New Soulcalibur V ad keeps it classy just in time for the game's launch

Flush with success from its last Soulcalibur V ad starring Ivy's massive, uh, weapons, Namco has released a new ad for the upcoming sequel that demonstrates the female fighter's other notable asset. No, we're not being subtle, but neither is Namco in this image from Famitsu:

Yup. There it is; Ivy's chain-sword. You can kind of see it peaking out at the top right and then snaking in from the left over a giant honking image of her butt.

As a commenter at Kotaku points out, even the poster's ad copy reflects Namco's cheeky theme. The words “series” and “masterpiece” have been written in a way that can be interpreted as Japanese words for “butt”, essentially calling the next iteration of Soulcalibur a “mASSterpiece”, and totally stealing our idea for a headline in the process.

Ridiculously proportioned women are (sadly) a staple of the industry, but this campaign literally puts Ivy's features front and center. What do you make of Namco's marketing strategy? Silly fun or pointlessly crude?

Matt Bradford wrote news and features here at GamesRadar+ until 2016. Since then he's gone on to work with the Guinness World Records, acting as writer and researcher for the annual Gamer's Edition series of books, and has worked as an editor, technical writer, and voice actor. Matt is now a freelance journalist and editor, generating copy across a multitude of industries.