genre growing stale?
Certainly. Our development philosophy is more fan-led, rather than reacting to what a competitor did. We follow our own path and get reactions from the players who enjoy Soulcalibur.
How do you envision the Soulcalibur series evolving for the next generation of consoles?
I feel that it's not really about the specifications of the hardware, it's more what your game is about - what's your motif, what's your theme? As such, like I mentioned earlier, it's more of a player-led development. We'll look at how they react to new hardware and react accordingly.
Talking specifically about Soulcalibur, I feel that it has the potential to expand beyond the confines of the fighting genre and into new areas. As a result of that, we've started experimenting with these new paths in Soulcalibur III and I'm eager to find out how the fans react to it in that respect.
