Nearly four years have passed since Namco released the original Soul Calibur on Sega's Dreamcast, a shining knight of a game in terms of graphics, playability and style. Together with Virtua Tennis, it contributed to keeping Sega's console on life support but couldn't save it from the plug eventually being pulled. Back to the present and, while the blue swirl has long since been replaced by a green X, have we as discerning games players also really changed with the times?

The answer, although many of us would like to think we've grown up and become able to define the wheat from the chaff is, in reality, no. We still like the same type of games - we just like to see continual developments and improvements. But one genre that hasn't really moved with the times is the beat-'em-up. It should have soared into the stratosphere three years ago, but it didn't.

Sure, Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance and Tao Feng: Fist Of The Lotus are fine games, but are you still playing them now? Chances are, probably not. Dead Or Alive 3 did wonders to showcase the graphical prowess of Xbox but still highlighted some fiddly control issues as the combat just didn't seem to flow the way it should. It seems the beat-'em-ups genre has been racing two steps forward and one step back with no real signs of bucking the trend... that is, until now. Soul Calibur II has arrived.

It's set amongst the incidental backdrop of travelling various lands to retrieve Soul Edge - a huge cyclopic sword containing more evil than all the Exorcist movies put together. The two-part (Normal and Extra stages) saga follows a mystically daft plot, which attempts to feel like Fist Of The North Star but reads like a bad translation of Homer's Iliad. But forget the story - it's all about the gameplay.

The 20 fighters (five of which are hidden) take in the broadest of influences, from the original denizen of pirate evil Cervantes and his successor, the Soul Edge-slashing Nightmare, to newbies such as Necrid (a fiendishly brilliant creation capable of dynamically morphing his weapon into those of others) and Todd McFarlane's axe-spinning ex-CIA agent Spawn as the exclusive Xbox bonus. You are not simply limited to a collection of ninjas or the usual out-world-roaming freaks - the fighters are as diverse as they are plentiful.

Strictly speaking, all the characters are unique although some heavy hitters like Nightmare and Astaroth (imagine Street Fighter's Zangief has eaten Eddie Honda, choked to death and returned from hell with a blue tinge and a bloody great big axe) can carry even the most novice player through the early stages of all modes. The learning curve soon hots up though, no more so than in Weapon Master mode (the story mode) when you're faced with specific tasks, such as low gravity fights (where you can only harm your opponent in the midst of a flying combo) or facing a ridiculously short time limit (the only chance of winning the bout being a speedy ring out).

Graphically, the developer has really gone to town with the character art. Three different costumes for each character, tiny details like hair movement, Astaroth's beating heart pounding through his chest and neon light trails begin where Dead Or Alive 3 left off, only this time with a fluidity of movement that sets a new standard.

Character playability is second to none. Each fighter has different speeds and attacking range coupled with a multitude of special weapons techniques. You can use fakes to throw your opponent off the scent of a routine attack and conjure up endless freeform combos that succeed through perfectly responsive character dynamics.

Using the horizontal, vertical and circular strike system, both with and without weapons, makes getting into a basic fighting rhythm easy. It also provides a graduated jump onto advanced techniques such as parries, throws and powered-up moves, accessed by holding down the Right trigger. Causing harm to your opponent in later levels of the Weapon Master mode could be limited to a particular attack or defensive technique - some characters even take on invisibility. Similarly, your fighter could be handicapped by diminishing health or having an ineffective guard for the opponent's chosen weapon. Combat offers great sophistication, but wraps it in an intuitive and highly responsive control system.

As for your surroundings, backgrounds and arenas are exceptionally detailed with running water, stunning atmospheric lighting and great shadows. While nowhere near as interactive as the multi-level street battles of DOA3, Soul Calibur II's environments are plentiful and beautifully drawn. Dungeon levels harbour landmines, lava rings or quicksand and, with the inclusion of a number of fully walled arenas, Namco has made sure that progression through the game is down to lightning-fast brain power not just muscle-bound brawn or the size of your weapon (although that certainly helps).

Enemy AI is fairly challenging on certain levels, but once you've given Soul Calibur II a week of solid play, any difficulty bar Extra Hard shows repetitive cracks as you can spot attacks coming from routine stances a mile off. Minor gripe over, the title more than makes up for this slight lapse by its constant expansion in Extra Arcade, Survival, Time Attack and Versus modes, where you can use weapons gleaned in the Master mode to inflict all manner of pain on your prey. It is in Extra Versus mode where the longevity of Soul Calibur II really lies, as fighting another human opponent throws in the element of surprise, making this without doubt the most in-depth and satisfying two-player beat-'em-ups the Xbox has ever seen.

If you like fighting but prefer to sustain virtual injuries rather than painful broken bones, then buy this game. It's the new benchmark beat-'em-ups on Xbox.

1. Easy to pick up but difficult to master
2. Great control
3. Graphically superb
4. The most fluid fighter ever played

1. AI on Easy and Medium difficulty wears thin over time

Power
A technical tour de force from the fluid movement to the extremely high-res character animation.

Style
Quality all the way, with flawless graphics and lighting plus a great orchestral score.

Immersion
Grabs you at the start and holds you tight with advanced moves, extra stages and tons of weapons.

Lifespan
The depth of fighting is immense, especially when fighting skllled human opponents.

Summary
This is as seminal for Xbox gamers as Street Fighter II was for followers of the SNES back in 1991. The future starts here.