Both Vader and Yoda's Force moves are governed by a Force gauge located below their health bar. Furthermore, if you grab your opponent at an angle, Vader will stab them right through the mid-section with his lightsaber. Vader also has his iconic "Emperor Throw" where he hefts his enemies over his head and tosses them to the ground. One charged attack found Vader pulling his fist back to gather energy and then unleashing it quickly on an opponent. But he does have a few eye-catching attacks to his name. Although we didn't have time to pore over each and every move in his repertoire, he doesn't appear to have as many flashy techniques as the other Soulcalibur characters. While his green-skinned counterpart flips about and spirals through the air, Vader seems to rely more on sharp, precise strikes that boast a respectable amount of power, but he stays grounded. For the most part his strikes are quick and possess a fair reach, but his actual movements aren't as agile as those of Yoda - obviously. We weren't entirely sure how Vader would play, considering his large size yet quick weapon type and even after playing a few rounds with him, it's difficult to make a direct comparison to another character. But of course, the real highlight of our play time was getting out first hands-on with the one and only Darth Vader, exclusive to the PS3 version of Soulcalibur IV. Things felt tight and controls were responsive. Raphael, on the other hand, slides across the stage unleashing quick strikes with a rapier. Like the previous titles, he can change stances in the midst of battle which modifies his move set and makes for some interesting combinations. Once again, Siegfried brings slow-but-powerful combat to the table, with shattering overhead strikes packing an incredible reach. Although Darth Vader was our main concern for our hands-on time, we did spend a few moments checking out returning characters Siegfried and Raphael. Then, given the right conditions, you can execute a Critical Finish with a push of all four face buttons, which inflicts tremendous amounts of damage, as well as dazzles the eyes. If you strike a certain section of your opponent enough and they overuse their block, there's a chance you can break a piece of their armor which will actually alter their appearance in-game. New to Soulcalibur IV, which we've touched on before, is armor damage and Critical Finishes. Like its predecessors, Soulcalibur IV is straight-forward and victory comes when you either deplete your opponent's health or knock them out of the arena.
Gameplay generally revolves around one-on-one fights on a 3D plane, though the majority of character movement plays out on the X axis as each character jockeys for an ideal position. In case you haven't kept up with the Soulcalibur franchise much, the series follows a group of warriors as they battle over the powerful, evil blade Soul Edge, along with the holy sword Soul Calibur.
Now that lightsabers and Force powers have been added to the mix, a lot of folks are wondering how the new Star Wars characters play, so we went hands-on with each warrior (you can check out Hil's take on Yoda here) as well as play a few rounds with returning favorites. The real surprise came when gamers discovered that the legendary Darth Vader and Yoda would be making an appearance in the PS3 and 360 versions of the game, respectively. The Soulcalibur series has long held a place in fighting game fans' hearts, offering a rather unique combat system filled with various types of close-range weapons, including swords, spears, axes and daggers.