SoulCalibur VI is the latest upcoming installment in the well-loved 3D fighting game series published by Bandai Namco and developed by Project Soul set to release October 19, 2018. The series, based in a fantastical version of the 16th century, features a variety of characters each wielding a different weapon from giant swords to blade covered whips. The series is easily one of the most well known and successful names in the fighting game genre.
The game has been showcased and made available for the public to play at many recent events such as E3 and CEO 2018 this past June, as well as Texas Showdown. This has given many players the chance to play, detail, and analyze many aspects of the game, including the new mechanics being introduced to this entry.
Critical Edge makes a return from the previous series installment SoulCalibur V and is a 1 button super attack comparable to Tekken 7’s rage arts that takes a whole soul gauge (your power meter). These supers deal different damage per character, all doing a pretty large amount. These moves can be combo’d into but some have different properties such as being throws.
Reversal Edge is the newest big mechanic to SoulCalibur and is a type of guard leading to automatically blocking most attacks bar breaks and unblockables. After inputting the command which can be mapped to one button or done by inputting B+G the game goes into an Injustice wager system/rock paper scissors-like event where each player inputs an attack leading to one player landing a hit.
When initiated Reversal Edge starts as a short 1-3 frame parry meaning it’s incredibly fast and is a seemingly good option against pressure and post-GI option. Don’t know what GI is? Well then…
Guard Impact, otherwise known as GI is a returning mechanic and one of the most important parts of the series. Guard impact is a very strong option against pressure and great to use when reacting to an opponent’s attacks. By quickly pressing forward+Guard will result in a simple parry stopping the opponent’s momentum and giving you move priority. In some previous iterations of the game this mechanic costed meter but in SoulCalibur 6 the series returns to the SoulCalibur II way of having GI free to use.
The drawback, however, is if you whiff GI you’re open for punishment.
Lethal Hits are moves that grant rewards after certain conditions such as counter hits, punishing via ducking, and whiff punishing. The rewards granted include armor damage, stun time increase, and moves becoming launchers.
Soul Charge is a returning mechanic and results in a temporary transformation/power-up that grants chip damage to normals. It freezes the match clock, and similarly to the burst mechanic as seen in Guilty Gear blows nearby opponents away. Certain characters such as Kilik have special soul charges where his HP is drained but he gains access to a different and higher damaging Critical Edge.
SoulCalibur VI will release on October 19th on PC, PS4, and Xbox One, with all versions featuring Geralt from The Witcher series. Check back with The Outerhaven for more news and content on SoulCalibur VI as it gets released.
