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  1. #1
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    Default Soul Calibur Franchise

    Can someone explain to me the story behind Seigfried and Nightmare in this game? The writers who did the work on their bios are absolutely HORRID. I've been playing SC3 on PS2 lately, and I can't for the life of me understand the story here despite re-reading each of their bios and the story mode about 9X.

    I get the impression that Siegfried and Nightmare are sortof the same person? Like Nightmare is his dark side? And what's the whole idea behind the Soul Edge and Soul Calibur? And if these two are so closely related to it, what's the point of these other characters?

    I realize it's a fighting game, and the story is an afterthought, but it really really is trash.

    Mathius

  2. #2
    The Master Debater XxNeXuSxX's Avatar
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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    Well, I own Soulblade (for PS1 before Soul Caliber came out..) and it seems that Siegfried ended up beating Cervantes, who then metamorphed into SoulEdge. SoulEdge was then also defeated by Siegfried, however, SoulEdge, while dying, ended up enveloping and possessing Siegfried--who then turned into Nightmare. Nightmare was present in SC1, but he went through internal troubles and ended up separating from the evil inside himself in SC2.

    Hope that helps.

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    The Master Debater XxNeXuSxX's Avatar
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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    SC2 and SC3 blend together for me; maybe it was SC3 when he separated?

    Either way, Cervantes went from the best in the game to the worst.

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    The Master Debater XxNeXuSxX's Avatar
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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    I'm sure someone else has an answer...

  5. #5
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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    Not only are the storylines awful and the writing is hard to understand, but they also take for granted that you know the storyline up to that point. It's absolutely retarded.

    Mathius

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    The Master Debater XxNeXuSxX's Avatar
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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    Quote Originally Posted by Mathius
    Not only are the storylines awful and the writing is hard to understand, but they also take for granted that you know the storyline up to that point. It's absolutely retarded.

    Mathius
    Not sure what you're inferring on the latter half.

    But yeah, the plot sucks. You should see how hard they tried in SoulBlade though. backstories and all.

  7. #7
    NBA Legend DeuceWallaces's Avatar
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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    Siegfried
    Siegfried Schtauffen (ジークフリート・シュタウフェン Jīkufurīto Shutaufen?) the protagonist of the series, was born to Sir Frederick Schtauffen, a brave knight who was considered a champion among the oppressed peasants of his German home, and a woman named Margaret who met Frederick while he was on campaign, during the late sixteenth century. He was given the name 'Siegfried' after the famous hero, and was taught swordsmanship by his father.
    Frederick embarked on a foreign crusade and, due to lack of guidance in life, Siegfried unintentionally murdered his returning father while rampaging as the leader of a teenage band of thieves calling themselves "Schwarzwind" (German translation for "black wind"). Siegfried grew in despair and eventually convinced himself that anyone but he was to blame for his father's death. Siegfried had heard rumours of the invincible Soul Edge, and came to believe his father's killer could only be killed with that weapon.

    After taking the life of a noble he worked for during a siege on his castle in Ostrheinsburg (he did so in an effort to claim - what he thought was - Soul Edge), he finally managed to come across the legendary weapon Soul Edge, lying beside the corpse of the defeated Cervantes de Leon which transformed into Inferno. Siegfried defeated Inferno, earning the right to wield Soul Edge himself. However, Soul Edge telepathically spoke to Siegfried, arranging a deal between the two; Siegfried would help the blade to restore itself gathering souls, and Soul Edge would resurrect his father Frederick. But Siegfried finally succumbed to the sword's power - transforming into the Azure Knight, Nightmare.

    He claimed refuge in Ostrheinsburg Castle. During the following three years, he gathered together a group of followers: the golem Astaroth, Lizardman (Aeon Calcos), and Ivy. Each of them aided him in Soul Edge's quest to devour souls for a rejuvenation ceremony to be performed in his chosen stronghold, Ostrheinsburg Castle. But as the ceremony was about to take place, the clan was quickly laid to waste. Both Aeon Calcos and Astaroth were defeated; and Ivy left the clan after learning the shocking truth of her past from the Fu-Ma ninja, Taki. Two young warriors confronted Nightmare: Kilik, owner of both the sacred staff Kali-Yuga and sacred mirror Dvapara-Yuga; and Xianghua, owner of Krita-Yuga, which revealed itself as Soul Calibur.

