Warrior soul

GAME OF THE WEEK: SOULCALIBUR V****  16 cert, Namco Bandai, PS3 (also Xbox 360)

SoulCalibur Vhas been a long time coming. Its predecessor was released on consoles in 2008, and the last instalment ( Broken Destiny), was only available for PSP. Now it's back, with a few tweaks, and determined to hang on to its reputation as one of the best weapons-based games out there.

Set 17 years after the events of SoulCalibur IV, it follows the story of brother and sister Patroklos and Pyrrha Alexandra. But you probably won't care too much for the campaign. There's something a bit unlikeable about Patroklos, and it feels as if there should be something more interesting to the story. The online multiplayer mode is more of a draw, allowing you to challenge other players at will.

Also of note are the changes developers have made to gameplay features. The critical gauge now plays an important role in combat. You can use your critical meter for everything from defending attacks through guard impacts, to dealing out heavy damage to your opponents.

Brave edge moves use some of your critical meter to make the usual attacks a little more significant. Unchecked, this would be a recipe for a quick finish to the game, but developers have restricted its use. A particularly flashy attack will deplete your meter completely, while some defences will only cost you a quarter of it. And because you have to wait for it to build back up (sometimes a little too long) it forces you to think before using it instead of blasting through opponents with devastating attacks.

The game itself looks stunning. The environments are detailed and provide the perfect backdrop for the character models. And speaking of character models, the customisation has been improved too. Namco has also kept the cameo appearance: this title's sees Assassin's Creed'sEzio Auditore di Firenze pop up.

On the whole, SoulCalibur Vis entertaining enough, although it's let down by a weaker than expected story.