Has it been confirmed that Rock is/was Berserker?
What kind of characters would you like to see in future SC games?
- Thread starter Nyte
- Start date
Has it been confirmed that Rock is/was Berserker?
DanteSC3
[14] Master
Rock is a pure being and the Berserkers are malfested ragers, so it’s practically impossible unless he went undercover as one of them for some reason like it was implied that Hwang did as one of the many Assassins. They’d probably have a throwaway joke in his story about it.
But the point is, they tried to axe Rock, Aeon, and Hwang in SoulCalibur II, and they were unsuccessful, as all three came back for SoulCalibur III. They even tried to axe Sophitia and Seong Mi-na, but that was so unsuccessful in arcades that they came back for the home release for SoulCalibur II.
Rusted Blade
[14] Master
Eh, that's rather a weird way of putting it. If they wanted to remove a character from any particular game as either a gameplay or narrative matter, nobody would be standing in their way. The movesets of Rock, Aeon, and Hwang being converted into generic characters probably had more to do with some combination of 1) the fact that they just didn't have the resources or budgeted time to make every character in SCII a featured character (all of the principle characters got weapon demos and other promotional content that the 'bonus' three did not), and 2) just an artistic/design decision to mix things up a little. Perhaps it also seemed to them that it made some sense to put Hwang's moveset behind a different face (or lack of a face as the case may be) since they were introducing the aesthetically very similar Yun-seong.
Likewise I'm sure Sophitia's initial absence had very little with a desire to "axe" the character: they simply had only so many characters that they could make for the alpha arcade release, and Sophitia and Cassandra were somewhat redundant on one-another, so the choice was made to lead with the new sister and allow Sophitia to be added as development on the console version proceeded. Remember that the arcade release had only 16 playable characters, and even that was a significant increase over the previous title. They just couldn't add everyone at once, especially with a bevy of new faces, but that doesn't mean that they wanted the character gone and only relented in reintroducing her because of some fan outcry. For that matter, I don't recall any kind of major fan upheaval over Sophi's absence, other than the usual level of consternation that a particular character's fanbase feels and expresses when they are absent for a given entry.
That little caveat aside, though, I tend to agree with your predictions in the broad strokes (no surprise there as we've both been pretty sold on the most likely candidates and even the most likely order for some time). Though, I will say that the farther in we get, and with Hilde's having taken a spot, I begin to wonder if we will get both of the dao wielders in SCVI; I think it may be one or the other, since I think there is a decent chance that Namco/PS will be eager to add yet another guest next season. If that happens, then I think it is more likely that we lose either Yun-seong or Hwang, since they have a very similar style, a very similar design aesthetic, and for whatever reason (I'm beginning to wonder at that reason, if I am frank...) the both of them have been proven to be relatively unpopular with the devs over recent games. Of course, Li Long is also at least as likely to be chopped.
Personally, though I have no problem with guests and typically enjoy what they bring to the table, I'd rather see the SCIII:AE cast replicated in its entirety--which would mean Hwang, Setsuka, Lizardman, Rock, Yun-seong and Li Long, as the remaining characters, assuming a third season of four characters. But I suspect another guest character is more likely than not if there is a season three, so I think adding Hilde into the mix in season two might have nixed any hope of reconstituting the entirety of the classic era cast. But if that's the case, I really hope we get Tifa or a Tekken character as the guest, because by that point it would be disappointing not to get a brawler.
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DanteSC3
[14] Master
Then why not do the same to Sophitia? The Alexandras do have their differences, but so do Hwang and Yun-seong. They’re still pretty similar. Sophitia as a generic female warrior of some kind could have worked in a similar way as the other three, who were also only in the home version. And this is to say nothing of Mi-na, who looks quite different than Kilik for obvious reasons.
We might never really know, but whatever the reason characters don’t make it, there’s always some expectation set to bring them back, and if they aren’t, it generally leads to despair. I think Li Long is the most likely candidate for that position as of this moment, unless they save Yun-seong for SoulCalibur VII. Though you yourself have pointed out that being in SoulCalibur VI in no way guarantees a spot in SoulCalibur VII, so the complete roster may never happen. I would say a season three guest is practically on lock.
