GameSpot writes: "Get ready for an onslaught of undead pirates and fleshy eyeball-equipped swords. Namco Bandai Games today announced that Soulcalibur IV has gone gold for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

While the game has garnered the most headlines for its inclusion of Star Wars characters (Darth Vader on the PS3, Yoda on the Xbox 360, and Force Unleashed's Secret Apprentice on both), Soulcalibur IV is notable for a few other reasons. In addition to being the first-ever version of the series playable online, Soulcalibur IV includes "critical finish" moves to end matches in a single hit, and secret characters designed by Japanese manga artists."
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"With this lineup due to be making its presence felt in the homes of PS3 users everywhere, it looks like this will be one of Sony's best-selling years. Microsoft's fall lineup might have problems keeping up with this release schedule."
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Adding a further dash of hype to the soon to be released Soul Calibur IV for Xbox360 and PLAYSTATION3, Character Designer Hideo Yoshie has released a statement divulging the aim of the design behind new character Algol.
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PS3 Fanboy talks about a new character announced for Soulcalibur IV.

"Despite appearing in the Soulcalibur IV UbiDays 2008 Transcendence trailer, Algol didn't become official until today. Heralded as the "strongest character ever in SC series" by character designer Hideo Yoshie, Algol possesses the Soul Calibur on his left hand and the Soul Edge on his right. He can also fly in the air and has ten kinds of weapons built into his body. Algol's armor is of a bird motif and originated in an ancient kingdom lost to the sands of time."
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As Namco's frantic fighter (published over here by Ubisoft) nears release, another character has been revealed. And it's not all about the Star Wars cash-in either. Say hello to Algol...

Hideo Yoshie, character designer, explained, "We aimed to make a character that is the 'king' of an ultra ancient civilization and a character that obviously proves the setting of being the strongest character ever in SC series."

"So, he's wearing a costume from the ancient kingdom that isn't recorded in history, and it was really difficult and troublesome to make the design of his costume as so just by looking at it. The final motif of the amour ended up being the 'bird', but there were many other ideas like the lion, cobra, dinosaur and more. I believe the design combined dynamism and splendor, and is very cool."
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Ripten writes:

"There was another amusing discovery that brought credence to Soul Calibur IV having an install fetish. Xbox.com listed the game as requiring a HDD. This has since been corrected, unlike Alone in the Dark's webpage."
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VG247: We've just been told that the install on current UK Soul Calibur IV PS3 code is optional, not mandatory as is being reported by US sites.
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The Angry Pixel writes: "Well, what more can we say? We've confirmed with local distributor e-Xpress Interactive a couple of days back that Soulcalibur IV will indeed not make it to Indian shores, thanks to the fact that it's an Ubisoft game. Since Ubisoft doesn't believe in offering any sort of sales concession when it comes to Indian markets, and e-Xpress, like anyone else, wouldn't want non-existent profit margins, Indian gamers eager for Soulcalibur IV will now have to look at Play-Asia (as usual) for their imports.

Speaking to us about the situation, e-Xpress has clarified that rather than haggle with Ubi and import the games for 'an obscenely high price', they've elected to not import the game in all likelihood. But the real terrifying part of the conversation came when Fallout 3 came into the picture. In a press release issued last month, Ubisoft had claimed that it would be distributing Fallout 3 in some PAL territory countries in Europe including Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Which indirectly means that if India's import were to happen via Ubi, there's no chance of Fallout 3 ever being officially released for the consoles here."
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"One Namco Bandai fighter shines, another flops."

1UP delivers their report on Soul Calibur IV, Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm and Tales of Vesperia from Namco Bandai's booth at the Anime Expo.
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The BBFC has deemed Soulcalibur IV worthy of a 12 rating in the UK for its "moderate fantasy violence".

Official blurb on the decision also points to the "exaggerated 'curvy' figures" of the female models, but scuppers our wildest dreams by confirming there will be no bare bottoms or boobs.
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WorthPlaying writes: "Swords will be honed and weapons optimized in Namco Bandai's Soulcalibur IV. Delivering new gameplay modes, characters and enhanced features with unprecedented 3D modeling and animation, Soulcalibur IV will be the definitive fighting game experience. Ubisoft is reporting that Play.com is offering an exclusive faceplate, while GAME is adding a bonus DVD and a steel encased art booklet."
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Namco Bandai's Soulcalibur IV may be known for massive volumes in some aspects of its design, but a rumored 6.5GB hard drive installation for the PlayStation 3 version is not the sort of bloat that sits well with gamers. Add to that an alleged 2GB save file and PS3 owners with a measly 20GB would have had to do some serious housecleaning in between grumbling sessions. The rumors of its disk space requirements have been greatly exaggerated, says the publisher.
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VG247: The new Famitsu has hit the Japanese streets and those busy bi-lingual internet beavers have translated a section containing loads of new Soul Calibur IV information.
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PSU writes:

"Update: We have received word from Namco Bandai on the recent rumor, however as you'd expect, the PR department cannont comment or confirm the rumor.

"We don't comment on rumors or speculations," said Namco Bandai representative.

Nevertheless, stay tuned to PSU.com, as we will be posting our exclusive interview with Namco Bandai later this week which will provide all new details on Soul Calibur IV."
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According to the rumor mill in the August Issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly, Kratos, God of Soul, is to appear as a PS3 exclusive character in Soul Calibur IV.

The magazine states that Kratos will be the next PS3 character revealed, so if the rumor is in fact true, we should be seeing something soon. Also, this will be the first look at Kratos on next gen hardware, and possibly a first glimpse at what to expect from God of War III. Obviously if Kratos appears in SCIV, Namco has cut some deal with Sony, and could be sharing actual assets or character concepts from the upcoming PS3 exclusive.
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Remember that mysterious white haired, heavily scarred individual from the Soul Calibur IV UbiDays Transcendence Trailer? Well, according to a recently leaked image, this imposing combatant is apparently known as Algol.
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Box art for Soulcalibur IV has emerged, featuring Star Wars characters Yoda and Darth Vader prominently on the cover. The Xbox 360 cover with Yoda is light and airy, while the Vader-centric PlayStation one looks like it fell into the lava pit with Anakin.Draw your own conclusions as to why the consoles would be stylized as light and dark...The cover art is yet another sign that the game will be more Star Wars ... » Read More

VG247: Japanese box art for SCIV, showing Darth Vader in the PS3 version and Yoda on the 360 box.
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Namco Bandai has added another Star Wars character to Soulcalibur IV - Darth Vader's secret apprentice from The Force Unleashed will turn up for a ruck.If you didn't already know, the secret apprentice is a character created for this years' Star Wars cross-media event that covers some of the timeline between Episode III and IV.And now the mysterious man has turned up in the latest batch of Soulcalibur IV ... » Read More

According to PSU.com...Yoda, Vader, and the Apprentice are not the only characters from the Star Wars universe coming to Soul Calibur IV. Apparently Namco plans to have up to five Star Wars characters all together.
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