Soul Edge

Soul Edge is a fighting game in which swords, spears, chain weapons, and other cold weapons decide the outcome instead of fists and kicks. Characters from around the world search for a cursed weapon called Soul Edge, which promises power but gradually turns its owner into a monster. Namco laid the foundation for the entire Soulcalibur series with it, and the combat system built on weapons, guard impacts, and eight directions of movement (the so-called eight-way run) became its hallmark – instead of the usual circling around the opponent, it let players sidestep and change their angle of attack.

The arcade version ran on the Namco System 11 hardware and was built primarily for fast, repeatable fights at the machine – a number of arenas also had dangerous edges from which an opponent could be knocked out for a spectacular ring-out. The cabinets could also be linked together, so two players could compete each on their own machine side by side. For its time, the game also excelled visually – the fighters' finely animated models and a short opening cinematic were among the best things you could see in arcades in the mid-1990s, and this audiovisual side helped Soul Edge stand apart from the fighting-game competition of the time built purely around punches and kicks, since it shifted the emphasis from fast strike combinations to reading distance and the reach of individual weapons.

Compared to later home versions, though, it lacks the bonus modes – there is no Edge Master Mode here, no character editor, and no alternate endings. Characters only get a brief introductory bio without deeper story context, and the whole experience is measured out to be completed over a few coins, not over dozens of hours of solo play. It's the version through which players around the world first got to know the game in arcades, before it made it home.

Why play it: The arcade Soul Edge is for players who want to experience the fighting game in its purest, fastest form – without bonus modes or side content, exactly as it looked with the first coin dropped into the machine.