Bizarre Evolutions of Game Characters

Every so often, we see established game characters get an overhaul for the sake of keeping things fresh and new.  Most times these characters receive only minor changes, such as the Master Chief's armor in each Halo game, which seems to get more detailed over time yet retains the same overall look.  Other times the changes to characters can be extreme and will cause fan outcries of rage, such as when Nintendo unveiled the cel-shaded styling of Link in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker.  After all, as gamers we tend to collectively call for change, and collectively complain about it when change does occur.

In this article, let's take a look at how some game characters have evolved over the years, with changes that are not always for the best.

Raphael - Soulcalibur Series

Raphael made his first appearance in Soulcalibur II, where he was a mortal French noble with no personality and fighting moves ranging from decent to poor.  That's all there really is to say about this character in Soulcalibur II; I'm not one to slog through the implied story-lines in fighting games, especially the mess of the Soulcalibur series story, which basically boils down to "Character X wants the Soul Edge."

In Soulcalibur III and IV, the game developers for some reason decided to transform Raphael from a boring French guy into a somewhat less-boring French vampire.  Where the logic is found here, I'll never know.  Upon making the jump from Soulcalibur II to Soulcalibur IV, I was fairly surprised when discovering that the least-interesting character in the series had been given a Castlevania makeover.

Now we just need a Belmont to star in Soulcalibur VI.

I never even knew that vampires existed in the Soulcalibur universe, but I guess we shouldn't be too surprised, considering there are much weirder things in these games.

Dante - Devil May Cry Series

 

I probably don't even have to explain this one, if you are a fan of the DMC series then you know where this is going and you are likely outraged.  But for the uninitiated, Dante is the main protagonist in this series, a demon hunter who just so happens to be part-demon himself.  In the early Devil May Cry games Dante was a likeable badass, facing off against monstrous demons while still managing to crack a few jokes at their expense.  All was well with this character until Capcom's game designers all simultaneously received brain hemorrhages and decided to reboot the DMC series, including a reboot of Dante himself:

Really Capcom?  Really?  You take an awesome character like Dante and turn him into a whiny, emo, Anakin Skywalker-ish teenage brat?  Understandably there has been a huge outrage at this character's redesign, and nothing short of a triumphant return of the original Dante will appease this.

Sonic the Hedgehog

Yes, Sonic himself has seen his share of evolution over the years.  While not as truly shocking as the previous two characters we covered, Sonic has changed in a way that somewhat annoys me.  Look at the squat little hedgehog from Sonic the Hedgehog, we all know he's a 'hog with a 'tude, and this representation shows that fairly well:

In later entries in the Sonic series, I feel that Sega might have tried a little bit too hard to push the 'tude element of Sonic's personality:

Because flashing gang signs is cool, right?

What the hell happened to Sonic?  He looks like Sega's kid-friendly representation of a gang member.  Sonic was enough of a badass in the Sega Genesis days, we don't need him striking weird poses with his strangely lengthened and rubberized limbs while he flashes a creepy grin.

And that wraps up this quick look at some bizarre game character evolutions.  Have you guys found any game characters to evolve in such a way that it annoys you death?

When Star Wars Characters are out of Place

I like a good cameo appearance as much as anyone, and that's especially true when it comes to characters from one of my all-time favorite franchises: Star Wars.  When done correctly, with proper respect paid to the characters and the entire franchise, these cameos can be awesome.  When done not so well, we are left with something that's at best awkward, and at worst cringe-worthy.  Today we're going to take a look at some games that have had the privilege of including one or more Star Wars characters, even when they didn't quite fit in.

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3

Actually, including this game on the list shouldn't come as too big of a surprise.  The Tony Hawk series has been known to have crazy casts of secret characters, allowing you to bust combos as Iron Man or Bigfoot.  Tony Hawk 3 is notable due to the fact that one of the secret characters is the bad-ass who was killed off too quickly: Darth Maul.

Judging by the way he's holding that lightsaber, I don't think he recommends you try to edit his appearance or board.

Once you get over the fact that you are witnessing a Star Wars character perform 360 tailgrabs, you'll find that Darth Maul still looks like a bad-ass as he shreds around the maps holding his double-bladed lightsaber.  Therefore, this cameo appearance isn't one that should make you cringe too hard, unless of course you're one of those anti-everything-in-Episode 1 people.

