40 Fun Facts About Soulcalibur IV

Which long-extinct flightless bird wanders around Distant Marsh, the lush swamp stage in Soulcalibur IV?

Dodo birds stroll through the swamp beside a sunbathing hippo, an odd pairing since real dodos lived only on Mauritius.

At launch, which Star Wars guest fighter was playable only in the Xbox 360 version of Soulcalibur IV?

Yoda was the Xbox 360's exclusive guest, and critics called him broken because he is too short for grab attacks to connect.

Emptying an opponent's Soul Gauge in Soulcalibur IV opens a brief chance to land which new match-winning move?

Critical Finish moves defeat the opponent instantly, and every fighter has a unique one, set off by pressing all four face buttons together.

Which Ice Age animal lies frozen in Soulcalibur IV's Ice Coffin of the Sleeping Ancient, home stage of Cervantes?

Woolly mammoth is not the only relic in the ice: the stage also shows the fossil of a dinosaur-like creature and a pirate ship in the distance.

The Apprentice, a guest fighter in Soulcalibur IV, is the lead character of which Star Wars video game?

The Force Unleashed reached shops about seven weeks after Soulcalibur IV, so many players met Darth Vader's secret apprentice here first.

Which ancient Hero King waits atop the Tower of Remembrance as the Story mode boss of Soulcalibur IV?

Algol shaped the tower from his own memories, which is how it got its name, and it would vanish like a mirage if his power ran out.

Which long-awaited feature did Soulcalibur IV add for the first time in the history of the Soulcalibur series?

Online multiplayer came with two rule sets: Standard VS for classic matches and Special VS, where customised fighters keep their special skills.

Which newcomer to Soulcalibur IV, heir to a besieged kingdom, fights on the rotating Wolfkrone Monument stage?

Hilde took the throne of Wolfkrone while still young after her father was driven insane, and she leads its armies from the front line.

On Astaroth's Kunpaetku Shrine stage in Soulcalibur IV, which creatures stand at the edges holding forks and knives?

Lizardmen wait at the rim like diners, and slamming a fighter into one knocks it off the stage.

Which way of winning is impossible on Tower of Remembrance - Spiral of Time, a small round chamber in Soulcalibur IV?

Ring out wins cannot happen because the stone chamber is completely walled in, so the stage rewards slamming rivals into its walls instead.

Phantom Pavilion, the Soulcalibur IV stage ringed by performing bears and elephants, is the home stage of which fighter?

Voldo fights inside a circus cage in front of a huge crowd, and hitting a rival against the walls makes them fall away to widen the arena.

Which Soulcalibur IV mode unlocks the Seesaw version of the Phantom Pavilion stage?

Tower of Lost Souls hides the tilting stage in a treasure chest on its 14th floor, one of dozens of chests with their own secret conditions.

Which John Williams piece plays when The Apprentice fights on Soulcalibur IV's Star Destroyer Docking Bay stages?

Duel of the Fates was written for the lightsaber fight with Darth Maul in The Phantom Menace, yet here it follows a pupil of Darth Vader.

Which body part of the sword Soul Edge is set into the floor of Soulcalibur IV's Tower of Remembrance - Encounter?

A giant eye, visibly rotten, sits in the floor at the summit, a stage so high that it rises above the clouds.

What surrounds the rocky Ancient Gate stage at the foot of the Tower of Remembrance in Soulcalibur IV?

Lava rings the rocks, and listening closely reveals a hiss when a beaten fighter drops into it.

Which Greek warrior sides with evil in Soulcalibur IV to protect her kidnapped daughter Pyrrha?

Sophitia defends Soul Edge after being told that her daughter, corrupted by the sword, would die without its energy.

Which knight, once the host of Soul Edge, starts Soulcalibur IV having died and been revived by Soul Calibur?

Siegfried returns carrying the spirit sword, while Nightmare, now a suit of living armour, holds Soul Edge.

What moves slowly forward during fights in Soulcalibur IV's Ostrheinsburg Castle Throne Room, shrinking the arena?

A line of knights in black armour serves as one wall of the room, and a chasm waits at one end.

Which PSP spin-off reused Soulcalibur IV stages such as Wolfkrone Monument and Hall of the Warrior God?

Broken Destiny carried the stages to a handheld but left out the Star Wars guests, bringing in Kratos from God of War instead.

In Soulcalibur IV's Hall of the Warrior God, knocking an opponent into which instrument makes it sound and swing?