Rusted Blade
[14] Master
Yeah, but at least with the Sophitia and Cassandra there is at least that internal narrative consistency for their similarity as well as an easy to internalize story to contextualize them, right? But I suspect the real cause has more to do with the fact that Sophitia was (more so than any other character anyway) the female face of the franchise at that time, edging out even Taki in that respect, I think. I'm betting she was on the short list for characters to be added into the console release. I suspect she was one of the first characters to go into development for the console release, whereas the generic-brand trio were considered for addition to the game at a point late in the development, at which point the devs realized they could add one or two of those three characters if they gave them the full release treatment, or they could do all three if they kind of skimped on the deep character development and bonus content bells and whistles for those characters. Or it could have just been a flippant design decision. As you say, we are unlikely to ever know for sure, but I suspect it's some combination of those two factors.
I think you might be right, but I honestly go back and forth about whether Li Long is the one likely to get left out in the cold. On the one hand, Maxi has been designated sole nunchuka chuka' for a long time now, and I don't see a mad scramble to see Li Long back (not even at the level of other Hwang or Yun-seong). On the other hand, PS have left the two Korean swordsmen out with increasingly regularity over the same period, and frankly, I begin to wonder how calculated that decision is. So I also think it would in a way also be surprising to see them both introduced in one game, even across two separate seasons. Thing is, I think they both still carry enough legacy players that they may both be more appealing to the devs on that level than Li Long. But as I said, I go back and forth.
The one thing I think looks increasingly likely is another guest. And I see the logic behind it and am excited to contemplate who it may be. But wow, what a bummer to come so close to bringing the entire classical roster back together, only to stop short of one. That will be a shame regardless of who the guest might be and how well received they are. And for a certainty, I would rather have seen Hwang, Yun-seong, Li Long (or shit, even Arthur) in place of Haomaru, who has always felt like a lackluster design choice--an impression I have yet to be disabused of by the info/glimpses released thus far.
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Heniek
[13] Hero
I don't see two Dao guys happening in this game. I would sooner expect Viola to appear rather than Hwang and Yun Seung even in different seasons
I wouldn't mind to be wrong here tho
I wouldn't mind to be wrong here tho
LisaK
[14] Master
I completely agree, but I will not ignore the fact that in a few days or months we will have 3 characters using katana and don't forget we already has 3 zweihänder users..
Heniek
[13] Hero
Ugh, I won't even pay a dime for Hao because of how redundant he is design-wise when we have Mitsu. Also who is the third two-hander user?
LisaK
[14] Master
Inferno
LisaK
[14] Master
What I meant is that a repeated weapon would not be the problem, I mean, if they want to put it they will, Haohmaru is the greatest example of that.
Considering that both male Korean were excluded from the base & from Season 1, I think the most logical option would be Hwang, although I prefer Yun-seong (which is no secret to anyone).
Considering that both male Korean were excluded from the base & from Season 1, I think the most logical option would be Hwang, although I prefer Yun-seong (which is no secret to anyone).
Heniek
[13] Hero
Well I agree. I always stand by the idea that if they want to include a character they will regardless of story/lore/theme. I would also agree that Hwang makes more sense tho I always keep in mind that they have a base for Yun from SCIV which can not be said about Hwang. But that - we will see because inclusion of either cannot be stated as 100%
Rusted Blade
[14] Master
I wouldn't exactly say "regardless"; I do think that, with this game in any event, the devs have demonstrated a certain degree of fidelity to introducing the characters along roughly the same timeline as indicated in the first go around of the narrative. I think Dante has the right end of the stick at least as far as the assertion that this has been a strong trend in SCVI. Where I think most of us part ways with her, however (for a calvacade of reasons, I would argue) is the belief that the series will just continue to routely retell exactly the same story but just "better" (meaning some combination of more detailed or more artful, I suppose). I never would have been inclined to see that as where they were going with things (again, for a variety of reasons), but in any event, I don't think the devs could have been more unambiguous than they have been with the stories of the recent DLC characters in demonstrating that while SCVI mostly plays out exactly the events of SCI (plus debate-ably parts of other SC games), as the game comes to a conclusion with its continuing support seasons, its pretty clear that the bonds of the first cycle are breaking down, with multiple characters having some degree of perception into how things went down the last time, and every possible motivation to mix things up this time.