Soulcalibur IV

When you think of the Soulcalibur games, what usually comes to mind are Victorian-era environments and characters obsessed with evil swords.  I'm willing to bet you don't immediately think of Darth Vader delivering a beatdown on Mitsurugi.  However, thanks to Soulcalibur IV, this is now the case!  The fourth game in this series included three Star Wars characters: Darth Vader, Yoda, and the Apprentice (from The Force Unleashed).

What? Don't you remember when Darth Vader and Yoda dueled in the medieval castle in The Empire Strikes Back?

These characters are all way out of place in a Soulcalibur game, and sadly they all look just plain goofy while they battle the fantasy characters who are regulars in the series.  Forget a galaxy far far away, the Soulcalibur universe is a whole other dimension far far away from Star Wars.  To Namco's credit, they did do a good job making sure the Star Wars characters retained their mannerisms instead of going all out goofy, and playing a Darth Vader vs. Yoda battle in a Star Destroyer docking bay is pretty awesome.

The Dance Mode in Kinect Star Wars

I can hear you all forming the same sentence: "Now wait a minute Rob, how can this be a cameo appearance when this is an actual Star Wars game?"  Well I had no choice but to include this game on my list, due to the disastrous way the developers handled our beloved Star Wars characters in the dance mode (there shouldn't even be a dance mode in a Star Wars game).  In the movies, Emperor Palpatine does NOT dance, neither does Darth Vader or any other protagonist/antagonist in the series.  Yet Kinect Star Wars has all of our favorite characters busting a groove and looking completely stupid doing so.  Words cannot describe it, so you'll have to see for yourself:



And that concludes our quick look at some Star Wars cameos in other game franchises.  If you're a Star Wars fan, I hope this list didn't ruin the series too much for you!  I personally get along just fine by pretending the lousy Kinect game doesn't exist.

The Fighters of Soul Calibur: Meet the Freak Show

First off, before I get accused of bashing, I would like to say that I'm a fan of fighting games, especially the Soul Calibur games.  They are some of the easiest games to pick up and play, with enough depth and fun factor to keep you coming back for years.  In a game a such as Soul Calibur, where the battle between good and evil is always present, mainly due to two magical swords, you expect to see a certain degree of mystical character design.  Soul Calibur definitely provides the mystical characters, such as the ghost pirate Cervantes and the possessed knight Nightmare.

Cervantes

Nightmare

However, the Soul Calibur games are also home to many freakish characters, and that is what I'm here to talk about: the top 3 freaks of the Soul Calibur games.

3. Yoshimitsu

Yoshimitsu is just as much a badass as he is a freaky character.  Does this ninja let the loss of his arm stop him or even slow him down?  Not a chance, he shows his skill by wearing a prosthetic and using it as his primary sword-wielding arm.

Now the reason I put him into the freak category is mainly because of his fighting style and his personality in general.  While uttering strange ninja-ish cries, he performs moves such as using his sword like a pogo-stick and bouncing all around, or flying through the air by spinning the sword like a helicopter blade (and sometimes using the little flag attached to his back), or even spinning himself around like a ballerina until he collapses from making himself dizzy.  Victories usually result in him sitting in some awkward pose and making strange noises that can't really be described.

2. Necrid (Soul Calibur II only)

Now we're really starting to move into freak territory.  This not-so-jolly green giant made only one appearance in the Soul Calibur series, and due to low popularity we probably won't be seeing him again.  Besides being laughable in appearance, he speaks his own unintelligible language consisting of growls and mumbles, which can also earn some laughs from time to time.  His in-game story is pretty bland, he was a mighty warrior who happened to come across some shards of the evil sword Soul Edge, which then turned him into the Hulk's little brother.  After all these years I still can't figure out what the deal is with the lava spotlight strapped to his chest, but due to strange design he earns the 2nd spot on this freaky list.

1. Voldo 

Voldo is hands down the strangest character in all the Soul Calibur games.  Words cannot describe how odd it is to see this character in motion, even watching him stand idle is a weird experience.  Voldo is blind and mute, and only speaks through eery hissing sounds and the occasional moan.  His fighting style is as unorthodox as you can imagine, with a variety of movements that you would never expect a human to perform.  Yes, as hard as it is to believe, especially after seeing Voldo's animations, he is human.  See for yourself why I have crowned Voldo the king of Soul Calibur freaks.


And that wraps up our look at the freaks of the Soul Calibur series.  Until next time, happy fighting!