    Nightmare and Soul Edge were defeated, initiating a new resolve in the now-conscious Siegfried, albeit temporary - shards of the weakened Soul Edge were still present within his body. He eventually assumed the azure armor for a second time, becoming Nightmare all over again, desperately pursuing fragments of the Soul Edge so that he might fully restore it.

    Raphael Sorel appeared in search of Soul Edge and Nightmare stood victorious after a fierce battle. As he stepped forward to finish Raphael, he muttered something incoherently. Following this, an internal struggle began between Siegfried and Inferno (spirit of the evil sword) vying for control over their physical body. With this show of "hesitation", Raphael unleashed a desperate final blow upon his enemy, piercing the center of Soul Edge. Nightmare let out an inhuman cry, and Siegfried finally regained control of his own body.
    Siegfried remembered his actions previous, before using the newly-revealed holy sword, Soul Calibur, to drive into the evil eye that was the core of Soul Edge, where the weapon had been trapped - however, this effort to destroy the evil sword would prove insufficient.

    In the preceding event of Soulcalibur III, Siegfried now has control of his own body, picking up both swords and leaving Ostrheinsburg on a mission to seal away Soul Edge for all eternity, as he swore to atone for his sins, not knowing that Nightmare had gained a separate body of his own. Eventually, he fell victim to Zasalamel's plot to reunite Soul Edge and Soul Calibur at the Lost Cathedral. Siegfried took up Soul Calibur and fought a ferocious battle against the now-independent Nightmare, who in turn regained Soul Edge. Though victorious for the time being, the combination of the energy released from Soul Edge and Soul Calibur as well as his injuries from the battle mortally wounded Siegfried.

    The events of Soulcalibur IV see Siegfried having been revived by the Soul Calibur, which has gained some sentience from the Soul Edge and the release of its creator, Algol. Now dependent on the armor in which the Soul Calibur had encased him for survival, Siegfried rejects all human contact and devotes himself to destroying both swords once and for all. In his ending, he finally defeats Nightmare decisively and releases the power of the Soul Calibur, permanently sealing away the Soul Edge and Soul Calibur, and killing himself in the process. In Hilde's ending, he is instead forgiven for his crimes as the Azure Knight and given a royal pardon.

    One of Siegfried's extra weapons is the Glam (mistranslation of Gram), the weapon that Sigurd in Norse mythology used to kill the dragon Fafnir and in Soulcalibur Legends, Siegfried fights "Fanfir". The Faust blade also takes reference from a German legend, in which the protagonist makes a deal with the devil (in-universe, Siegfried and Soul Edge have a Faustian bargain).
    In a 2002 poll by Namco prior to the release of Soulcalibur II regarding their favorite character, Siegfried placed ninth with 2.5% of the tally, tied with Mitsurugi.[48] As Nightmare, Siegfried has been described as "one of the most memorable fighting-game villains in history."[49] According to IGN, Siegfried and Nightmare are placed as number one in their list of top ten Soulcalibur fighters.[50]
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...ries#Siegfried

  8. #8
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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    C'mon now, does the story even matter when this is one of the best fighters ever made? It's the only weapons based fighting game in 3D. Animations as sick, character design is sick, moves are sick, variety is sick, graphics sick. This is THEE fighting game to play w/your boys for hours on end.

  9. #9
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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    Quote Originally Posted by Seneca_22
    C'mon now, does the story even matter when this is one of the best fighters ever made? It's the only weapons based fighting game in 3D. Animations as sick, character design is sick, moves are sick, variety is sick, graphics sick. This is THEE fighting game to play w/your boys for hours on end.
    Easiest to play and probably one of the most fun, I could agree with that.

  10. #10
    NBA Legend kentatm's Avatar
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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    i love me some Soul Caliber.