While I love a great pre-destination storyline as much as the next guy, it is unfeasable the magical ninja wooden cyborg vs. Lizardman vs. Yoda game was going to try to pull that off, rather than embrace the franchise's long-pandering meta-rhetoric goblidigook about souls seizing/forging their own destiny. To make this particular story actually turn out to involve completely predetermined roles for the hapless characters caught in this cycle of weird violence would actually be a rather subversive and kinda cool thing to do--or at least it would be if it weren't for the fact that the first go-around of the story was kinda...well, boring: no perma-death, pretty thin premises, and hokey dialogue that thankfully was reserved for a few cutscene lines delivered in over-the-top fashion that hit all the right notes, but only because the brevity allowed you to appreciate the aroma before it just got to be too much--indeed, much like aged cheese, Soulcalibur dialogue can be more than palatable as a quick snack, but you don't want to give the scent too much time to fill a space...
So, yeah, I can't disagree more on both questions (as to whether the story is re-replicating with complete synchronicity and whether we should actually want that), but that said, I also don't expect departures in the remaining DLC that are any more radical than those that have come before. So could Viola show up? I'm gonna say that I think that is very unlikely, but I am not nearly as close to being sure about the matter as Dante seems to feel. If I had to put a somewhat subjectively-arrived-at figure on it, I would say Viola has a less than 5% chance of being included at any point in the following six releases (if there is a four character Season Three), whereas Setsuka I would say is somewhere around 95% and Hwang, Lizardman and Rock around 80% each. Meaning I would be be rather surprised, but not shocked out of my wits to see Viola in Season Three, based on what has happened thus far, and especially with regard to recent DLC content.
I mean, that's a 12 year old asset from the beginning of the last console generation, while we're at the end of this one--I'm pretty sure they are just going to re-create those assets from scratch and with a design mostly consistent with how the characters looked in their earliest appearances, not SCIV, same as pretty much every other character. So I don't think those models account for much, or really anything at all. The real challenge with Hwang will be that he has been out of circulation for three or five games (depending on how you count the entries), which means that he and Li Long have the simplest of all available legacy movesets, relative to other options. So fleshing out his moves would arguably be a small bit more work than the same task would be for Yun-seong. I still think he just fits the bill better here for the back-to-the-beginning tone of this game. That said, Setsuka is the only one I think is more or less a lock for Season Two.
Anyway, tiny quibbles about what might happen aside, at the end of the day I think I mostly agree with Dante on the order of likelihood. I don't think my opinion has substantially changed from the last time this came up in a thread I was viewing:
Virtual lock for Season 2 --> Decent chance of being included in Season 2/Virtual lock by the end of a theoretical season 3 --> Very marginal chance of inclusion in Season 2/Decent chance by the end of three seasons --> Very limited chance of being included in SCVI at any point --> I'd be gobsmacked to see them in SCVI --> Never gonna happen/Let it go
Setsuka > Hwang > Rock > Lizardman/Aeon > a fourth guest > Yun-seong > Li Long > Algol > Viola > Dampierre > Z.W.E.I. > Natsu > Leixia > a new original character > Patroklos > Pyrrha > Xiba > a SCIII bonus style returning fully fleshed out (though I'd personally love to see Arthur re-appear in this fashion, if this is ever going to happen, it's clearly not gonna happen in a game with both Mitsu and Haohmaru) > a previously minor copy-cat character given a new complete style (Sorry Salia, Shura, Ashlotte and Kamikirimusi fans), although I do honestly hope that if the story gets back to the next generation kids again (in SCVII or another game), we get Bangoo as well this time around
Actually, I did end up switching the order of Yun-seong and the fourth guest there.
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TrooperSquid
[08] Mercenary
I'd like a mutated Ivy for once.
LisaK
[14] Master
and he already in SC VI as ugly CaS in Libra of Soul.
Crash X
[14] Master
He’s also one of Mitsu’s colour swaps upon the character select.
LisaK
[14] Master
Most of CaS in Libra are Mitsurugi. Arthur, Miser, Myeong, Kyam, Durer. Okubo will replace all minor characters by Mitsurugi clones.
RyujiSakamoto
Premium Member
inb4 Setsuka is the final character of SCVI Season 4 releasing in 2023
Ukkesh
[13] Hero
Inb4 setsuka and hang are released as mitsu clones