Editing Soul Edge (section)

==Gameplay==
[[File:Soul Edge gameplay.jpg|thumb|left|Gameplay screenshot of a fight between [[Taki (Soulcalibur)|Taki]] and [[Voldo]]]]

''Soul Edge'' was created prior to the introduction of the so-called 8-Way Run. The characters can sidestep to either side by double-tapping down to move to the foreground or tapping down then up to the background. The jump maneuver (which in ''[[Soulcalibur (video game)|Soulcalibur]]'' is more like a hop) moves the player higher into the air, even allowing it to pass above the opponent (much like in ''[[Tekken (video game)|Tekken]]''). The game uses an active block system performed by pressing the block button, and a combat system based on the three attack buttons: horizontal attack, vertical attack, and kick.

Character moves retain a feel of Namco's ''Tekken'' series. Each character has one or two slow but unblockable attacks. Each character is also capable of performing one or two "Critical Edge" attacks, consisting of a long series of linked hits, usually ending in a strong high attack. These moves require the input of a special combination of two parts: they are activated by pressing all three attack buttons together, and if it connects, the player has the chance of extending the combo with a character-specific sequence, which must be input during the attack. This attack depletes one-third of the Weapon Gauge when used.

The Weapon Gauge is a life bar for the character's equipped weapon. Each time the player blocks an attack, the bar depletes. If the bar is totally emptied, the weapon is lost and the character is forced to fight unarmed.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Soul Blade: A Little Bit of Soul Will Do you Right|magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]|issue=91|publisher=[[Ziff Davis]] |date=February 1997|pages=116–7}}</ref> The unarmed move-lists are the same for every character. Another feature that was removed from ''Soulcalibur''{{'}}s engine is a [[rock paper scissors]] situation when two character strike at the same time, locking their weapons; those who press the correct button have the advantage.

''Soul Edge'' uses an optional offensive block maneuver called the "Guard Impact" that allows players to intercept incoming attacks and push them back, resulting in a momentary opportunity for a free counterattack. Opponents, however, are also able to return a Guard Impact after receiving a Guard Impact, allowing for stalemate clashes until one opponent missed the subsequent timing. This gameplay feature is expanded in future ''Soul'' series games.

The game uses the ring out system, which is a forcible maneuver that ejects the opponent from the arena and gains an automatic victory for the round. To achieve a ring out, a character must be knocked outside the ring by an enemy (the player cannot accidentally or deliberately get a ring out by hopping out of the ring). The only exception to this rule is [[Cervantes de Leon|Cervantes]] and Inferno (known in this game as SoulEdge), who can get a ring out by themselves upon performing a certain special attack, as long as they are near the edge of the arena.