Soul Calibur 2 HD Online Announced For PS3 & Xbox 360

The trend of reviving old classics and giving them the glorious HD make-over continues, and I’m certainly not complaining as later in the year we have DuckTales, Mickey Mouse: Castle of Illusion and Strider to name a few all to look forward too. But the next classic game to receive the all-star treatment is another personal favourite of mine, namely Soul Calibur 2, which will be released this autumn for the PS3 and Xbox 360.

Namco Bandai announced Soul Calibur 2 HD Online at the San Diego Comic-Con to mark it’s 10 year anniversary. Other than the original Soul Calibur on the Sega Dreamcast (not forgetting PSONE’s Soul Blade), Soul Calibur 2 has always remained my favourite from the series. Soul Calibur 2 HD Online will be based on the PS2 version, which will mean that it will include one of beat em ups most instantly recognisable characters, Heihachi from the Tekken series.

Soul Calibur 2 was also released on the Gamecube and the original Xbox, each with their very own exclusive characters. As we already know the PS2 version had Heihachi, while the Gamecube had Link from the Legend of Zelda and the Xbox version had the iconic Comic book character Spawn, who was created by Todd McFarlane. But according to Eurogamer, when asked if the other two exclusive characters would be in the HD remake, publisher Namco Bandai refused to comment, stating only that more details would be revealed later. So watch this space.

Here are the official details straight from Namco Bandai:

Soul Calibur II Celebrates Its 10 Year Anniversary with New Online Battles and Updated HD Graphics

Leading video game publisher and developer Namco Bandai Games America today announced Soul Calibur II HD Online, available on Xbox Live Arcade for Xbox 360 games and entertainment system from Microsoft and PlayStation Network for PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system. Heralded as one of the best fighting games of all-time, Soul Calibur II returns to consoles this year with crisp new high definition graphics and all-new online modes in celebration for its 10-year anniversary.

Developed by Project Soul, the elite development team at Namco Bandai Studios, Soul Calibur II HD Online reimagines the beloved title by adding online multiplayer support to the title as well as vibrant updated graphics to take advantage of modern high definition TVs. For the first time ever, players will be able to square off against opponents from around the world with their favourite Soul Calibur II characters such as Ivy, Taki, Mitsurugi, Talim, Maxi and more. The online infrastructure will feature brand new netcode overseen by the Project Soul development team. Soul Calibur II HD Online will also come with the multitude of modes found in the original release including: Arcade, Survival, VS Battle, Time Attack, Survival, Team Battle, Practice and Weapon Master.

“For more than a decade the Soul Calibur franchise has been one of the preeminent head-to-head fighting franchises for consoles,” said Chris Gilbert, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Namco Bandai Games America “Soul Calibur II HD Online lets fans relive an important chapter of the series’ history with beautifully enhanced graphics and new online gameplay.”

Screenshots via AGB