365//365: Day 218 – Soul Calibur: Broken Destiny (PSP) [PP]

Soul Calibur: Broken Destiny could have been the fighting title on the PSP, if it weren’t for a few glaring faults that manage to crack its armor. The load times are swift, placing you into the heat of battle without much of a wait. The controls are still tight, responsive and work just as well on the dpad as they do on the analog nub. The robust character creation returns in all its glory, with numerous articles of clothing, hair alterations, voice pitch changes and other bells and whistles immediately available. Namco managed to push the PSP to its limits with some of the strogest visuals on the system to date. While some detail has been spared due to the power of the PSP, there’s no denying that it’s one of the most impressive looking PSP titles to date. The audio score, from sounds, to voices and to musical compositions, all sound crystal clear and are nearly as impressive as the graphics. The unfortunate situation with Broken Destiny is a feeling of “been there, done that” if you own Soul Calibur IV, and the lack of a traditional “Arcade Mode” is a bit of a head scratcher. The Gauntlet is nothing more than an aggravating, drawn out tutorial of sorts with a story loosely woven throughout each chapter, while Quick Match is nothing but a mock up online lobby, where you can challenge numerous combatants, complete with their “names” and records. With every character openly available from the get-go (including the PSP exclusive Kratos, who’s pretty damn cool in his own right), there’s little to play for in the way of unlockables. It’s hard to recommend Soul Calibur: Broken Destiny for those that want something to strive for through unlockables via an Arcade Mode. Fortunately, the core gameplay is as solid as ever, and whether you play a friend via ad hoc or venture through the “Quick Match” mode, it’s still an entertaining quick fix of the Soul Calibur series, in the palm of your hands.

Kratos -- pretty damn sweet, but thankfully not as big of a bastard as Yoda was.

Rating: 7.3