A gong is one of two in the hall, which also hides its ledges behind large vases that can be shattered.

Which fighter's home stage in Soulcalibur IV is Egyptian Temple - Sacred Flame, a caged arena under a full moon?

Yun-seong fights in a rebuilt version of an older temple stage, now caged, lit by a full moon and rotating.

Which series veteran shares the snowy Jyurakudai Villa stage in Soulcalibur IV with Setsuka, who is hunting him?

Mitsurugi mortally wounded Setsuka's master in battle, which is why she pursues him.

Which fighter, able to keep reincarnating, calls Grand Labyrinth - Corridor of Suspended Time home in Soulcalibur IV?

Zasalamel fights in a corridor based on labyrinth stages from two earlier games, where a wall symbol is an ancient sign for Soul Edge.

Thesmophoros' Imperial Garden, a shrine ringed by palm trees, is the default backdrop for which part of Soulcalibur IV?

Character Creation opens on this tropical shrine, where a peak that could be a mountain or a volcano rises in the distance.

Sailor's Rest, a sunlit ship deck in Soulcalibur IV, is the home stage of Seong Mi-na and which other fighter?

Maxi, a wandering pirate from the Ryukyu Kingdom, suits the setting, where parts of the ship's sides can be smashed to open a drop.

Which Rebel craft sometimes flies through Soulcalibur IV's Star Destroyer Docking Bay alongside an Imperial TIE fighter?

X-wing and TIE fighter both swoop in and out of the hangar, and each Star Wars stage is visible in the background of the other two.

The Soul Gauge in Soulcalibur IV was designed to stop players leaning too heavily on which defensive habit?

Guarding wears down the gem beside the health bar until it flashes red, a design meant to quicken matches and reward attacking.

What does the Active Matching Battle system let a player do in the middle of a Soulcalibur IV Story mode fight?

Switch fighters and the match carries on: new opponents also run in straight after a knockout instead of a fresh round starting.

Shura, a bonus fighter in Soulcalibur IV, was designed by Hiroya Oku, the artist behind which manga series?

Gantz artist Hiroya Oku was one of five guest designers, and his fighter Shura borrows the fighting style of Cervantes.

Which landmark from Darth Vader's own universe is visible beyond the hangar in Soulcalibur IV's Docking Bay stages?

Death Star scenery sits beyond the hangar while TIE fighters streak past, as if a space battle were under way outside.

Which servant of Soul Edge, the kidnapper of Pyrrha, has a split personality in Soulcalibur IV?

Tira's mind shattered when Soul Edge and Soul Calibur clashed, and it re-formed as two separate personalities.

Which Japanese company, also behind the Tekken series, published Soulcalibur IV for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360?

Namco Bandai later sold each Star Wars guest as a download for the rival console, though both were eventually removed from sale.

Which feature of Soulcalibur IV charts each character's motivations and relationships with the other fighters?

Chain of Souls maps how the cast connect, while the story itself is told through written profiles and cutscenes.

Which Tekken series producer told fans on Twitter he would consider making a sequel to Soulcalibur IV?

Katsuhiro Harada asked fans to keep their messages short and simple because of his limited English, and the follow-up was announced in 2011.

Which publisher signed a deal to distribute Soulcalibur IV in Europe, Australia and other PAL territories?

Ubisoft released a SteelBook edition there in place of the Premium Edition, with a bonus DVD of trailers, wallpapers and concept art.

What happens to a Star Wars guest fighter in Soulcalibur IV when the character's Force Meter is fully drained?

Briefly loses control is the penalty, so Force chokes, blasts and lightning have to be rationed while the meter slowly refills.

Which destructible figures line the edge of Soulcalibur IV's Wolfkrone Monument and make knocking noises during battle?

Wooden musicians break apart when a fighter is thrown onto one, leaving a gap in the edge that a later victim can fall through.

Which fighter's home stage in Soulcalibur IV is Ostrheinsburg Castle - Twilight, set under grey storm clouds?

Taki fights within sight of the cursed city, on a stage closely modelled on a castle battlement from the previous game.

Distant Marsh, a swamp walled by vine-covered ruins in Soulcalibur IV, is the home stage of which fighter?

Talim's swamp came back in the PSP follow-up as a night-time stage with all of its animals gone.

Which American cable channel's annual ceremony honoured Soulcalibur IV as the best fighting title of its release year?

Spike TV gave it the prize at its Video Game Awards, and IGN also named it the best Xbox 360 fighting game of that year.