The fighting genre has not had a very storied exsistence on the PlayStation Portable. Outside of 2006’s Tekken: Dark Resurrection and the recently released Dissidia: Final Fantasy, naming a quality fighting game for the PSP is quite a challenge. When Namco-Bandai announced that they would be bringing their other fighting series, SoulCalibur to handhelds many had reservations. While it certainly won’t entice fighting fans from discarding their home console versions for a handheld one, SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny makes a solid attempt at giving people an option even without a key feature.

Gameplay

There are a couple of modes available to you in Broken Destiny. Unlike its console brothers, the game fails to offer a solid Arcade experience. Instead, you are given the ability to play Quick Matches against a number of computer created players. You will be able to select from any one of the 25+ characters or using the game’s creation tool, a character you developed, and battle it out. The game keeps track of all your stats from wins and losses to consecutive win streaks and your record against specific opponents. It still doesn’t beat an arcade mode, but the variety in computer characters and their fighting styles at least makes this the mode of choice to play.

Another aspect famously known in the SoulCalibur series are the game’s ‘Mission Modes’. In this mode, you typically play as the character of your choosing and experience a story where you’ll fight various characters under different conditions in order to advance. In Broken Destiny, this mode is called The Gauntlet and unfortunately, fails poorly at giving gamers a fun and worth-while experience. Rather than going through an engaging branching story, The Gauntlet plays out more like an instructional tutorial. Instead of fighting a slew of different characters, you play various mini games in order to proceed. 

In one mission, you’ll have to block an attack using only the Guard Impact or in another you will have to attack with a specific move to advance. The sections only last 2 or 3 seconds and don’t give you any real feeling of accomplishment other than little screens of text that advances a fairly forgettable story. This mode might be of interest to newcomers as the teachings will help, but long-time fans of the series will quickly get bored of the repetition and lack-luster story.

The SoulCalibur series has always had the moniker of being the easiest fighting game to pick up and play. The controls are extremely simple which allows for just about any person simply turning on the game for the first time and having a decent chance at winning. The simple controls of horizontal and vertical attacks, kick and guard allows it to be transitioned onto a portable unit with very little taken away.

In game, combat is fast and fierce with a strong emphasis on not only attacking smart but defending properly. If you play foolishly, you will get burned time and time again, but those who develop a proper strategy will be an absolute threat in the arenas. The only issue in combat occurs during moments when your character gets up from a fall. On more than a few occasions, the character I used would get up facing in the wrong direction. The few seconds of being exposed can be a problem, so you will often need to shimmy to the side in order to avoid incurring serious damage. Other than that minor quip, the game manages to flow well giving you a fun fighting experience.

Graphics and Sound

This might not be High-Definition, but Broken Destiny takes the cake in the graphics department for Portable Games. Both the environments and characters have a great amount of detail included. Female characters will bounce accordingly, environments will de-construct upon impact including damage appearing on the ground in some arenas and weapons move well with only minor collision problems that occur when characters are really close to one another. Broken Destiny also features the armour break function from previous SoulCalibur titles and it too also comes off well.

The famous spoken dialogue before each fight in SoulCalibur returns here and long-time fans of the series will be extremely glad to hear it before each battle. All characters have the ability to speak in English or in Japanese, so those who prefer one over the other certainly have a choice. In terms of in game effects, the hacking and slashing of the various weapons are fairly good with plenty of variety from each.

Value

For those looking for something more, especially with how weak The Gauntlet ends up being, the choices are very slim. If you don’t have someone to play with via the Ad-hoc multiplayer, outside of creating your own hero, the Quick Match mode might get stale pretty quickly. There is a survival mode, called Trials, which puts you up against wave after wave of foes, but again the appeal will only last for so long. Broken Destiny does offer unlockables with Honors you achieve as you play and the ability to obtain weapons for your created characters. Other than that, everything is available from the beginning so your plans on playing will depend only on how much you enjoy each mode and your social sphere.
 
One of the big draws for Broken Destiny is the inclusion of Kratos from the God of War series. Unlike other bonus characters that have often felt out of place, Kratos and his arsenal are a fine addition to the series. His move-set and animations play out nearly identical to how they do in his own series and his demeanor works well in he SoulCalibur Universe. Again, it’s disappointing that there is no arcade mode as seeing Kratos’ quest to acquire the Soul Edge would have been very interesting.

Conclusion

For those interested in picking up SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny, you have to look at it from a number of different angles. If you are a long time fan of the series but do not have people to play with, you will quickly get bored with the lackluster Gauntlet and no Arcade option. For those who have friends to play with, the multiplayer mode will be able to keep you entertained, while those new to the franchise might actually find The Gauntlet worth-while. Thankfully, the good controls and fantastic graphics still make this a game worth playing. But again, the lack of solid single-player options will be the difference between picking up this game or sticking to last year’s SoulCalibur IV.