Author: Luke "Woocash" Siuty

As E3 2018 came to an end, ESL hosted the first competitive SoulCalibur VI tournament available to attendees of the event. In the midst of Bandai Namco developer interviews and the story trailer, it’s good to get down to business with some real gameplay.

There’s pretty good character representation in the tournament (footage timestamped and embedded below). We get to see Siegfried, Yoshimitsu, Xianghua, Geralt, Zasalamel, and Maxi. Taki, and Kilik make appearances as well. Keep in mind that the command list is still not available to see in the game, so most people were only able to guess and figure out moves as they went. However, it shows when some of them have put in the time to get a general plan.

UYU|Beautifuldude’s Grøh stands out in particular. What’s even more impressive though is that this is his first SoulCalibur game, indicating not only that he applied his good fighting game fundamentals, but also that SoulCalibur VI is relatively accessible even if you come from different spheres of the FGC.

Check out the footage below:

Watch ESL Arena @ E3 – Tekken 7 ‘Sabotage’ from ESL on www.twitch.tv

Recently, a SoulCalibur VI ESRB rating confirmed certain characters.

Source: ESL (Twitch)

If you’re not sure whether you should be hype about Jump Force, then these E3 2018 attendees might convince you! Bandai Namco took the time to interview some folks about their impressions from playing the franchise crossover — among them a few celebrities, like rapper Soulja Boy and Rocco Botte from Mega64.

As evident in the video below, the mash-up of Dragon Ball, One Piece, and Naruto in one game is a dream come true. Even Soulja Boy said Jump Force is “lit.” One person talked about the fact that the 3D area fits the game extremely well. Overall, they praised the frenetic gameplay as well as the art style, which is a mix between realism and anime.

For more on the game, check out Jump Force gameplay footage as well as the E3 announcement trailer.

Source: Bandai Namco

Though plenty of fans are happy with how SoulCalibur VI looks and feels, the game is very much in that stage where people are wondering “will my character make it in?!” (Seriously, Setsuka please?) Perhaps it was her absence in SoulCalibur V that exacerbated them, but many players are very hopeful for the return of the tonfa-wielder, Talim. There’s actually a good amount of evidence to suggest that she will indeed make it to this Stage of History.

In the newest SoulCalibur VI gameplay footage, surely you’ve noticed a new, nature-themed stage with windswept plains. A Twitter user, iambic_feet, points it out in screenshots here, also bringing up that the song for that stage is called “Following the Wind Trail,” closely related to Talim’s association with wind.

Okay! I noticed something! This particular stage in SCVI looks like the place where Talim was introduced in the opening of SCII and the BGM is called "Following the Wind Trail". Could this be a hint about Talim's stage or Talim in general? Only @achilles_Okubo knows! ❤️ pic.twitter.com/WlbryuxZYU

— I'munique Hill (@iambic_feet) June 15, 2018

Additionally, Dynasty brings up another big hint in the video below; a mysterious tweet from the game’s producer, Motohiro Okubo. Or rather, not so mysterious once you look at the first letter of each word:

Thank you
all for
looking
into
my E3 interview. https://t.co/fbcmOiRvcx

— Motohiro Okubo (@achilles_Okubo) June 11, 2018

Check out the video below, and if these signs really point to the truth, expect a reveal of Talim soon!

Source: Dynasty; @iambic_feet; Motohiro Okubo

Live interviews continued on Wednesday at E3 2018. The E3 PlayStation stage booked some time with Motohiro Okubo, game director and the currently most front-facing developer of SoulCalibur VI. Gameplay footage from the newest build accompanied the conversation.

Motohiro Okubo is first asked about the philosophy driving the development of the new SoulCalibur VI. He said that the company experienced a little bit of turmoil over the past years when it came to the development of the Souls series, so they really needed to look at and remember what made the series great. Okubo brings up the newly-revealed SoulCalibur VI story mode, saying that it will have a lot in store for longtime fans, and that it’s the “most packed” SoulCalibur title of all. It’s the weapons that drove the evolution of the series.

A question about new SoulCalibur mechanics pops up, so Okubo talked about Reversal Edge, the parrying move that forces a clashing mini-sequence between the two fighters. Okubo believes that this is aimed at beginners to make them feel like they can be on more equal footing, and that the better the players get, the less they might use this mechanic.

At the end, Okubo reiterated the announced release date of the game (October 19, 2018) and said that he feels proud of what the team has accomplished, also stating that the team has had enough time to polish the title as needed.

Source: PlayStation (YouTube)

E3 2018 has brought great news for Nintendo Switch owners. For those who like their fighting on the go, another major fighting game is joining the platform. A brief announcement during Nintendo’s E3 presentation revealed that Dragon Ball FighterZ is indeed coming to their newest console.

GameSpot captured a match from an undocked Switch. The gameplay looks smooth, and there doesn’t appear to be much of a difference from other platforms.

For comparison, GameXplain also captured a live set from the E3 2018 floor, but this one is in docked mode. It seems there are no performance hiccups whatsoever:

Other than the Nintendo Switch Dragon Ball FighterZ announcement trailer, we don’t have much information as to whether this version will differ in content or modes. Stay tuned to Shoryuken‘s coverage to learn more, including the release date as it’s announced.

Sources: GameXplain; GameSpot

As E3 2018 continues, we’re getting a closer look at the recently-announced Dead or Alive 6. Faithful fans of the series should get ready for a slight directional change in the game — which now emphasizes more serious, realistic graphics, but also changes things up with a new resource bar.

Interviewed on the show stage, game director Yohei Shimbori talks about how they overhauled the graphics to show off impactful blows, sweat, and blood. Shimbori was also asked the company’s approach to balancing the game. On one hand, he wants to appeal to more casual players (which would probably explain the new Break Attack), but the core mechanics of the game remain intact. Shimbori is eager to hear feedback from fans, and is particularly looking forward to hearing fan reactions at Evo 2018. There’s also plenty of gameplay footage to peek at during the talk.

Toward the end of the interview, Tom (the second guest) made a nice, direct nod to the FGC. He gave a shout-out to competitive Dead or Alive players, bringing up the time when Team Ninja announced the end of support for Dead or Alive 5 at NEC 18. He hopes that now “all of this is explained” and that 2019 will be a “very, very exciting year.”

As Shoryuken already reported, Dead or Alive 6 will be playable at Evo 2018.

Source: PlayStation (YouTube)

Here’s something for those “PC Master Race” folks. As you probably have heard, SoulCalibur VI will be the first one to appear on PC. Check out this exclusive footage from NVIDIA GeForce to see how gorgeous the game runs in smooth 4K.

The clip showcases the latest build of the game, with all the previously announced characters. Siegfried and Taki are up first, and we get a great look at their Critical Edge attacks in action. Geralt faces Maxi in another new stage. Up next, Kilik fights Grøh, and Sophitia tackles Ivy. The footage is rounded out by Nightmare vs. Zasalamel and Xianghua vs. Yoshimitsu. Sadly, it feels a bit like these are player vs. CPU matches, so don’t expect high-level gameplay — instead, ogle the high-fidelity graphics.

Don’t forget to check out some more Yoshimitsu gameplay as well as the newly revealed SoulCalibur VI story trailer featuring one of the key single-player modes of the game.

Source: NVIDIA GeForce