    I remember the first time i saw it in the arcades when it was Soul Edge. I was like 13 at the time and at a baseball camp at Texas A&M. I sat and watched the older guys ply it for about half an hour learning what all to do and then hopped on and proceeded to kick some major ass. Its the only time I have ever truly been able to wreck people in the arcade version of a game. usually i need a D pad to kick some ass but I was able to figure out all of Siegfried and Sophitia's moves. It was quite satisfying to be that young and able to kick the hell out of college age cats. Of course these days I hop online and get shredded by kids half my age so I guess us old gamers just plain suck is all.

  11. #11
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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    Quote Originally Posted by Seneca_22
    C'mon now, does the story even matter when this is one of the best fighters ever made? It's the only weapons based fighting game in 3D. Animations as sick, character design is sick, moves are sick, variety is sick, graphics sick. This is THEE fighting game to play w/your boys for hours on end.
    Yes, it does matter... Here's why:

    If you write a fighting game and say f the storyline, like Mortal Kombat or Street Fighter II, and just put a little back story blurb in the instruction booklet (do they even still do that? Last instruction booklet I remember reading had sh*t for story information), then fine.

    But if you're going to take the time to put all that text and storyline into the game, then it should be good.

    The most annoying part of SCIII besides the irritating AI, is the fact that you see the same damn scenes over and over and over again. You have to finish the game with each character in order to unlock everything (unless you just play like 2000 battles ) But the writers/developers put no effort into it, so you're constantly seeing the same crap over and over again for like 25 characters.

    Mathius

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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    Well, I guess if you have nobody to play, or you really got into it for the single player experience, I can see why that would matter. But I don't think people buy fighting games for a great story. You want a great story with character development and all that, play a RPG, or a well made FPS, or a action/adventure game.

    Fighters are mostly for some mano y mano, one on one battles to see who can get bragging rights. If the game plays smooth, has cool characters, sound effects, good balance of characters and variety, then it's golden.

    The game is just too good to knock it for storyline inconsistencies when the story is just kind of extra fluff. You're right tho, it would've been nice to see some variety in the stories instead of all the same cutscenes. At least part 3 let you pick your path after each fight for story mode AND had alternate endings with interactive cutscenes.

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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    Quote Originally Posted by Seneca_22
    Well, I guess if you have nobody to play, or you really got into it for the single player experience, I can see why that would matter. But I don't think people buy fighting games for a great story. You want a great story with character development and all that, play a RPG, or a well made FPS, or a action/adventure game.

    Fighters are mostly for some mano y mano, one on one battles to see who can get bragging rights. If the game plays smooth, has cool characters, sound effects, good balance of characters and variety, then it's golden.

    The game is just too good to knock it for storyline inconsistencies when the story is just kind of extra fluff. You're right tho, it would've been nice to see some variety in the stories instead of all the same cutscenes. At least part 3 let you pick your path after each fight for story mode AND had alternate endings with interactive cutscenes.
    Thanks for completely ignoring what I said and giving your OWN opinion AGAIN.

    The point is, they included those things in the game, they should have been done well. Otherwise don't include them at all. I could do without seeing Zasalamel babel in the clock tower 100X, or Tira ramble on, on her little raft.

    Mathius

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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    Okay, not sure where I ignored you, but I tried to respond as best I could. Name me one fighting game that has some kind of awesome story? I think just about every fighting game has some little backstories and what not as to why they're fighting, who their rivals are, how they came to be, whatever.

    But after the sequels, with multiple endings depending on who you win with and which story line they decide to stick with for each succession, a lot of stuff can get lost and ultimately, they're trying to build a balanced game that's fun to play, easy to play, deep enough for people who want to go to an advanced level.

    I mean, that's what fighting games are. It's one on one. You versus your opponent, trying to knock the other one out, be it the computer or the a live opponent. When you're testing your metal in "combat" you could care less what the story is, at least I can, I just want to come out on top if I can, or go down fighting.

    Like I said, you want a solid, deep, engrossing story that pulls you in, play Final Fantasy, Devil May Cry, Ninja Gaiden, Metroid, Metal Gear, any other game that has a deep plot that builds up to climactic showdowns.

    I just think, just my opinion, that you can't knock a solid fighting game that does what's it's really supposed to, which is to be accessible and interesting and fun to PLAY, because the storylines aren't up to snuff with single player games meant to be single player games.

