If there’s one major thing this iteration of Soul Calibur has going for it, the graphics are it. This game looks absolutely amazing. The only real downside I’m finding is no 1080 support, be it 1080i or 1080p. This is a shame, because this game would look awesome at one of those resolutions.

Now, let’s get past the resolution issues, as many people haven’t had the chance to invest in an HDTV to even play a game in 1080p on. Some have, but that’s still not the common gamer. A lot of gamers who want HD are still running their consoles through a computer monitor, and that doesn’t usually do 1080p, unless they have a larger monitor. I know my 22” Viewsonic won’t do 1080p.

Here is where we talk about character animations. These are the best of the series so far, without a doubt. This is one of those games where no matter how good the screenshots look on this website, or any website for that matter, they just cannot do the game justice. The game’s beauty is in the animations.

Not only that, but the amount of detail on the character’s themselves just doesn’t translate to screenshots well. Take a look at a character like Nightmare, his body is now a glowing ball of energy under the armor. Or take a look at Ivy, who is starting to show her age a bit now.

The level of jigglyness on the female characters is over the top. I have never seen a real human woman shake like that, regardless of what female character you’re talking about. They went out of their way to make the characters, what’s the word I’m looking for here, distracting to say the least. Trust me, there’s a reason most screenshots of Taki start above the waist.

The stages are absolutely stunning as well, despite the lower resolution. They managed to capture the look and feel that Soul Calibur has come to be known for and translate it beautifully onto the current generation of consoles. This game looks great on every level, and really must be seen in action to truly be appreciated.

As for the sound, it is about what you’d expect from a fighting game. You can expect lots of grunts and groans, some shrill female screams, a good amount of clanking metal, and a lightsaber noise or two thrown in for good measure. Lump that in with a conservative amount of voice work, and you have the sounds of SC4.