18 Years Ago, This Fighting Game Had The Most Surprising Guest Characters Of All Time

Guest characters in Fighting Games can be hit or miss, with some being great opportunities to promote a particular title by using a figure from a well-known IP. Sometimes, these are chances to have other fighting game icons go into a similar but different world, such as Terry Bogard or Mai Shiranui in Street Fighter 6. However, picks like Negan from The Walking Dead in Tekken 7 are wild cases of surprising guests, a strategy that one game did infamously with legendary characters.

Some of the worst guest characters have been fighters that don’t quite “fit” into whatever game they’re featured in. These figures don’t typically attract new players for a wider audience, but rather create a strange roster addition that only gets more out-of-place over time. A good example of this is the soccer/football star Ronaldo in Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, a strange real-world guest who fits the game less and less as it continues to receive DLC fighters.

Soul Calibur IV Saw Guest Characters Yoda, Darth Vader, & Starkiller From Star Wars In 2008

One of the biggest guest character drops in any fighting game was in Soul Calibur IV, where the title had iconic figures from the Star Wars franchise on its roster. The Sith Lord Darth Vader, Jedi Master Yoda, and original character Starkiller from Star Wars: The Force Unleashed were all playable fighters in Soul Calibur 4 back when it released in 2008. Soul Calibur had long been a beloved arcade series of 3D fighting games, where fast movement and weapon-based fighting defined a tale of souls and swords, eternally retold.

Yet, for that premise, Star Wars was the least expected IP to pull characters from. Soul Calibur was no stranger to impactful guest characters, as Soul Calibur 2‘s GameCube version also had a playable version of Link from The Legend of Zelda series. That being said, Soul Calibur 4‘s inclusion of Darth Vader and Yoda were promoted far more, with both characters taking up spots on the game’s primary cover art before launch. In many ways, the Star Wars characters were a key selling point for the game 18 years ago, rather than the returning figures like Mitsurugi, Nightmare, or other fighters from Soul Calibur‘s history.

Soul Calibur 4 also had full arcade story modes for each character, so players could see how Darth Vader, Yoda, or Starkiller fit into the larger universe the fighting game had established. Unlocked through various objectives within the game, each character had fully fleshed out moves to match others in Soul Calibur 4, including 3D movement and lightsaber combat and Force abilities from the extremely popular films and other Star Wars media. This crossover was mainly done to promote Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, with Starkiller in particular being added as a way to get players to try that title.

Differences In Game Editions Only Allowed Certain Star Wars Figures To Become Playable

Not everyone was able to play as both Yoda and Darth Vader, even if Starkiller was someone who could be universally unlocked by beating the Arcade mode of Soul Calibur 4 with either other Star Wars character. Yoda was an exclusive character to the Xbox 360 version of the game, while the PlayStation 3 edition of Soul Calibur 4 hosted Darth Vader. Considering how Starkiller’s first appearance was actually in Soul Calibur 4 rather than Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, his ties to the exclusive Star Wars characters went even deeper than just shocking guests for a cameo appearance.

One of the reasons why the console differences were so prominent in Soul Calibur 4 were how Yoda and Darth Vader were instantly playable from the moment the game was booted up. Many other Soul Calibur characters were locked behind completing various tasks, such as playing through arcade mode or defeating other characters in the Story of the game. After some time, Yoda and Darth Vader could eventually be purchased as DLC characters for the opposing game editions, meaning Darth Vader could be bought for the Xbox 360 and Yoda for the PS3.

Overpowered Guest Characters Were Often Banned In Competitive Play, Similar To Soul Calibur’s Past

Even with Darth Vader and Yoda becoming playable on all versions of Soul Calibur 4, both characters were hardly seen in competition, much like Link from Soul Calibur 2. This was due to how fundamentally broken the guest characters were to the game, with Yoda at the center of most fighter ban conversations. While Darth Vader was clearly strong, Yoda was overpowered due to his short height, which preventing many characters from being able to attack him with their moves. Half of a character’s tools would simply miss Yoda, who could attack back without consequence.

The console exclusivity initially banned Yoda and Darth Vader, as it was unfair to include them as playable tournament picks when many competitors could never have a chance at preparing how to fight them. This was the case with Link back in Soul Calibur 2, who never was tournament viable, even if the Legend of Zelda protagonist was never as busted as Yoda. On the other hand, Yoda never did come back to competitive play due to his unique physical hitbox advantages.

Players were still reluctant to include Starkiller or Darth Vader as well, even if they had their own balanced strengths and weaknesses. The inclusion of these characters was a huge success for bringing in newcomers to the series, arguably beginning a trend of how guest fighters were treated in the genre for years to come. Although Soul Calibur would never get another Star Wars character in its roster again, guests like Final Fantasy 7‘s Tifa in Street Fighter or Alien and Predator in Mortal Kombat X owe their existence to Darth Vader, Yoda, and Starkiller in some way.

Who are your favorite guest characters ever introduced in an unlikely fighting game? Leave a comment below or join the conversation in the ComicBook Forum!