Namco’s port of its big-time fighting game franchise SoulCalbur has just received a sizeable update, bringing Bluetooth multiplayer to the title for everyone – except iPod Touch owners.
The update adds a much-asked-for game mode to the fighting title, which features a 3-D space for fighting and was originally released in 1999 on the Sega Dreamcast. The version that made its way to iOS is actually a port of the Xbox 360 re-release from 2008, and features some solidly updated graphics and good virtual controls to bring the console game to mobile devices.
But all along, players have been upset about the lack of multiplayer, despite the inclusion of other game modes. Now Namco has partially remedied the situation, allowing players to duke it out with a Bluetooth connection. It’s no online multiplayer (a feature for which players keep asking), but it’s definitely better than nothing, especially considering SoulCalibur was built for players to fight each other from way back when it was just an arcade cabinet.
As TouchArcade reports, however, it’s also important that players note they won’t be getting access to Bluetooth multiplayer if they’re using an iPod Touch. Already, SoulCalibur needs some pretty powerful equipment, requiring some of the latest iOS devices to work. Players need an iPhone 4 or newer, an iPad 2 or newer, or an iPod Touch 4 in order to be able to run the game.
But there are still players who aren’t very happy with the game’s lack of multiplayer support for the iPod Touch, even if they’re a smaller minority. Others complain about the lack of iCade support and, of course, the Wi-Fi multiplayer.
At the moment, though, SoulCalibur remains a quality addition to the fighting game genre in Apple’s iTunes App Store, and the Bluetooth multiplayer mode is a great addition to the game. It’d be nice if Namco could go further with the game’s features, but there’s still a lot available. Namco charges quite a bit for SoulCalibur – $14.99, usually – and some players think that should help bring more features to the title.
To celebrate the recent big update, Namco has lowered the price a couple of dollars, bringing it down to $11.99.
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