    Sincerely tho, what specifically is your beef with the story lines?

  15. #15
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    Default Re: Soul Calibur Franchise

    Quote Originally Posted by Seneca_22
    Okay, not sure where I ignored you, but I tried to respond as best I could. Name me one fighting game that has some kind of awesome story? I think just about every fighting game has some little backstories and what not as to why they're fighting, who their rivals are, how they came to be, whatever.
    I don't know how to be more clear on this... if they weren't going to take time with the story lines, they should have left all the crap out. I would rather play a fighting game with no story arc at all that listen to the same crap scenes over and over again.

    Sincerely tho, what specifically is your beef with the story lines?
    First off, there is hardly an deviation depending on what character you pick. Which means, like I said, you have to watch the same scene in the clock tower with Zasalamel, the same scene at the end with Zasalamel. (unless you get the secret ending). It's repetitive to the point of irritation. Especially since they require you to play the game with every character in order to unlock everything. Especially since you have to play so many battles to earn enough money to unlock everything in the shops.

    Second, the writing is so poor.. It's vague for one thing. There's references to things that you have no prior knowledge to. I don't remember seeing one single reference anywhere that the whole point of the game is to find either Soul Edge or Soul Calibur. For a while there I thought I was loosing it, before I realized there were two different swords.

    Here's one example from the game:

    Quote Originally Posted by Soul Calibur 3
    Collecting powerful souls and the fragments of Soul Edge, Nightmare was approaching the revival of the cursed sword. He returned to Ostrheinsburg Castle, a place that had seen the blood of many spilled, and there found a man wielding a thin sword in his left hand. The man sought Soul Edge, but after a fierce battle, Nightmare defeated him.

    Nightmare closed in to finish him off, but at that moment, a brief flicker of Siegfried's will returned, and he struggled against the cursed sword. One voice sought atonement and a desire to restore pride. Another laughed, saying that all men shall despair at the darkness of death.

    As this conflict raged within Nightmare's mind, the wounded man drew upon his last strength and unleashed a desperate final blow. The blow cleanly pierced the center of Soul Edge.

    Nightmare let out an inhuman howl and writhed in pain, two consciousnesses clashing within him. And finally, with a will of iron, Siegfried reclaimed control of his own body. At that moment, the area was covered in light, and the Soul Calibur suddenly appeared. Reflexively, Siegfried took the holy sword and stabbed it into the eye of Soul Edge.

    The power of the cursed sword was sealed, but the spirit sword went silent as well.

    'This isn't enough... I swear to seal away Soul Edge for all time and atone for my sins!' Smashing into pieces his detestable armor, Siegfried set out on a journey. However, his blood-stained fate would not release him so easily. The feeling of a grotesque right arm periodically welled up in his memories. The whispers of the cursed sword echoed in his ears.

    And each time he was forced to fight those who sought revenge on Nightmare, his mind was wracked by guilt...
    Ok, first consider that this is from Siegfried's profile, but it starts off mentioning Nightmare. You get halfway through it before you even hear mention of Siegfried. Which is part of why I asked about him here. Even his damn profile doesn't explain the connection between him and Nightmare. You sortof realize they're the same person, but nothing else makes any sense.

    Then you have vague references to a man with a thin sword... Raphael? I don't know.

    Also, the profile states that he has Soul Calibur already, and "the man" stabbed through the eye of Soul Edge. So what the f*ck is this journey he goes on for the swords?

    Here's another example:

    In order to destroy the cursed sword, Soul Edge, he needed to visit someone who was extremely knowledgeable about it. He had committed terrible crimes as the Azure Knight... But he had to go on.

    Well aware that he would likely have to fight, Siegfried knocked on the door of the mansion of a woman who likely hated him. If possible, he did not wish to fight, but it was unlikely he could ask for that...
    There's the vague references again to "a woman who likely hated him" instead of mentioning Ivy's name anywhere. Also the constant references to the Azure Knight are annoying as well. It took me forever, having to play several different characters before I realized the Azure Knight was Nightmare, not Siegfried. They just assume you'll know who that is.

    Mathius

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